Between the shrouding fringe of his hat the colored tubelight sheen gleamed on his partly shrouded face. It was pallid, hawk-nosed, with burning dark eyes that still were staring with an almost rude intentness at Dora. "No," I said. I moved with an impulse to stand up and take Dora to another bench, but the man's hand reached out and touched my arm. "Just a minute," he said in his limping guttural voice. "My name is Bragg. What is yours?" "Ralston," I said stiffly. "Thomas Ralston." I could see that Dora now was staring at that little lurking figure. She, too, sensed that there was something gruesome about it. The man beside me was speaking more swiftly now in a low furtive flow of mumbled words. "I can interest young lovers like you. I have a place, just for honey-mooners. A little colony of lovers. A place to live, without cost, and no work. You would like it. A very beautiful place." "We're not married," I said. Was this weird fellow a solicitor for some rich man's altruistic colony? I had heard of such places. In my father's day there was a big one on an island off the Florida coast, and another in the South Seas--colonies where newlyweds went to create an earthly paradise, which, of course, wouldn't work out. "But you will be married?" the man insisted. "It is a very beautiful place. There is no place like it. I am sure Miss Franklin will--" I tensed, jumped to my feet, and Dora stood up beside me. Miss Franklin! But I hadn't named her. This fellow knew us then. At our movement, it seemed that the little figure nearby was edging closer. I am a pretty husky, six foot fellow. As I stood up, the man on the bench rose also, with his hand still on my arm. He was about my height. I flung off his light hold. "Not interested," I said. "Come on, Dora." We started to go. Was that damnable, headless little thing about to pounce on me? There were five hundred people here within sound of a shout, but despite it a thrill of fear darted through me. I'm not exactly afraid of anything human; but somehow this seemed different--as though that square, box-like, wide-shouldered little thing were something gruesome--something you couldn't fight with your fists. It was standing sidewise to us now, in a deeper shadow than before and, even more than before, I got the impression that the ominous-looking little figure was headless. "But won't you at least come and see what I have to show you?" the man at my side was insisting. "It is not very far--" "Thanks, no." I turned away with an arm around Dora. And suddenly the man was slinking off with the wide-shouldered little thing following after him on stiff little legs. In a moment they were gone. * * * * *