Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-04-19
:! MASTERS OF MEN
A Romance Of the
NEW NAVY
BY MORGAN ROBERTSON
ICopyrghied by Cum, Publishing Co and Doul>kiay
Page q Co. 1901.
CHAPTER I.
BY MORGAN ROBERTSON

/ boy, ana DlHCk nalfeQ girl WIS
! speeding toward them on the side
walk, when from across the street
/ came another boy-red-haired and
/ freckled who jumped puddles and
! arrived on the scene coincident with
! tho girl.
Let my brother alone. you--you
YOU mean old thing she cried
as, with flashing eyes and fingers
working nervously, she confronted
| the pair.
I "Ah, gwan," answered the cuffer,
with quick. comprehensive glance
at the working fingers and sharp
nails; "he hit me wild a rock"
He hit me first" screamed the
victim. He was pink-cheeked
boy in knickerhockers- the type Of
boy that Is seldom punished at
| home.
/ Take some one your own size"
! said the redhaired boy.
Go chase yourself, Dick Halpin;
! this amt your funeral"
let up--drop lt-lct him CO.,
Make him stop. Oh. please make
| him stop" walled the girl. chang
ing front at the prospect of a cham
/ pion.
There was a confused tangle OF
arms and legs, from which the boy
/ In knickerhockerS emerged and sped
! TO the middle of the street then,
while the girl wrung her hands anx-
| iously, the whirl of combat con-
| tinued until the larger boy shot off
! at a tangent. and colliding with the
| fence, collapsed in an astonished
/ heap. He had not been struck. nor
| was he hurt, but the strength and
| courage of the rod-haired boy
smaller than himself -was so com
/ pletelv at variance with his record,
as TO call first for respect. then
analysis and classification; all of
which required time and distance.
So, with a promise to square up, ="
he arose and departed. followed by
a threatening get ont" from Dick
and q well-aimed stone from the boy
In the street.
Dick Halpin, redhaired. slim and
/ under sized. had no standing as a
fighter. Not that he lacked cour-
age. or the quickest of tempers; it
simply had not come to him. He
possessed dignity-or, possibly, a
lack Of dignity-and a quiet gen
! iality and insistence of manner,
which, with certain readiness Of
speech. had always won him his
point in schooboy friction. And
| IN schoolboy ethics there was no le-
Ultimate reason for his interfering
| In this manner. He had seen the
treacherously thrown rock" i'm
pinge upon the head of Pig Jones,
had watched the pursuit and cap
ture, and knew that the punishment
was deserved. But he had also seen
/ over his shoulder the twin sister of
| the yOungster.
She was the new girl in the
school, whose father had lately set
/ tied in the town and built the larg-
est and finest house that 1t con-
! tanned. Unlike her brother, she had
made no friends and few acQuaint-
ances: but, with her steady dark
eyes she had taken the measure of
every boy and girl in the school
nance, and finishing by a close in
spection of their clothing. Had it
been less dispassionate, or had she
been less of a mystery, her manner
| would have been resented; but. as il
was. girls turned UP their noses
only behind her back. and the boys
all but Pig Jones, in whose soul
was nei her poetry nor reverence
| placed her upon pedestal and did
/ her silent homage. She knew her
lessons without apparent study,
asked no instructions or favors, and
never entered their world except in
quest OF her brother.
Dick had been inspected early. A
stumble and slip in front OF the
school gate had sprawled him at
full length in puddle and lavishly
splashed her with mud His shame
faced Excuse me" was not an
swereS and not even the laughter
Of the boys so narrowed him as the
/ scrutiny he received. She showed
no annoyance. but looked into and
through his gray eyes as though
seeking the reason of boys falling
In the mud. Then she had turned
her back on him.
A little exhilarated by his con-
quest Of Pig. he felt less overpow-
cred by her now and looked frankly
into her face. There was the faint
est smile at the corners OF her
mouth. but her momentary agita-
ton had passed and her expression
was as inscrutable as ever.
1t was very good of you" she
said in her musical, womanly voice
Il wish he had big brother"
Il wish he had" blurted ont Dick
She smiled openly at This. and
looked up the street at her relative,
now returning from a short pursuit
OF PIG.
Il know your name-Richerd
Halpin-"
Dick" he interrupted
Dick, then-and you know mine.
Do you like Georgie?"
lick did not. He had stopped a
rock" himself a few days before.
and had listened to Georgies out
az no6 IIIM 'em OF uolsN ,.uo@ Oh
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