the
very worst of taste from his scarfpin to his boots, he had evidently
just been too carefully shaved, for there were scratches on his wide,
ludicrous face, and his smile was as rueful as a clown's.

"The Misses Blair, I presume?" he asked in what was unmistakably his
society manner, and he held out a card.

Miss Eva took it and read aloud, "Mr. Bert Brannigan, Brannigan and
Bowers, Black-Face Comedians."

"Ah?" murmured Miss Nellie, who was always polite even in the most
trying circumstances.

But Miss Eva could only stare at the rich brown suit, the lavender tie
and matching socks and handkerchief.

"Well?" said Miss Eva.

Mr. Brannigan cleared his throat and looked cautiously about the room.
His heavy, clownlike face was troubled.

"Where's the kid?" he asked in a hoarse whisper.

"What child?" Miss Eva snapped.

"You've come to see one of our pupils?" Miss Nellie faltered.

"Yeah. Hers."

"Hers?"

"W'y, Miss Le Fay's li'l boy."

"Oh, Freddy?"

"Sure! Does he--he don't--you ain't tole 'im yet, have you?"

"Told him what?"

"My God! don't you know?"

Bert Brannigan stared at the ladies, mopping his brow with the
lavender handkerchief.

"Please explain yourself, Mr. Brannigan," said Miss Eva.

"She's dead. I thought you knew."

"Miss Le Fay is dead?" gasped Miss Nellie.

"Why weren't we told?" asked Miss Eva.

"It was in the papers," said Bert. "But they didn't give Florette no
front-page headlines, an' maybe you don't read the theatrical news."

"No," said Miss Eva.

"Well, not bein' in the profession," Mr. Brannigan said as if he were
apologizing for her.

He sat down and continued to mop his brow mechanically. The two
sisters stared in dismay at the clown who had brought bad news.

"W'at I don' know is how to tell the kid," said Bert. "He was nutty
about Florette; didn't give a darn for no one else. I bin on the bill
with them two lots of times, an' I seen how it was. The money ain't
goin' to be no comfort to that kid!"

"The money?"

"Florette's insurance--made out to him. Tha's w'y I come. She wan'ed
him to stay on here, see, till he was all educated. They's enough,
too. She was always insured heavy for the kid. They's some back money
comin' to you, too. She tole me. The reason w'y she didn't sen' it on
was because she was out of luck an' broke, see?"

"But why didn't Miss Le Fay write to us?" asked Miss Nellie. "If she
was in difficulties we----"

"Naw, Florette wasn'