The Republican., 1899-10-26

the protest of his partner, took off his
sanitary shoes and gave them to Henry,
the office boy, to take over to the max
ers. Tell them that l want them by
4:30 or five o'clock at the outside" he
said. Say who they are for and tell
them you'll call for them. And tell them
that l bought those shoes less than ten
days ago. See what they say to that"
"Yessir," said Henry, who was a
mealy-faced youth with a passion for
salted peanuts. He took the shoes and
disappeared and Drurgsey tucked his
feet under his desk and became alb
sorbed in his correspondence.
In the course of half an hour Henry
returned and reported that he had left
the shoes and that they didn't say
nuthin'."
81 guess they concluded that they
hadn't any decent excuse to make" " was
Drurgsey's comment.
At 4:30 o'clock Drurgsey told the boy
that he had better run over to Hind
mans and see if those shoes weren't
done. He used the word run" as sort
of figure of speech, for he knew Henry
better than to suppose that he would
really proceed with any unseemly haste.
Henry sucked the salt granules that had
gathered on his fingers from the pea
nuts and started out. Drurgsey went
on with his writing.
Presently his partner closed his desk
and asked Drurgsey if he would attend
to the locking of the safe before he
went out. Drurgsey looked at the office
clock and saw that it was five minutes
past five o'clock.
Where do you suppose that blamed
boy is?'' he asked. Search me-" re-
piled the partner. Good night"
Drurgsey waited for few feverish
moments and then rose and began to
pace the floor with noiseless, panther
tread. AT last he heard the gate of the
elevator clang in the passage and Henry
appeared,
Where are those shoes?" shouted his
employer.
The boy looked scared. 81 guess they
amt DONE" he stammered. Il didn't
think there wuz any use waitin' any
longer"
you guess they amt done? Don't
you know? Didn't you ask? Didn't 1
tell you that wanted those shoes by
five o'clock?"
81 told 'em that when l took the shoes
over"
well why didn't you get them?
What did they say about them, anyway?
Leave those peanuts alone a minute and
answer me-"
They didn't say nothin'," said Henry.
"Say!" said Drurgsey, with the calm
ness of fconcestrated rage, you go right
back there and get those shoes, and be
back with them inside of six minutes,
or don't come back at all. It's 5:25 now.
If you aren't back by 5:35 you lose your
job-understand?"
Henry vanished, and within six min
utes he was back again painting and
with pair of shoes under his arm.
Good boy!" exclaimed Drurgsey,
joyfully. you can get "a move on you
all right when you have-why, what in
thunderation! These amt my shoes!"
As the excited man was delivering
his opinion of office boys and shoemak-
ers in a sulphurous recitative, Wagner,
the mosaic and tile man in the office
next door, came in and asked whether
he wanted the police sent for.
Wagner, you can save my life" said
Drurgsey. 'Hindmans have got my
shoes repairing them, and l haven't got
another pair to my name. I've sent
this-this boy over dozen times, and
he's just brought me back the wrong
ones. Won't you go over and get them
for me. Say! I'll do anything you can
name for you if you will. They will be
closed in ten minutes, and I've missed
my train now. If don't make the next
one I'm going to get into all kinds of
trouble at home, Be a good fellow,
Wagner. You know the shoes when
you see them, don't you?"
"Those patent things that you've
been blowing about for the last week?"
Eyes; hurry! Or if you don't want to
go let me wear your shoes down there.
I'll wake them up"
Il won't trust you," said Wagner.
"Fll go and get the shoes for you. Do
| take cab?'
"Take anything you like" said Drurg-
sey, "but hurry"
Wagner took cab and hastened over
to the shoemaker's. He explained the
situation, and succeeded in interesting
a clerk, who found out that no one
knew anything about the shoes. One or
two Of the clerks had already gone home
and they might have received them.
The clerk said that he would look at
the factory book, and see if they had
been sent over. The factory book
showed that they had been sent over.
"How far is the factory from here?"
asked Wagner.
About six blocks"
"We can make it. Jump into the cab
with me; we've got to get those Shoes"
The clerk jumped in and they drove
to the factory and found it was closed.
They were shaking the door when po-
liceman pointed at man who was
turning the corner of the street, and
said he had just locked the place up.
The man was pursued and brought
back, the place unlocked and a search
instituted for the shoes. At last Wag-
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