Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-08-14
8he Hrgus Daily Short Story
When Betty Came Home By c. B. Lewis
Copyrig hed19O by ed Literary Press
Copyrighted. 1908, by AS,

The arrangement was satisfactory
all around. Mrs. Hardin, the widowed
mother, accompanied by her daughter
Betty and maid, was TO spend July and
August at a seashore resort. Will
Hardin, the son, and his college chum.
Frank Archer, We're to keep bachelors
hall in the Long Island manor house.
The faithful old servant who had
acted as cook for many years past
was willing to remain TO care for their
wants and keep the house from being
two months off with wages and told to
make herself scarce.
All went well at home and at the
seashore for a month. Then the time
was ripe for something to happen, and
something did happen. The mother
met with a fall, Miss Betty lost the
only young man worth flirting with,
and the maid came so near being
drowned in the surf that she threat
ened to quit her job unless the family
retired to Il safe distance from the
raging sea.
Miss Betty wrote her brother win
that they would arrive home on Il GER
tain date. and the date was put far
enough ahead to enable the two camp
ers TO get the dishes washed up and
their fish poles removed from the par
lOr But what is the use of writing
letters to brother who doesn't go to
| the postoffice for mail? The letter ar
rived all right but was not called for.
Then, on the afternoon or the even
| ing OH which the family were to az
rive home, Will had to go up TO Brook
| Ign on pressing business. 1t was mid
| night before the young lady gave an
answer to his pressing question. and
| it was two hours later before he
dropped off a freight train at the coun-
try station half a mile from home.
| Archer was left to fish the time
away, cook his own dinner and go to
bed at any hour that suited his con
venience. That hour was 8 O'Clock,
and he had sixty minutes TO get to
sleep when the family arrived. No
| VIII appeared at the depot to meet
them, but fortunately they found a
| conveyance, and fortunately Miss
Betty had carried her latchkey away
| with her and could now make use of it.
AS the hour was late no time was
wasted looking around-just enough TO
| be satisfied that brother Will wasn't in
his bed and that it would take two
| robust women two weeks to put the
/ |. L., - 4, H. h.
arrivals had been abed for two hours
when Archer woke up. He was dream
| ing that he had hooked fish five feet
long and was playing it, when he
found himself sitting zip in bed with
his eyes wide open.
He felt that some noise had disturbed
him. There had been great deal of
the Rallies" business in the country.
The chums had talked the matter over
and decided what was to be done in
case he invaded the house under their
guardianship.
They We're armed. and they were to
do their best to kill or capture him.
One chum and one revolver being alb
sent on this occasion made a differ
ence, but nevertheless the chum on
the spot prepared TO die for his host.
Getting softly out of bed and partly
dressing. he soon assured himself that
! Win had not vet returned. Just then
he distinctly heard noise in the lower
part of the house-the fall of some
thing.
RaffIes had effected an entrance and
Numbered over a chair. The student OF
cheWistry hesitated no longer. He
softly opened his door, and. with q
lamp in one hand and revolver in the
other. he stepped out into the hall tC
descend the stairs.
| There had certainly been a noise
two noises in fact Mother and daugh
ter occupied rooms at the front of thu
house. After sleeping for a couple o
hours the mother had awakened in
nervous condition and called he
daughter. This was number one.
III The daughter had answered, mixet
a sleeping draft and Knocked tn
bottle off the stand to the floor. Thi
| noise had brought young Archer from
| his room into the hall. and he was jus
in time to encounter Miss Betty as sh
was returning to her own room.
OF course she was startled. o
course he was startled as well. The.
We're not ten feet apart. and as the.
stood there staring at each other sh
forgot that viii was to have his chun
with him, and it went clean out of hi
head that Will had a mother and siste
anywhere on earth.
Some girls, under the circumstances
might not have been the first to re
cover their wits. Miss Betty was
She motioned the young man down tn
hall. and when he could back up n
farther she advanced quite close
him and whispered:
| Mother is very nervous, and if sh
| knew you were in the house the shoe