The Falls City tribune., 1909-11-12
ELLERY
GAVE PROOF
It Vas a Convincing Demonstration

49, @81A 80 NAC A6E 49,
individual when he paused at a show
window 10 gaze therein at a hectic ar.
ray OF fascinating socks. The man
brushed up against him, Earring the
small package which Ellery carried
beneath his arm so that he had to re-
adjust his grasp of It.
1t was a small box neatly tied up In
fresh paper with violet cord. because
his sister had attended to that detail.
1t looked as if it might be a jewelers.
plush box containing a diamond neck
lace or something of the sort, but in
reality it held two sandwiches.
This was because Ellery is an abb
sent-minded individual who will not
heed the call of hunger unless some
one is at hand forcibly to lead him to
a meal. OF late he had been working
nights and forgetting to go out to
dinner, coming out of his trance about
ten O'Clock, %rayenous and faint.
IF you put this box in front of you
upon your desk" his sister had told
him with faint sarcasm, maybe you'll
remember to open it and eat the con.
tents while you work"
EIlery had obediently carried the
box downtown with him. It was small
enough to escape general notice, but it
seemed to have attracted the low.
proved man.
Indeed, at the entrance to a convent.
ent alley that lurking individual sud.
denly gave Ellery a push and made
another unsuccessful grab at the box.
Then he speedily bit the dust, because
Ellery in his Indignation and alarm
had Immediately squared off and hit
back, chance planting his fist on the
sensitive spot of the low-browed mans
jaw.
In the resultant confusion the man
scrambled to his feet and fed. The
box was recovered by its owner while
the assembled populace cheered him
for so ably defending his property.
Ellery is a man of peace, Under or.
binary conditions he would beg par.
don of a fly if he got in it's way. How.
ever, in his ears still rang pleasantly
the %plaudits of the street crowd as he
entered the general Office and related
his adventure.
You say you actually hit him ?" de-
manded Busby with a look of incredu-
ulity.
Youth a vulgar street fight"
mourned Williamson. "Oh. you shock
me, dear boy"
Maybe you think I'm a coward"
bristled Ellery.
mo, oh, no. soothed hummer. But
are you sure you really hit him."
For answer Ellery walked into his
private office and slammed the door.
Unconseiously he doubled up his arm
and felt his swelling biceps with a
certain fierce pleasure. He measured
a good five feet eleven and was broad
of shoulder and inwardly he writhed
at the incredulous tones which had
been employed by the men in the outer
Office. That they should think him in
capable of worsting an opponent or
even of hitting back ranked in his
mind, That he was mild of n
and reserved of speech was no reason
for putting him down as a mollycoddle
afraid to call his soul his own
All day in intervals of work the 1T
tie sting kept recurring to destroy Ell
lery's peace of mind, to rouse in him
a spirit of wrath. In a subconscious
way he knew the men in the Office
had talked the matter over and he
could imagine their comments. and
their winks. Maybe they even went
so far as to think he had exaggerated
had even told a falsehood.
In a sort of fury Ellery worked on
that evening. devouring his sand
wiches with slow, fierce grinds of his
jaws, his brows straight and frown.
ing. He did not realize that those
sandwiches had been lovingly filed
with lettuce and mayonaise and
chopped ~nuts-they might just as we'll
have been spread with sawdust.
He started home about ten o'clock.
Just as he reached the deserted
corner of the building from the shad-
ows stepped a man with the gruff
command. Hands up"
There was no one else in sight, so
1t was useless to call for help. The
man was bigger than Ellery, but FL.
lery's evaporation at this second as.
sault in one day overcame all other
emotions.
With an inarticulate howl and tbs
blood humping in his temples, Ellery
made a leap at the robber in sublime
disregard of 4 possible six-shooter. His
assailant crumpled up like a paper
man beneath the shock of Ellery's
weight. Without any wasting of
breath in preliminaries Ellery pro
ceeded to pound the mans face as if it
were a particularly tough beefsteak
which he was in a hurry to make ten.
der. The JOY of onset was still upon
him as he pounded away, but his op
ponent twisted his co|untenance aside
to escape that implacable fist.