Produced by David Clarke, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) WITH EDGE TOOLS BY HOBART CHATFIELD TAYLOR CHICAGO A. C. McCLURG AND COMPANY 1891 COPYRIGHT, BY A. C. MCCLURG AND CO. A. D. 1891. CONTENTS. I. THE STATEN CLUB II. CROSS FIRE III. TWO WOMEN IV. IN AN OPERA BOX V. A CHALLENGE VI. SPANISH CASTLES VII. THE PATRICIANS VIII. GATHERING CLOUDS IX. OAKHURST X. "I WILL LAUGH, TOO" XI. UNDER THE WILLOWS XII. UNREST XIII. DERBY DAY XIV. DANGER XV. A GAME OF SKILL XVI. IN THE LIBRARY WITH EDGE TOOLS. CHAPTER I. THE STATEN CLUB. In the world of clubs the "Staten" held its head proudly. It was a social union comprising the most exclusive men of family and fashion. Though its outward walls differed little from those of other clubs which lined the avenue, its muster-roll was sacredly guarded by the governors, and posted at the hall desk was a long list of waiting aspirants, each to undergo in his turn the scrutiny of the committee-room, where all antecedents must be known and approved before his card could bear "Staten Club" in the left-hand, lower corner. Other club buildings there were, in New York, of greater stateliness, with marble walls and galleries, and well filled libraries, but the "Staten" cared for none of these, and proudly pointed to its members' list, where were inscribed five hundred names which no other club could ever hope to equal. Three rooms, the restaurant, café, and billiard room, received their share of patronage, while the lounging room, upon the avenue, where a few papers were kept for respectability's sake, and others for use, was the daily haunt of some of the choicest spirits. In the early days of the club's history, to be sure, a thoughtless governor had inspired the foundation of a library. A room upstairs somewhere (few of the members knew where) was selected, and into this were placed a set of Dickens, the "Britannica," an atlas, a history or two, a dictionary, and perhaps a hundred other books, which together formed the nucleus of a store of knowledge. But no one went there except Simkins, Rynder and McLaughlin. They were a queer lot; none of the men could make them out; it was their families that got them elected, and they never seemed to have anything better to do than cuddle over musty books. But the choice clique were those whose names were most often signed to the wine-room tickets. It was they who ran the club and made it the popular place it was.