Rock Island Argus., 1911-10-21
The Argus Daily Story
The Boss Wife-By Clarissa Mackie.
copyrighted. 1911. by Associated Literary Bureau

: closed his blue eyes Contentedly.
1t does beat ALI" calculated Crane
admiringly.
What woke him up:" demanded
/ Mrs. Clintock with sudden suspicion.
/ for she had detected a look of tender
/ ness in Cranes eyes. He was sleep
/ ing like lamb when l left"
| II looked at him." confessed the
! Crane sheepishly. Il thinks to myself.
a cat can, look at a king. and l guess
cattleman kin look Mt a calf baby"
You didn't touch himy" persisted
/ Mrs. Clintock
II guess l hypnertizod him like that
/ Trilby feller." evaded Crane.
''Trilby was a girl" corrected the
boss wife. cuddling the baby under
/ her round chin. Did you touch that
/ baby. Theodore Crane?"
/ Crane reddened 10 his ears. Blame
/ It ALL he complained, Il did. II you
/ must know. l looked at him. ma'am,
/ and he looked so consarned cute A-lay-
/ ing there sucking his thumb. l kissed
the little cuss and he woke up and
! hOwled at me-"
Hes n naughty little boy" chided
| Mrs. Clintock. touching a finger to the
baby's dimpled cheek. Kiss him
again. Mr.. Crane; don't believe he'll
mind now" She held ont the sleeping
baby and Crane bent his head awk-
wardly and pressed a kiss on the fair
| skin.
There, he never stirred. He takes
It as a compliment that n big busy
man should want TO kiss little boy"
Mrs. Clintock's motherly eyes were
full of tears az she replaced the baby
in the crib and returned to the sitting
! room.
Crane was leaning over the phonO-
graph, awkwardly fitting on a new rec
ord.
II found n tune I used to know"
he explained without turning his head
Help yourself" said Mrs Clintoc1
as she went out to the veranda to
meet her husband. She had whisper
ed in his sympathetic enr Of the CON
versation she had bad with the lonely
cattleman and of the letter she had
hastened to send to Idaho. when the
strains of the phonograph broke forth
/ once more.
whats that tune?" asked Boss Clin-
took. his arm around his wife.
ITS Ascher's Alice. Whore Art
/ ThouY" returned the little woman.
| "Dick, believe her name is Alicer'
You're right as usual is my safe
| bet" grinned the boss, kissing his
| wife
A week later the boss wife few
| down the hill toward the bunk house,
| where the Crane was eating a soil
! tary supper. Wah Lee, the cook. pad
| ded in and ont OF the room, tunoless-
! ~ chanting his eternal ditty. Crane
| effectually stopped the noise by toss
| ing n plate toward his bare heels. As
| Wah Lee skipped squealing into the
| kitchen Mrs. Clntock thrust a rosy
face inside the door.
"Can / have a cup OF coTeeT" she
| asked breathlpssly.
! "Ycs. ma'am" cried the Crane set
| ting n chair for her and yelling for
! the coffeepot When ne had placed
/ bread and butter and cold meat be
| fore her and filed n steamiu- cup she
| looked at him appeaingly.
81 hope you won't be mad at me foe
what I've done" she began. I've
meddled with your affairs"
What have you doneT' asked Crane
unsuspectingly. The worst she might
do. he thought. would be TO surTepti-
tiously darn his socks. as she had been
wont 70 look after the Lone Bull boys
before the tyrant baby came.
"Was her name Alice Thorp?" asked
Mrs. Clintock eXcitedly.
Crane stared, and red flush stain
ed his bronzed cheek. He nodded
grinlly 1T was"
Weed"
Again he nodded. and she saw inter
est in his gaze.
"Well. ! took the liberty Of writing
TO my cousin in Antelope, and she
says Mrs Weed is a widow now and
has returned to Antelope 10 live with .
her father who IS m Old man"
II know him we'll said Crane
dreamily. "a real gentleman. Old
Thorp was"
"Wen?" Mrs. ClIntock's voice was
expectant.
''Well| Cranes voice was defiant.
What are you going 20 do now?
My cousin says Alice Is as sweet and
pretty as ever and that it is common
belief that she only married Weed for
spite and that she looks so sad some
times-and once she inquired after
you"
Only onceT" demanded Crane jeal-
ousIy. His chair scraped away from
the table. and a fighting look came
into his eyes.
THE boss says you can take n
weeks vacation II you want TO-" said
Mrs Clintock, rising from the table
and turning toward the door "He
SAYS he'll make you foreman Of the
annex II you want the Job and that
the house is large enough for three"
A vision Of Alice Weed and her IA
ther dmmed the Cranes sharp gray
eyes. He bent his head with a grace
born Of the warm Impulse and kissed
Mrs. Clintock's plump little hand
.aCnd hIcan vnt1 rnn m ~ ne enld In