Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-11-04

Frank Worthing frowned as he look
ed up from the code at his partner.
William Butler. who. with his straw
hat pushed back on his rumpled fair
hair, was still insisting that he leave
the office for the rest of the day.
''Confound you, Billy. heat or nc
heat, August or December. a fellow
that's going to get on in the law sim.
ply must do some studying. Can't you
get 1t through your thick head when |
say l am not going that / mean iti
Take the girls by yourself if they are
silly enough TO like your company.
Can't see what anything bigger than a
child sees in vaudeville park any
how. Now. Billy, get out of here. dol
Your everlasting grin gives me a tenn
perature. and the heat is bad enough
this afternoon as If Isl
Butler surveyed his friend with elab-
crate pity. Poor boyv' he commented
ruminatingly. He hasn't been himself
since he won the big case last month.
Turns down his friends. 1ocks by him
self Must have overworked or else
he's in love. Must be love. Perhaps
the fair Alice Will capitulate after all.
She ought to after you saved her for
tune from a greedy stepmother. Go
after it son. Well. by-by. Me to Grace
and Marietta and the despised park"
Alice Lawtou. indeed. thought Worth
ing. Well that idea was better in But
ler's shallow pate than the real truth
namely. that Marietta's sudden fond
ness for his partner was eating his
heart out. 1t was always Marietta and
Billy Butler every where, and be used
to think 1t was Grace for whom Billy
lOnged. Worthing had known no inner
peace since Marietta had come last
winter to live with her cousin. Grace
Hunter. From the first meeting the
girls dark. little. serious face. sweet
eyes. gay laughter. had not left his
consciousness. And she had certainly
seemed to like him. even to prefer
him, to let him monopolize her some
what and even to be demurely glad
when they were left alone together.
Gloomily rejecting. be began to Won
der what had changed her June had
been a joy time. If he had spoken
then all might have been well. but that
Lawton Inheritance case came to him
He recognized the professional oppOr-
tunity. worked on it like n slave day
and night all through July and won.
feeling that he had now a little better
basis for offering his heart to the girl
he loved. He was also delighted be-
cause he had done a service to Alice.
his lifelong friend. But what had
changed Marietta?
Finding himself unable to study.
Worthing phoned for his car and clos
ed the office. He would go for Alice
and take her for a spin and have din
ner at the golf club and then ride
again till the moon came up. Perhaps
they might go through the park them
selves, and-no. he would let Marietta
alone! He recognized that he longed to
see her.
But Alice was not at home. and. BIT
terly lonely. be motOred out into the
country. AS the sun set and the cool
of evening came on his troubled heart
grew more calm. He would reason
with himself try to see what he had
done or left undone, why Marietta
when he went back to her, flushed and
joyous with his victory. had received
him with the frozen sweetness of a
dish of ice cream and thereafter man.
aged never to be with him alone for a
single moment. The first time he had
noticed 1T was once when, with Alice.
whom he was taking to his Office, he
met her on the street just 10 front of
the building. Her greeting had been
very cool.
Worthlng drew up beneath a great
tree and. taking little photo of the
girl from his pocket. looked at it with
loving inquiry. he recalled that an
other time that she had been cool to
him was when he was telling her how
much 1t meant TO Alice to get her legal
rights and how glad he was to have
been able TO help her. That was at
the golf club dance. and after that she
had been unable to find dance for
him. He sat thinking.
Suddenly it came TO him-the ridicu-
louis little key to the solution. He
started the machine. headed again for
the city. driving like one in sort Of
happy insanity De would go straight
to the park. find her and see her long
enough to ask her if he was right if