The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-08-09

den as if I'd touched live wire. but I
keeps my arms down. 'Ah, say says
l. Il don't see any call for the station
house drag out just yet. Loosen up
there a bit. will your
Mind your business says one of
'em. ssivin' me the glary eye.
Thanks" says l. II was waitin' for
an invite" and l reaches out and gets
a shut off grip on their necks. 1t didn't
take 'em long to loosen up after that.
Here, herer says the Willie that I'd
spotted for Corson. "Oh, it's you, is it,
professor
Yes. it's me- says l. still holdin' the
pair at arms length. What's the
row."
Why" says corson, this old wo-
man"
Lady" says I.
"Aw-er-yes." says he. She insists
on fawcing her way in to see Mr..
Dawes"
- Well" says I. "she amt got no bag
of dynamite, or anything like that, has
she?"
Il just wanted word with Fletcher"
says she. buttin' in-'just a word or
two"
Friend of yours?" says l.
why. Well. we have known each
other for forty years." says she.
THAT ought to pass you in says /.
But she refuses to give her name"
says COrson.
Il am Mrs. Maria Dawes" says she,
hOldin' her chin up and lookin' him
straight between the eyes.
"Yo're not on the liYi." says Corson.
List be bowed" says l. Say, you
peanut headl can't you see this is some
relation? You ought to have sense
enough TO get a report from the boss
before you carry out this quick bounce
business. Perhaps you're putin your
foot in it. son."
Then Corson weakens. and the old
lady throws me look that was an good
as a vote of thanks. And. say, when
she's Strengthened her lip and pulled
herself together. she was as ladylike
an old party as you'd want to meet.
There want much style about her, but
she was dressed expensive enOugh-furs
and silks and sparks i'm her ears.
Looked like one of the sort that had
been up against a long run of hard
luck and had come through without
getting sour
While we was arguin', in drifts Mr..
Dawes himself. | gets a glimpse of
his face when he first spots the old
girl. and if ever | see a mouth shut like
a safe door and a jaw stiffen as if it
had turned to concrete. his did.
What does this mean, Maria?" he
says between his teeth.
Il couldn't help it. Fletcher says
she Il wanted to see you about little
BERTHE"
"Huhr' grunts Fletcher. well, step
in this way. McCabe, you can come
along, too"
/ want stuck on the way it was said
and didn't banker for mixin' up with
any such reunions: but it didn't look
like Maria had any too many friends
handy, so ! trots along. When we're
shut in, with the draperies pulled Mr.
Dawes plants his feet solid, shoves his
hands down into his rockets, and looks
Maria over careful
Then you have lost the address of
my attorneys?" says he, real frosty.
That don't chill Maria at all. She
acted like she was used to it. NO"
says she: but I'm tired of talking to
lawyers. / couldn't tell them about
BERTHE. and how lonesome I've been
without him these last two years. Can't
have him Fletcher"
About then ] begins TO get a glimmer
of what il was all about, and by the
time she'd gone on for four or five min
utes / had the whole story. Maria was
the exMrs. Fletcher Dawes. Little
BERTHE was a grandson; and grandma
wanted BERTHE to come and live with
her in the big Long Island place that
Fletcher had handed her when he
snapped her off for one of the sextette.
and settled up after the decree was
granted.