And Mary, during this past fortnight (when he had been present, at
least) had seemed to bask contentedly in reflected glory, and smiled
sympathetically while they talked of the many Clavering first-nights
they would attend in the sure anticipation of that class of
entertainment up to which the Little Theatres and the Theatre Guild
were striving to educate the public. They took it as a matter of
course that he was to abide in the stimulating atmosphere of New York
for the rest of his days. And they invariably insisted that "Madame
Zattiany" must always sit in a stage box and be a part of the
entertainment. They were too well-bred (and too astute) to hint at the
engagement they were positive existed, but "hoped" she would be willing
to add to the prestige of one who was now as much her friend as theirs.
It was a curious position in which to place a woman like Mary Zattiany,
but Sophisticate New York was not Diplomatic Europe, and he thought he
saw her smile deepen into humor once or twice; no doubt she was
reflecting that she had lived long enough to take people as she found
them.
His reverie was interrupted by a buzzing at the end of his hall and he
went to the door quickly, wondering who could have sent him a special
delivery letter or a note at this hour. It proved to be a cablegram.
He read it when he returned to his living-room. It was dated Rome,
Italy, and read:
"I'll have you yet: Janet."
Clavering swore, then laughed. He tore the message into strips and sat
down to read his newspapers; he had merely glanced at the headlines and
his column. His eye was arrested by the picture of a man at the top of
the first page of his own newspaper. Although smooth-shaven and very
regular of feature, with no pronounced racial characteristics, it was,
nevertheless, a foreign face, although difficult to place. From its
distinction it might be Austrian, but the name below, "Prince
Hohenhauer," might as easily be German. Still, it was not a German
face, and Clavering studied it for a moment before reading the news
text, wondering faintly at his interest.
It was unmistakably the face of a statesman, and reminded him a little
of a picture of Prince Schwarzenberg, prime minister when Franz Josef
ascended the throne, he had seen lately in a history of Austria. There
was the same broad placidity of brow, the long oval face, the thin long
slightly curved nose, the heavy lids, the slim erectness, the same
suave repose. But this man's large beautifully cut mouth was more
firmly set, had a faintly satiric expression, and the eyes a powerful
and penetrating gaze. It was the face of a man who was complete master
of himself and accustomed to the mastery of men.
Clavering read the story under the headlines:
PRINCE HOHENHAUER ARRIVES IN NEW YORK
GOES AT ONCE TO WASHINGTON
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account