The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1899-07-21

80
Through my open door l could see
the dingy desks of the SO called efli-
torial room, most of them vacated now,
and from the farthest corner came the
drone Of a proofreader CHANGING at
this familiar scene, l stopped my Writ
ing moment as my eyes rested on his
copy holder. Instead of the rough young
hobbledehoy who usually filled that
place. there sat the most young girllike
of young girls, making a sunshine in
the grimy place. She had soft light
brown hair drawn smoothly BACK lnuo
the decentest of little knots. She turned
toward me the neatest of little profiles,
and she devoted herself toher copy with
the gentlest bend of her small head
Just as was idly recalling the Fact
that old Martin, the proofreader, had
once ccnfided to me his desire to get
this position for daughter Of his,
Bentley. the s'star" reporter of The
Appeal. came striding in and toward
me.
"Spare me minute from the tariff p
he questioned. standing in my door
way, pushing his silk hat to the back
of his red head with one hand and rest
ing the other, which held lighted
cigar, against the door frame.
When had declared my willingness
to lay aside for time those political
labors with which it pleased Mr.. Bent
ley to imagine NE always occupied, he
took off his hat and laid it with his
cigar on the steam heater outside, came
in and seated himself astride my vacant
chair and for moment stared at me
in silence over the back Of it.
When be spoke, he said: "I'm going
to ask favor Of you. Miss Arlington,
and wish by large majority that it
was you going to ask one of me- Oh,
yes, know, you're mighty nice,
pleasant. accommodating little girl
that's aside from my wanting some
thing out Of you just now-but you
don't have it any too soft down here,
anyhow, and now I'm going to ask you
I'm ashamed Of myself. But-well.
let me open with the curtain music,
and work up to the last farewell by de-
grees. The beginning is'-he stopped,
waited an instant. got up and turned
his chair around, sat down properly and
took up his sentence again as If he had
never dropped it-"that I'm in love
with and want to marry that little
nimini pimini. white faced girl Of old
Martins out Their" then relaxing a
little from the uncommon seriousness
with which this was said-''and d
give 500 to be able, without arousing
suspicion, to get hold Of that seat that
Calvert has there by her. That ain't
sentiment, 4 would were glove upon
that hand kind of business; it's pure
science That desk is the strategic key
to the whole campaign. I'm not in
with Calvert, we've been hating each
other too long for me to be able to work
up an intimacy with him now just pre-
vious to asking him to give me his desk,
and it would be too thin, anyhow.
There is no way to get that desk-here
comes the climax Bentley stopped
and looked at me deprecatingly, appeal
ingly. was amused to see that he
could command such an expression
unless stopped again, scowled
and drew long breath in burlesque of
his own discomfort and his resolution,
and, as he wonld have said, took the
plunge-'syou'd be SO angel white as to
let him come in here. He's been want
ing to do that this long time, not alto
gether because Of his secret desire to he
near you, but he thinks it would be
nice to be in here away from the lower
orders and convenient to the encyclo-
pedias that he gets his little pieces out
of"
The Appeals limited library was in
the room 1 occupied. Expression of my
willingness to share my seclusion with
Mr. Calvert did not still Bentley's de-
sire further to explain and justify him
self.
"You see, he went on, GIVE got
the camraign all planned out, though /
can't explain it in word. I'm perfect
ly willing TO explain it, however I'm
even willing to admit that it would be
pleasure to me to do so. I'm too old
and tough to talk about this kind of
thing to man, but there's sensible
diminution of dangerous pressure in
letting off to you little.
shall utterly fail in giving any idea
of Bentley unless I am able to convey
an impression Of the personal uncon-
seriousness that characterized his con-
versation. He expressed himself in the
way that was easiest to him-that is
to say. as much as possible by estab-
lished formulas intelligently applied
sometimes slang, sometimes quotations
that became slang in his mouth-but,
though he often felt the humor of his
own ideas. hjs verbal clothing of them
rarely enough attracted his attention.
He turned look at once grave and
quizzical through the door and upon
the copy holder.
"Nothing's going to change me about
wanting that little piece Of propriety
out there but getting her." he re-
marked.
"No. not altogether quite so sudden
as yon might think" he said syhengn
expressed my interest i'll the speed WI j
which hshpd discovered his intentionnss
"she X,!shsre last month for week,
y