rilly.

One of the men pushed back his chair and came to his feet a bit
unsteadily.

"What the deuce is it, Nellie?" he hiccoughed.

Nellie had her wits about her. She was very pale, but she was calm.
Instinctively she felt that trouble--even tragedy--was confronting
her; the thing she had feared all along without admitting it even to
herself.

"Sit down, Dick," she commanded. "Don't get excited, any of you. It's
all right. My husband, that's all."

The man at her right was Fairfax. He was gaping at Harvey with horror
in his face. He, too, had been expecting something like this.
Involuntarily he shifted his body so that the woman on the other side,
a huge creature, was partially between him and the little man in the
door.

"Get him out of here!" he exclaimed. "He's just damned fool enough to
do something desperate if we----"

"You shut up!" barked Harvey, in a sudden access of fury. "Not a word
out of you, you big bully."

"Get him out!" gasped Fairfax, holding his arm over his face. "What
did I tell you? He's crazy! Grab him, Smith! Hurry up!"

"Grab him yourself!" retorted Smith, in some haste. "He's not gunning
for me."

What there was to be afraid of in the appearance of the little
ulstered man who stood there with his hands in his pockets I cannot
for the life of me tell, but there was no doubt as to the
consternation he produced in the midst of this erstwhile jovial crowd.
An abrupt demand of courtesy urged him to raise his hand to doff his
hat in the presence of ladies. Twenty terrified eyes watched the
movement as if ten lives hung on the result thereof. Half of the
guests were standing, the other half too petrified to move. A husband
is a thing to strike terror to the heart, believe me, no matter how
trivial he may be, especially an unexpected husband.

"Go away, Harvey!" cried Nellie, placing Fairfax between herself and
the intruder.

"Don't do that!" growled the big man, sharply. "Do you suppose I want
him shooting holes through me in order to get at you?"

"Is he going to shoot?" wailed one of the women, dropping the
wineglass she had been holding poised near her lips all this time. The
tinkle of broken glass and the douche of champagne passed unnoticed.
"For God's sake, let me get out of here!"

"Keep your seats, ladies and gents," said Harvey, hastily, beginning
to show signs of confusion. "I just dropped in to see Nellie for a few
minutes. Don't let me disturb you. She can step into th