The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1912-04-14


to have, she was sitting astride him,
with a painful, grinding knee on
either Of his arms, and Shaping his
face.
The Honorable John Ruin walked
briskly down from the sea-wall with
a smile of profound pleasure on his
face. The perfumed Baron had not
yet perceived his charges plight
Pollyooly did not smack very hard
at first, for she was resisting the wrig.
Cling Of the Prince; but once she had
dug her toes firmly into the sand, she
gave her mind to delivering each
smack with the full swing of her arm:
and the Prince began to below. Then
the Baron saw the terrible, reasonable
indignity the hope of the House OF
Lippe-Schweidnitz was enduring. He
broke into a curious toddling run,
uttering odd short shrieks of the last
horror as he came.
The Honorable John Rufin placed
himself athwart the course Of the tod
ding deliverer and said, Don't hurry.
Pollyooly; but smack him hard"
A smile of understanding wreathed
Pollyooly's flushed but angel face: and
John Ruffin's back was turned to the
headlong Baron; but his head was
bent a little sideways; and as the al
ready breathless rescuer made his final
squirting rush, he moved sharply to
the left. 1t was unfortunate (but
since he had not eyes in the back OF
his head, it could not be helped that
the left shoulder of the Honorable
John Rufln. jerking upwards hard.
should have caught the onrushing
right shoulder of the deliverer The
Baron left the firm earth, twirled IN
the air in a fashion which would have
won him the plaudits Of the most ex-
acting vaudeville audience, came down
on his back on the sand with a vic.
lence which shook all the breath out
of his body, and lay gasping in n
darkened world.
1t was a full two minutes before the
believing of his sufficiently besmacked
charge came again, dimly, TO his COM
pretending ears. Then he grew aware,
also dimly, that the Honorable John
Ruffin was standing over him and ask.
ing loudly, with every appearance of
just Indignation. what he meant by
not looking where he was going. The
Baron was strongly of the opinion
that the interposed shoulder had been
no accident; but he was much too busy
with his breathing to say so. Then
when his breath came more easily and
he had the power to say so, he had no
longer the inclination. for the knowl-
edge Of the terrible position in which
he stood, or rather lay. had flashed on
him; he, a Prussisn officer, had been
knocked down by civilian and was
forever disgraced.
PolIyooly continued TO smack the
believing Prince; the Honorable John
Rufln continued 10 ask the Baron
what the devil he meant by e. and
the poor wits Of the painting nobleman
continued to work on his dreadful
problem. Then a flash Of inspiration
showed him the saving solution; he
could accept his noisy questioner's
view that his fall had been an acct
dent He sat up and sulklly apollo
gized for having been knocked down.
The hands of Pollyooly were sore
from smacking Prince Adalbert, but
not so sore as his royal cheeks and
still she smacked on. She interjected
between the smacks requests for an
assurance that he would cease TO an
noy the children on the beach. His
fine Prussian determination not to be
robbed of his simple pleasures pre-
vented him from giving it. He pre-
ferred to below. But there are limits
even to royal endurance; and as the
2 Baron rose shaldly to his feet, the
Prince howled the assurance she de-
manded.
And mind you do, or I'll smack
you again" said Pollyooly.
She rose TO her feet, flushed and tri-
umphant, and rubbed gently together
her singing hands. The Prince lay
where he was, still believing.
Ten yards away Mrs. Gibson stood
holding the hand Of the Lump, who
gazed at the scene in placid wonder;
and she was laughing gently. Ten
yards away, on her right, stood a
dozen children, surveying their bel
lowing pest with joyful, vengeful eyes.
Behind them distractedly lowered
three shocked nurses, quivering with
horror at the upheaval of the Social
ediice.
The Baron slowly took in the hui
initiating Significance of the scene; he
saw that the glory of royal house
had been leveled to the dust, or rather
TO the sand. He caught his blubber-
ing charge by the arm, jerked him to
his feet, and led him away by one
large ear.
Il congratulate you, Pollyooly. An
excellent piece Of work. The naughty
foreigner will trouble us no more,A
said the Honorable John Ruffin: and
he laughed quietly and joyfully.
He was right. The royal progress
the next morning was a very different
matter. The Baron Won Habelschwert
still perfumed the air as he walked:
but it was no longer the air of a con-
quered country. His mustache was
less fierce, his stride less proprietary.
Indeed, he might easily have been mis-
taken, by those to whom his name and
dignities were unknown, for an inof-
fensive keeper Of a delicatessen shop,
Prince Adalbert Of Lippe-SchweidnitE
was also changed. He no longer
roamed afield; he kept within six feet
Of his protective equerry He
slouched less; and he had ceased 70
scowl arrogantly on the children, who
no longer fed at his approach he 70
garded little English girls with re-