The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-06-17
THE EVENING STORY
Catching a Thief.

Oh berries before his plate. Sam, MS
dusky man, smiled alphabetically.
| Ann dom my bes'," he declared.
| An shuah would liak to kotch 'em."
i Same here" declared Nornington.
/ You don't suppose that the people next
door take them, do you, Sam?
sam shook knowing head. The
young ladies, he declared, could not be
guilty OF such depredations. Ever since
! they had moved in they had Favored
Sam with sunny smiles as they passed
ms yard on the way to the Dostoftice
! sam was their secret slave.
| With Mornington it was different. He
had reseated the appearance of this
little colony on the next farm. There
We're six of them, five girls and an
elderly woman, who apparently chaper-
oned them. Gossip said that they were
| artists VINO were spending the summer
| in the country to sketch. and their
! daily faring forth with easels and can
vases bore out the statement.
bloomington hated artists in general
and women artists in particular. He
had bought the Terrence farm that he
man have quiet when five chatteiing
women occupied the adjoining farm
house not 300 feet away.
The strawberry beds had been the
last irritation. The previous year he
had berries in profusion. This season
there were few to be found. The dozen
or so in tie saucer we've all Sam had
been able to gather in a day. He was
garden, and, without announcing his
intention to Sam. he rose early the next
morning.
The sun had barely risen when he
took his place behind the tool house,
whence he could command a view of
the garden. Presently a slender, girl
ish figure came hurrying from the 9TH
er house and entered the plot. Morn
ington waited until she had filled the
pan she carried and was about to CO.
Then he stepped out with a hail. The
girl looked up pleasantly.
Good morning." she cried. won't
you have some of our berrieS?"
II should like some of NINE" he
said pointedly.
DO you grow them, too?" she
asked. Mornington- marveled at her
possession.
'I grow them" he assented, cor
rather one of Torrence's men grows
them for me. That is as far as have
been able to get this season. l have
not eaten many OF them"
1--WE have them every morning" she
said briskly. Its one of the things
we moved to the country for, fresh
fruit. After being cooped up in
studios all season and picking your
fruits and vegetables off the dumb
waiter, it is just heavenly to come out
in the garden before breakfast and
pick your own berries"
But don't you think it would be
better to find out whose berries you
the country, property rights obtain"
These are ours" she declared. we
were very particular in our inquiries"
'Yet the garden belongs to me-" he
insisted little shamefacedly. Some
how his triumph was losing its SAVIOR
Then we must have been robbing
you all this time she said, with
face suddenly grown as red as the
berries in the pan. 81 am very sorry"
Its all right" he said awkwardly'
\ 11o1 nf
fore what glorious eyes the girl had.
''It is not all right" she said de-
cidedly. I'VE are not thieves. Please
take them. You can send the pan
back when you are through.
pray accept them with my compli-
ments," he said stupidity. He knew
and he chafed at the knowledge
For answer the girl laid the pan on
the ground and turned away Morn
ington watched her go through the
paths to the fence and slip through |
broken place. She had the regal bear |
ing Of a queen and face to match.
Now he would never have chance to |
get acquainted with her and he sud- |
denly realized that that was the one |
thing above all others that he most de- |
sired
Shamefacedly he picked up the pan |
and went back to the house to send |
Sam over with the fruit. Sam regard |
ed him reproachfully when he had told |
his tale, but the darby went down the |
road to the next house. and after a
long delay returned without the pan,
but he laid shining half dollar In
palm.
'Dey wouldn't take EN-" he explain
ed al shuah had t. tax de money"
Mornington flung the money from
him with gesture of disgust and
went in to breakfast feeling out of
joint with the whole world.
But there was worse yet to come. for
- TO- |
err of the farm. made his appearance
with the chaperone from the house
next door. with many hem" and
a "haw'' Terrence confessed that find
ing a chance to clinch the lease of the
farm through the strawberry
bed he had told the women that it was
a part of the land they had rented. Il
honestly meant to speak to you about
it. because I knew that you had more
berries than you wanted. I was go
ing to pay for what they ate out OF
the rent" he concluded.
Mornington rose to his feet, and Tor
renee backed through the door. More
than once he had witnessed the city
mans hasty temper. and he had no
desire for an exhibition.
Mornington watched him go and
then turned to Mrs. Surrey.
ct don't know what can say to you
to excuse my conduct" he began. 81
missed the breakfast berries and want
ed to put a stop to it, but I did not
know that Terrence had claimed my
berry patch for his own. May beg
that my apology be the freedom of
the berry patch? There are plenty for
US both I am not always a bear. so
you need not be afraid to gather
them"
When he so wished, Mornington
could be very charming, and now he
was exerting himself to the full. Mrs.
Surrey became gracious and the upshot
was that Mornington accepted an in
vitation to tea when he might make ;
mis- apology in person to Nancy Rich
mond.
So successful was he that the next