Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-12-10
The Argus Daily Short Story
MATTIE'S MILKMAN-BY MURRAY FEEL
COPYRIGHTED, 1908, by Associated Literary Press

Miss Jeannettes objection to Gene
Carman was his profession. He was
night editor on A morning paper, and
he came home anywhere between and
6 o'clock in the morning
Miss Jeanette was country bred, and
for forty years she had accepted with
out question the dictum that those who
We're out of night We're no better than
thieves and robbers.
Just what was the difference between
thieves and robbers Miss Jeanette did
not know. She knew only that those
were the only sort of persons who
were out when decent folk should be
abed, so when her pretty niece, Matte
Boyer, gave evidence of more than G
passing interest in Carman she very
promptly frowned upon the young man
and warned Matte that she must have
| nothing more to do with the Carmans.
| mother and son.
| The latter lived on the floor above
Matte and her maiden aunt. and kind
| ly Mrs. Carman had been a tower of
strength to Miss Jeanette when she
and Matte had first come to the city
to live.
She had pointed out the best places
at which to trade and helped Miss
Jeanette to get an obnoxious tenant
on the lower floor out of the house and
had initiated both the elder and the
younger woman into city ways gen.
orally.
Naturally 1t had hurt the old lady
when the Boyers had terminated their
friendly relations without word OF
warning, but a hint from Matte to
Gene soon set matters right.
Matte was accustomed to Miss Jean
nette's sudden whims, and she assured
Gene that presently there would be q
turn of the tide in his favor. Mean
while she had to obey Miss Jeanrette'S
prohibition against seeing Gene, SO the
only communication they held was b!
means of notes.
Every morning when Gene came
home from his work he found 4 not'
stuck in the wide mouth of the empt.
milk bottle beside the Boyer doorway
The milkman came through the hous'
later. gathering up empty bottles an,
leaving the filled ones.
To any person who CHANGED to pas
it would appear to be note of in
: structions to the mikman. but t
Gene. coming home tired and some
times disheartened, the little blue eli
velopes were like mental cocktails.
The same bottle would not serve a
his postoffice as well, for Miss Jear
nette took in the milk.
The best that Gene could do was t
{ leave his letters in the candy store o
: | the corner, where Matte could &c
them when she returned from hs
, work
| Had Mrs. Carman been willing
> act as messenger the problem woul
have been far more simple. but til
kindly old lady would have nothing
do with the affair.
, She was hurt that the friendshl
should be so suddenly terminated an
still more hurt that her son should |
regarded as ineligible. She wondere
at his lack of pride that he should SIT
want to marry Matte in spite of Mis-
n Jeannette's prohibition. and she W;
q most ostentatiously neutral.
For time the milk bottle postofh,
answered its purpose excellently we
Miss Jeanette went to bed early ar
;. let Matte close the house. so that Il
latter set the bottle out In the hs
. every evening.
But one morning Gene did not cor
home as usual. There had been Sc
sational accident, and all the men
duty had been rushed to the seer
Even the men on the desks who cou
be spared were sent out, Gene amo
them
= 1t was nearly noon when he at Is
reached home, so exhausted that I
. once did he think of the letter. Mi
and body were numb, and he did I
- dream that another man was readi
the letter intended for him and "
igloating over It's contents.
Mattie's letters were not affecti
lately personal. She knew the dam