Two figures sat at the table, a picture book open before them. Claire's arm was about her little nephew's shoulder. His face was turned up to hers, but his finger still pointed to the page which they had been studying.
"And was he brave, enormously brave?" he was asking. "As brave as--as Muhammed?"
"Braver than Muhammed," she said quietly. "Because he was--good."
He debated a moment.
"As brave as the pig man, then?" he suggested. "He's been good, always?"
Aylmer stepped forward.
"Not always," he said smiling. "Not even often. But just as much as he knew how to be."
The glances which met his were startled but full of welcome. With a cackle of delight little John ran from his seat.
"It's him, himself--the pig man!" he cried.
Aylmer smiled and held out his hand.
Then he turned.
In Claire's eyes the surprise had vanished. They were full of inquiry, of an agony of question. Her lips were pale and faltered over the words which would not come.
He nodded, gravely, significantly.
She gave a little gasp. The color rushed to her cheeks, flooded to her brow. As if some strong chord of tension had broken in her breast, she leaned against the table, quivering.
"Yes," said Aylmer, quietly. "That shadow is lifted from our lives. He is gone--God's hand fell upon him--as you told him it would. The future of this life," he laid his fingers tenderly upon the child's head, "is in your hands now." He paused. "And my life, Claire--that is yours, too, to deal with, as you will."
She lifted her head.
The wave of emotion had passed and left her calm again. The haggardness, the anxious lines, were smoothed. Only in her eyes remained the mist of unshed tears. And as the mist sinks from the face of the risen sun, so the shadow of passed sorrow fled before her dawning smile. Slowly she came towards him.
With a sigh of infinite content her hands reached out to--and placed their surrender in--his.
By E. PHILLIPS OPPENHEIM
THE ILLUSTRIOUS PRINCE
Mr. Oppenheim's new story is a narrative of mystery and international intrigue that carries the reader breathless from page to page. It is the tale of the secret and world-startling methods employed by the Emperor of Japan through Prince Maiyo, his close kinsman, to ascertain the real reasons for the around-the-world cruise of the American fleet. The American Ambassador in London and the Duke of Denvenham, an influential Englishman, work hand in hand to circumvent the Oriental plot, which proceeds mysteriously to the last page. From the time when Mr. Hamilton Fynes steps from the _Lusitania_ into a special tug, in his mad rush towards London, to the very end, the reader is carried from deep mystery to tense situations, until finally the explanation is reached in a most unexpected and unusual climax.
No man of this generation has so much facility of expression, so many technical resources, or so fine a power of narration as Mr. E. Phillips Oppenheim.--_Philadelphia Inquirer._
Mr. Oppenheim is a past master of the art of constructing ingenious plots and weaving them around attractive characters.--_London Morning Post._
By ANTHONY PARTRIDGE
The Author of "The Kingdom of Earth"
PASSERS-BY
This new novel by Anthony Partridge, whose absorbing romance, "The Kingdom of Earth," met with instant favor, has London for its scene. But when you have read it you will admit that real London, as well as imaginary Bergeland, is a source of fascinating romance.
The heroine of "Passers-By" is a street singer, Christine, who comes to London accompanied by Ambrose Drake, a hunchback, with a piano and a monkey. The fortunes of these two are strangely linked with those of an English statesman, the Marquis of Ellingham, who in his youth has led a wild and criminal career in Paris as the leader of a band of thieves and gamblers, the Black Foxes. Here is the material for a thrilling tale in which mystery breeds adventure and culminates in love.
The first chapter plunges the reader into an interest-compelling maze of events, and the attention is held to the end by a series of dramatic situations and surprises.
Mr. Partridge is now reckoned among the favorite novelists of the day.
His first book was "The Distributors," the story of a great London mystery. Then came "The Kingdom of Earth," one of the popular novels of 1909. "Passers-By" is his third book.
_By_ JOHN IRONSIDE
THE RED SYMBOL
_A Swiftly Moving Mystery Story_
Here is a tale of love, mystery, and adventure, that opens with a rush and holds the interest unflagging to the end. If you like a stirring love story, prepare to be fascinated by the charming but baffling heroine; if you enjoy an absorbing mystery, be ready to cudgel your brains over a perplexing one; if you care for adventures that thrill, follow Maurice Wynn through the mad whirl of events that befall him when he goes to Russia and becomes involved with a secret society of Nihilists. Better yet, if you're fond of a rattling good yarn, one which combines all three elements, love, mystery, and action, in just the right proportions, take up "The Red Symbol," and when you have turned the last page, with nerves all tingling, you will regret that you're not just starting.
This swiftly moving narrative promises to be one of the most popular novels of 1910.
By MRS. CHARLES N. CREWDSON
AN AMERICAN BABY ABROAD
When the American baby's mother hurries off from London to Egypt, where her husband is ill with fever, the baby, in company with its colored nurse and a friend of its mother's, follows more leisurely. The trio stop at Oberammergau to see the Passion Play, in Rome to witness a special mass conducted by Pope Leo,--in a word, do more or less sightseeing, until they finally reach Cairo, where much more exciting events befall them. The description of the places they visit is enhanced by a pleasant vein of humor, and an attractive love episode sustains the interest. It is an extremely entertaining story, light and vivacious, with brisk dialogue and diverting situations--just the book for summer reading.
A series of characteristic pictures, by the well-known artist, Mr. R. F.
Outcault, and Modest Stein gives additional charm to the volume.