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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Herald, 1914-02-20, Page 6tlom of arefl • Q!reatli.ear 1engagement -Give mea little time: Give nae three - weeks, Monists! You iniu.et, give a, man time! You must do that 1 I love you 1 I swear I do 1 Give rue—" "Listen; Derrell.!" the said fatly. "I shall expect you at 4 o'clock tan November 22nd.. Then you will. either tell me what •secret to haunts you, or we must part 1" .As Big Ben struck the hour Dar-, ell Greathee& was shown into the drawisig-room at Lady Bellhouse's mension in Belgrave Square. Hs was old. Tho 'three weeks since lie ,had had his last interview with Monica seemed to have added twenty years to his age. His vital- ity, his air of strength and deter- mination were gone. He was old— bowed sand feeble as an old man. He kissed her and ,she awaited Me words. "Monica!" !" he buret forth, his voice full of pain. "Have pity on me 1. • What I and about to tell you is horrible, I 'know. You are only a woman --weak and unaccustomed to the diabolical things of life --,and yet I pray you to allow me the eon - passion which is woman's divieest gift! And if, in my pleading, I ask you to sacrifice yourself, do not reject me in the scorn that rides quicker than pity and faster than love." He paused a moment and she awaited his words in silence—her heart torn; between love and dread. "For three weeks I have wrestled with hell as no man before has wrestled. I have tried—God knows how I have tried—to overcome my- self. The cleverest advisers in Eu- rope have tried to solve the ghastly problem I placed before them— French, English, American. Oh! and all, every one and all have failed. I am an outcast! I know it! I do know itl And yet I crave your pity as I crave your love." "Telt me !" she said, unsteadily. He bent down, trembling with his intensity of emotion, and hoarsely whispered into her ear. She threw up her arms, and, with one shrill cry, tainted. Darell—the reran who had faced undismayed the terrors of savagery in masa and animal ---stood as though paralyzed. Dimly he was conscious of Lady Bellhouse coming into tbe room. He saw her, as in a dream, rush to where 1Vlonica lay and lift the girl's head up as the bent over her. "Monica1 My dear ; my sweet! Monica!" she cried. The girl 'opened her eyes, and as they fell upon Darell she moaned horribly, fearfully.. "Send him awayl•" she whisper- ed, "Mother, send him away !" "What is it, dear? Yes, yes 1 My pet! What isitZ" "Send him away 1 Quickly ! Quickly 1" she cried, her voice wen with the pain of horror. "He can- not tango !" Lady Bellhouse allowed her daughter's head to thud upon the carpet. Her patrician forefinger firmly pressed the bell -push. "James 1" she cried to the foot- man. ootman. "Show this—er—fellow out!" FACT AND FANCY. ti1770:41axa ,. jam, WJPVar cr, :Era,,,-�• vlc, -�uh ... Ti s i an immensely serious }axs rry, , Incidentally, all history is !nous, 3ith +that, maybe, merely eeeV one of the great disa,dvan- ages of truth. Darell Greatheart was a hero-- i , , feet of sunburned manktood --of 'mews -lona and'with a lase -bate ha•t would have delighted the estate of .any, matinee idolatress; a whose that would have frighten - e ' ]'bons .and terrified savages who eel never winked at a tourist. Darell Greatheart was ahero. That else could he be with such a amen? But he was a hero quite part frond his name. For three ars he had sesrched the black epths and scaled the almost im- assable heights of New Guinea. For three years Monica Bellhouse ad waited for him, patient in her ve as only a woman in love can e And from the; time when the news I his forthcoming return became nown, and the papers searched heir subedirtorial headline voeabu- .ary for adjectives, the had thrilled ith the knowledge that she--M•on- «: Bellhouse—ways beloved of him. He arrived in England acrd at her other's house only in time for din- er. Ib was 10.30 ere he was tact - ally allowed to escape and to dis- •ver Monica in the conservatory. For a few moments they talked ese words whosee great beauty is oat in any trane1ebion, and whose 'refound sweetness is in a sighing, laughter of the eyes and heart, .he quiver of a lip. "Tell me, Iiarell," she said at last; "tell me all about every- thing --your dangers and triumphs, your trials, your thoughts, and your pleasure,s." "My 'thoughts and my pleasures were one and the same, as my 'thoughts were of you, sweetest .heart. . But you have heard —at the dinner table (Oh, how I longed to leave it and realize the moment 1)•--511 that I tried to do." "And did 1" "Hush!" he said, laughing soft- Iy, "or you'll make my modesty afraid of you. Tell me about you. That is much more important." "Silly thing 1" she laughed back, laughing with the joy of knowing that it mattered not an thorn of what they talked. "What have I. done, dear, nothing 1 I've !told you all in my letters." "Um!" he said, nodding his head. "Nothing new or special or esetraurdinary=?'' "Nothing 1 Heavens alive, Dar - ell; ,aid things. Nothing extraordi- nary ever happens to a girl in Lon- don society." i'Doeen't it?' ' "Well, if it depends upon one's idea of what is extraordinary, I suppose nothing is really extra- ordinary nowadays, is it?" "Only the illimitable quantity of theordinary—eh" "Um ! , Ohl" she cried, suddenly. "Of course ! How dreadfully stupid of me 1 There's the tango !" "Yes!" he answered, without en- thusiasm. "Of course 1" "Oh, " you'll love it, Derrell! You'll adore it 1 I am just pining and dying to dance it with you." "Yes, yes 1 Of course, dear i, ► "Yes. Do you know, I've learn- ed 179 steps 1 One hundred and severity -nine 1"- he repeated, me- chanically. There was silence for a moment. "Darell1" the exclaimed fear- fully. "Yes l" he asked in a monoton- ous voice. "What is it? What is the mat- ter? What is making you so moody el There's something wrong!" "No, no!" he said hurriedly, yet abstractedly. "No, no ! Really 1" "These le! • I eau hear it in your voice and see it in your face and teal it in the air 1 There is some- thing wrong which you are hiding from me, You have some dreadful secret!" life raised his head and glanced fearfully round the conservatory.' "No 1" he said, and his voice was little more than a whisper, "Noth- ing! Noing! Really 1 Nothing at all 1" "There is 1 Oh 1 I am sure there is 1 Something horrible! Some- thing you dare not fell me!" Alio 'eyes stared +r, at the 'floor ; he did, -soaraise them to her face. }Ie• 4004 lxisLjleati, but said not a e" it e 1 > r+ fL seor'et 1014 you 400 d l2130 S 'Aiwa many you thus, ,»arx:ll l on trust understand tthaa+tf t can- ot meaty Ten I"- . x i;•oatiee, l no nob throw like over, Mw not sn 411/%4 1,1 'Mita:. ry,+'liar tail me what is Mil 11114 ru MAIM AT LLQYD'S ltOY tL YCRA.1\T1, LOND01N. . Mare Is Represented the Nest Gr gentle Insurance: Business. in the World. Tho deep tones of an old, bell sounding through the hums of talk. in a great business hall—this Vpi- lies London's paradox' of ancient surroundings .and modern trade .fora the visitor to Lloyd's in ,the Royal Exchange. If he does not know the history of the place and is furious enough to ask the meaning of the sound, he will find a picturesque explanation of the business of the hall in the reply that the bell is tolled because a ship has heels lost. Lloyd's is a world centre of marine insurance. As long as three cen- turies ago the business of assum- ing risks for cargoes sent by sea be- gan to concentrate there, and it has developed into' one of the great- est of insurance houses. Early in its history the old bell was hung in the underwriters' scone and the custom of tolling it whenever a .ship was lost was begun. Ever. si.nee that time, through various changes. of location, the bell has been kept as a. part of the furnish- ings. Despite the swift service of electricity, which brings 'the loss immediately to each broker, the old habit is still observed, and the past is recalled by the solemn notes of the bell -whenever there is a disas- ter at sea. Few in England's metropolis rea- lize the gigantic business repre- sented in the name of Lloyd's and fewer still have seen the throng and the serious ceaseless activity of The girl of to -day is two inches taller, on trhe average, than her mother. A gold watch is the eighteenth century could not be bought under $800. Because a hen eats tacks, it's no sign she's going to lay a carpet. Rosewood, mahogany and- violet wood, for • inlaying fine furniture, ar emit into. sheets 1 -50th of an incl' thick. A girl seldom nxe.ans what she says, but sometimes by mistake she says what she means. Wrinkles are paused, not by wor- ry, but by laughing. Married men are signposts to happiness. Some of thein, though, are darer° signals. Artiftia,1 toe dates from 1783. Some -women think themselves artistic because they pencil their eyebrows and paint their cheeks. Widowers neve marry widows. They choose young girls. Throwing a kiss i esomctihing like dining in imagination on the rich bill -of -fare you see pri'n'ted in the papers. - Whcn a. man marries he wants an angel; then, after tine honeymoon, he growls because he 'didn't get a, cook, A girl, like you:- shadow, flees when you i'oflow, mend fellows when yen ;flee. An exhibition of temper is a free chow that isn't worth the price. Where one W01n0ai ataTts to mAe a name tor ,hersett twenty will lee satisfied to take Some non's. globe, from•. eves'nay., ouiu ►Jc gathered -'stir the , utateet ra pi elty. $y ±this systeiu i s ' xaveruent Of a.xnoat every ship, ea metter where acrd when the was plying, and un^. der which flag, could be traced. Needless to ssy, every eestosivable description of craft was chronicled in Lloyd's register, and the ship receiving the hall:'. mark "A-1, Lloyd's" was regarded s having. the highest reoonimendati.on. TLe Great Human Beehive. Yet, frona the physical giant who in scarlet gown receives you at the gate and in stentorian voice calls the name of the member you seek, to the dignified personage in the room, enthroned on an elevated platform, who acts as the crier, Lloyd's is one of the most interest- ing assemblies in the world. Many of the furnishings date back to the "good old days," when there were neither steam nor armored ships, and no cable or wireless messages announced the departure or arrival of the vessels intrusted to the dan- gers of an inscriitable sea. Were Edward Lloyd, the old cof- fee tavern keeper of Tower street,. to return to . hds haunts in :the city of 1600, what astonishment would be his! It was he whose name hes been immortalized in the eommer- clel history of the world. His cof- fee shop was the meeting place of men interested in commerce by sea, and over steaming cups were discussed the dangers to men and craft exposed to the power of the mighty monster. Already they were known by the name of underwrit- ers. They agreed to divide the risk attending the shipping of goods among themselves, according to the distances to be covered, the seafar- ing quality of the windjammer, the capacity of captain and crew and, above all, their financial resources in meeting a loss. In 1892, Lloyd's coffee tavern removed to Lombard Street, and little by little an in- corporation took place, the name of Lloyd's was assumed and the house started on its career. In 1774 Lloyd's was obliged to seek still larger a,ecomnodation, and succeeded in getting possession of the upper part of the .Royal. Ex- change, from which place it is still carrying on its gigantic work. The Large Room at Lloyd's contains during the busy hours of the day perhaps 5,000 people,: Small square tablet, numbering several hundreds, are arra:ged to acoorn- modaate four persons each; Each underwriter lies a gi'gantio volume in front of him, which he consults from tune to time for information on proposed., risks. A member of Lloyd's is obliged to deposit £5,000 with the committee :a,s security. The aggregate does not, however, represent enc tithe of the fortune possessed by the underwriters. The wills of suocessful 'underwriters, published et times, bear testimony to the inxmsnsely profitable nature of the business. The underwriting of a policy for practically any amount is perform- ed with the .greatest dispatch. As soon as the premium is agreed upon, . the document is sent on ifs course from table to table and each man interested signs his name against his. proportion of the risk. The wording of the policy is sim- plicity itself : "lino- ye that we the insurers do hereby bind our- selves, each for his own part and not for one another, out heirs, ex- ecutors -and administrators, bo pay or make good to the assured's ex- eeutors, etc.,, 'all such loss as above stated not exceeding the sumo in all, within seven days after such loss is proved, and that in peeper - tion to the several sums by reach of us subscribed against our respec- tive names. In witness whereof we, underwriting members of Lloyd's, have subscribed our names and suers of money- by us insured." T1.16, Principal Business transactd at Lloyd's is, of course, mariner iest'rance, and fully 80 per cent. oy' t 'ie underwriters refuse on principal', to touch any other form of risk. There is, however, a. steadily growing number who are prepared for any class of business and who are not always too partic- ular and careful in the selection of extra hazardous propositions. A f3EAIN SPECIALISTS DIM? UT .1 TIENORY OF SEASONS. Coll' Couelt stone of University of Pennsylvania Psyehulegiet Wrong. Suicidal intpulses are liable to effect persons of a .peculiar temper- ament ab any time. The mania ;is in season may and every one, of the 365 days of the yew', and is not affected by climate, according to a leading expert on mental diseases. This statement i:s eorraborarbed by other specialists and local coraners, thus contradiobiug the recently ex- pressed theory sol Dr, Edwin B. Twitmyer, of the Peyehological De- paa•t!nent of the University of Pennsylvania, that the temptation "to end it all" is ami d,e more irre-' sistable by climate conditions eliar- aoteristie of certain seasons. It was the opinion of Dr.. Twit- myer that the three self -destruc- tions in one week recently among the :students body of the university ma,y an some subtle way have been due Loa weather conditions then prevalent in Philadelphia., and not the result of auto -suggestion. Humans Change Thrice Yearly. profitable business at Lloyd's is that in,cverdue or abandoned ves- Ile. !',aotetione run from 5 per '.cub :: times to 95 per cent. and ti•e •prat - able nt Proved x have��� s y 1r .ta the layers of the odds. The principle of Lloyd's is in reality in .opposition to the true principles of insurance, the prices being known as hedgings. A pri- vate individual being subject to the chance of a fire bets the amount of his annual premium that his pro- perty will be burned within a year. An insurance company bets that the fire will not happen and guarantees to pay for the damage xf it does. The individual escapes from. uncer- tainty ',o certainty. The insurance company, on the other hand, while relieving individuals of uncertain- ty, incurs no uncertainty, because it obtains the benefit of the law of average. By undertaking 'a very large number of risks an insurance company puts itself in the same position as a. man who buys all the tickets in a lottery. While unable to reap the " large profit which might accrue to the holder of A Single I'r[ze Ticket, the insurance company, because it experiences average results, is freed from the happening of very heavy losses. Some critics, attack- ing the system prevailing at Lloy d'.,s, urge as one of the princi- pal ,objections that people who in. sure with underwriters walk by . faith e',4d not by -sight. In the case of an insurance company 'iher r ate published accounts, ' but in the case of underwriters neither . the. committee of Lloyd's nor the pub- lic knows anything whatever ,about the liabilities or the means of meet- ing thein. Despite varione suggestions for publicity, Lloyd's adheres to its Old and well -tried rnebhods, and the probity, and integrity of its mem- bers and system have never been questioned: The enormous losses of which we read, estas'ta.°aplies of. so terrible a nature .as the sinking of the Titanic, are meet with prompti- tude - and apparent equanimity. However : painful theeffeet may have been on the resources of the underwriters, the outside would never knows of it. The solvency-, of Lloyd's as a. body is unquestioned, and through manysevere tests it has retained the great marine in- ce hon jai` the world‘ The Real Importance of the institution dates from 1775 to 1815. During the incessant wars which devastated the fairest, por- tions . of the continent, England, by reason of her geographical position, was the only country guaranteeing security against the depredations of Bonaparte. T.be risks then assumed by the underwriters were large and hazardous and resulted in heavy losses, Rumors of tremendous ob- ligations raised doubts in the pub- lic mind as to the ability of Lloyd's to meet the liabilities, and parlle- ment was obliged to appoint the customary royal commission, The findings resulted in a. glorious, vic- tory, and ever since Lloyd's s has re- tained its world -commanding posi- tion. The ' institution heeded ail move- ments ,aiming to diminish the dans `ere of sea and land. It exposed. and ,punished with draconic sever- th. frauds in sending unseaworthy ships -with worthless eergo:es a>oroas. the ocean. Its greatest final n hievenient ecrzsi:nted in organiz- ing and. perfecting a system where- arra ''The science of physiology will show, I believe," said Dr. Twit- myer, "that there are abouts three times in the year when the human organism undergoes a. fundamental Change in its natural effort to ad- just itself to the ebanges in climate the fall, the real winter cold and the early spring. In this present rnonth, the plants whioh have been lying quiet during the winter, al- ready ars astir with the prospect of a new life. "Human beings, likewise, are be- ing stirred from. the very depths of their natures, and as the sun gets higher in the 'heavens, the spirit ,of restlesenese takes a stronger hold, and each of the constituent ele- ments of the body is affected, until a general state of instability ie pro- duced. If a person has been brooding too much and allowas, hive - self to think along one lime 'too much, the depression which seems to arise from weather conditions may become acute," "The •statement of Dr. Twitenyer is mostly 'theoretical poppycock— except that which he says about bad weather as a depressant," said the specialist quoted above. "Of course .an overcast sky, a drizzling rain and similar weather phoneme ens give all of us the blues; bet -any day in the year is liable to be • dreary whether at Christmas, the First of July or ,the Day of Judg- ment. He is also right as rte the brooding, but as to the rest—it is far-fetched. RE. GAVE SPI' ] TIIO 1 SAN» DOLLARS ,FOR ONE ,, A Vastly Overrated Creature -all Possesses No Intelligence, , lust Instinoi, Flea quotations were seat flutter big • upward a few days: ago when Bazaon Alfe d de Rothschild piaci $5,000 for a flea from the ,coat of sea otter. For rarestamp, $5,000—yes. For a rare coin, $5;000-cerbaha- aY: For a rare book, $5,000 of couxsa. For a rare flea,, $5,000 well l Everybody smiled -with an .air o<f' questioning doubt, No, not every- body, for there are some folks who recognize ,th,at an unusual flea might be as neoeseary to the hap- piness of a flea 'sollleetor..+as is an illr+m4naated manuscript to a biblio- phile or a Shat impressi,oii •ta 61'71eteJii-ng enithusiasti. ' "The public ough to know move about' fleas," declared one eeie>a- List, who was much interested Baron de Robhschild';s purehase. "The American Museum of Lural History is at present ha made from a, flew, a. model a, fa. length for exhibition purposes. will: be ready for public inspecbioi, in a few weeks, so that persons an unscientific mind may he °able 'to see • What a Flea Really Looks Like■ Merely Coincidence. "The fact that three students of the University of • Pennsylvania killed themselves within a week probably is nothing more than a coincidence. None of us can say why they did it be•eause we do not know what their personal or inmost thought must rliave been. "Heredity is a, atrong factor in suicide. While some temilies 'have come down from generations with- out even its distant members har- boring thought of. suicide, other family histories are full of such tra- gedies. Often the impulse is in the blood, like aform of insanity." Use For Talent. Every man, every woman, every child has some talent, some power, some .opportunity of getting good and doing good. Each day offers some occasion for using this talent. As we use it it gradually increases, improves, becomes native to the character. As we neglect it it dwindles and withers and disap- pears. This is the stern and be-. nign law by which we live. This 'makes character real and enduring.. A rheumatio sufferer knows a sure cure for everybody else's aches and pains. • "As a. meeker of feet," continued the scientist, "there is very little likellhaod that this five thousand dollar creature is a flea at all. It is very probably a close relative of the Dermacentor Amezicanuas. There are a great many other small creatures masquerading as 'fieaai_ There .is the sand flea, for instance, whieh is really as little like a. flea as a snake is like an elephant,. ' "1 shotild think they were not large enough to be so different," remarked an inquiring layman. The scientist allowed this to pass unnoticed. "Do you know what an anhahra- pod isl" he inquired with an un- compromising severity. "The sari flea ia aro a,mthropod; an anthropoa is a crustacean; even you eau se that a genuine flea is not crusta cean." ' Count one ;crushed layman. "The flea, continued the savez� Mist, "has •been 'a vastly overra,te�d oreaature, se far x intedligense goes. Simply because fleas have been able to go en the stage the public has decided that they are in- telligent. The mere fact that they can draw .little wagons and other- wise perform for the amusement of the pubiie means nothing. The se- cret of all this is instinct, not in- telligence: The fact that a. fly in a bottle will find. its way out when the open end of the bottle is toward the light doesn't show that the fly uses its intelligence to get out Of the bottle; Two Irishmen on a sultry night, immediately after ;their arrival in Indio, took refuge underneath the bedclothes from a skirmishing party of ni squitoes. At last one of them,. gasping for breath, ventured to peep beyond the blankets h had firefly w�and by which. Chance eispied a y Stayed znto the room. Arousing as companionwith a'krek, -he said: "Fergus, Fergus, it's no use. Ye ,Leight as well come out. Here's one. of ithe ereyters looking" for ue wid a anbern 1,, It Simply Follows Its Instinct to go toward the light. In the e way the trainer of fleas bases training on their instinct. "How can an a'ma'teur tell a gen nine flea from its imitators?" v. asked. ., "The genuine flea," 'replied scientist, "has only six legs: two front ones are •short, the' dire set ,are ;of medium length, ans the back legs are long. It is this graduated Set of legs 'which enables the flea to leap so quickly. The quickness• of the jump made possi- ble by 'thee lung hind lege ac- counts also for that effusiveness which is regarded as one of its most striking chaireeteristics by those with wham a flea may have acme in. contact. The fact that one flea can frequently produce the impression of a ilea .army is ,oleo to be traced to the astonishing agility of the creature. - The ,sea otter `flexr,' would not have theee oharaoteris- tics. In regard to its habits of resi- dence alone would ib be coin ni.ra,- ble toga. flea:" It was a source of surprise, if nob of sorrow, to learn that not All "fleas is fleas:" Perhaps it were better to leave the Pulex irribans and all of its ilk to thescientists: and Fido. - The woman with an ideal .'K isban very likely wishes she had some other kind Occasionally we meet a man w'he. can't stand prosperity, but more often we encounter men who never lied a chance to find out, U J S Tim's living bled and Mons b3 witty ,M had on in the when elf as f e noble =tingle us wit ndish v will fir ked ha to 'put g the s from times Ozer is no the it arouse, ughout. who nal p is gre: ki's ra tch P; two y, een el res. lands itterly of his s boy he wa n, 8 itzyn, e town quired n to p, pri.mcip Russia an exi the bit pponer ace. )r some a resid income d to 1 he h , offer y :armee lutiona g to scary - o Nal never . acrd Prime man f for th ruches ask the t each 1 lay a rime xis- fc Llie 'r said the shill rite his fr Prins mak, of the Tw Em inte g or if ec �vhicl e in• of 1 xg tl been roup. off ;bins will 'mop! ror nt of an I ing nt o Ab 1 noes 11 re hit pher read; lead - Tb siici tii grar nem sea s ve ileal th