The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1906-06-28
Dlttlng a
DouSe Boat
BY CLAUDE PAMARES
Copyright, 1905, by N. N. Cunningham

Harold Strong was New York artist
and had painted the portrait Of Ruth
Bascomb and fallen in love with her.
Whether she returned his love or not
was the thing he was worrying over.
Harry Stevens was a New York sculp-
tor and he had desired 10 bring out q
marble bust of Miss Bascomb and also
had fallen in love with her As TO
whether she would consent to be
"sculped" and marry him was a mat
ter that gave him headaches Both the
artist and the sculptor had sisters that
-ere friendly with Ruth Bascomb. and
this was the general situation for the
playwright to build on
The present situation was that Ruth
Bascomb's mother, who was a fairly
wealthy widow, had become possessed
of house boat and had determined TO
float around Princess bay and up the
Shrewsbury river for a month or so.
Her guests were TO be the artist and
his sister and the sculptor and his sis
ter and two or three other persons.
A day was appointed. a tug engaged
TO tow the house boat down New York
bay and leave her at her first anchor
age, and all was going merrily when
the villain hidden in the thicket show
ed his hand
1t always has been suspected that he
was a villain belonging to the same
club as the artist and sculptor He
became aware of the house boat party,
and out of pure deviItry and from no
desire to see the sculptor get ahead of
the game he worked his little trick.
The day before the boat was to sail
he fixed up telegram calling Harold
Strong TO Philadelphia TO see about
painting the portrait of a millionaire
The artists return was indefinite
| He knew that he was leaving a rival
| behind him. and he knew that the Co
| l0nial Dame, as the craft was called,
would scarcely have come to anchor in
| the bay and the moon risen above the
/ waters when that cheeky sculptor
would be talking soft nonsense to Ruth
| Bascomb, but the artistic spirit was
strong within him.
| He arranged with his sister to inter-
! rupt if the sculptor tried to take adyan-
| tage of the occasion. Feeling himself
| as secure as any man ever can feel
| where woman is concerned, he de-
/ parted ON his mission, and the stately
| Colonial Dame also departed ON hers
! Sometimes millionaire can be found
sitting on his front steps and smoking
a fairly good cigar and waiting to be
interviewed. Again he is as elusive as
| the midnight mosquito. The one the
artist sought was elusive 1t took a
whole day to run him down, and when
he was finally Brought to bay his reply
was:
Young man, don't try any of your
| confidence games ON me if you want
to keep out of Jail I didn't telegraph
you. l want no painting of any sort I
don't like the look of you. If you are
honest. then some one has made a fool
of YOU; if You are a confidence man,
then try the first corner grocery"
Harold Strong had been bunkoed. II
was only natural that he should believe
the game had been played by his rival
He didn't wait to devour even sand
| witch before catching a train for New
York. For three hours he sat in q
chair car and murdered the sculptor
He killed him in seven different WAYS
and was planning the eighth when he
arrived at good sized town in Penn
sylvania and was asked by the porter
if he wished to stop there. He had got
into a car that had been switched OF
at junction ON to another road while
he was doing the numbering act.
1t was noon when the artist reached
New York. 1t was = o'clock before
he began his hunt for some craft tc
| take him down to Princess bay and lay
him alongside the house boat. The
sculptor had had one moonlight nigh
in which to weave his net of romance
around the victim, but he should MOI
have another. The artist tried to char
ter all sorts of crafts, from an Albany
day boat to sand barge. but the after
noon wore away and night was comins
on before be landed at the foot O.
Thirty ninth street, Brooklyn, and in
terviewed Captain links of the Merry
Sal.
Can you charter me to find hous,
boat in Princess bay tonight?" repeat
ed Captain links as he bent his heat
to scratch the back of his neck. Yes
sir, | reckon you can if you've got
twenty dollar bill about you. You'v,
got a schooner right here which is no
much to look at compared with SOM
schooners. but if there is anything OF
land or water that she can't pick u
I'd like to see it. That's her great holt
young manipulating up things There
goin' TO be fog tonight as sure's yol
| live, but if 1 don't hit that house boa
plumb center before midnight then II
never sing gospel hymns off Cape Hat
teras ag'in.'
Harold Strong closed with the offer
The crew of the Merry Sal consiste,
OF the captain and lunkhead of
young man and boy of ten who hai
run away from home and was tryin
a life on the pillows. The captain look
ed upon the artist as a husband pursu