Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-09-09

wife and a steady Job. q man who
] stays home evenings and rolls his owr
cigarettes-when a man like this has
been yearning for just one weird. scar
let adventure before he is forever toe
| old and he is suddenly confronted with
it, what happens?
Does he fall for It?
Sometimes, and again There was
the case of William Q. Johnson.
! or course you may argue that his
case was exceptional in that William
was none other than the son OF Bill
Johnson.
Bill had brought his picturesque ca
reer to close by getting hanged in
MeIbourne-an interesting man and IA
nous in his day throughout the south
seas.
But William had never been permit
ted to know anything about his IA
Tiers activities. And, as for ships and
things, his sainted mother had brought
him up to shun them as evil inventions.
On the evening of his adventure
Johnson came home from the office, as
usual at $50, dutifully kissed his wife
and washed himself hurriedly in prep
aration for the waiting soup. He was
visibly preoccupied.
Presently his wife said to him:
you look worried dearie. Isn't your
work all right?"
"Everything's o. k" he responded,
but he relapsed into silence.
She didn't question him further. He
had these silent spells.
Sometimes it was dispute with his
chief at the office, sometimes a stirring
of old ambitions, sometimes a goading
thought of his small salary.
1t was never anything worse than
that His habits were exemplary, and
his wife knew it.
Yet the very thing that now held
Johnson tongue tied was something he.
dared not confess-something he could
hardly admit to himself without blush
ing.
1t was the memory of girl,
We should state at once that there
We're extenuating circumstances. Not
only was the girl extraordinarily beau
tiful, but the way in which she came
across Williams notice was extraordi-
nary as well.
He had seen her just as he was COM
ing up the steps with his latchkey in
his hand. She couldn't have been more
than nineteen or twenty. She was
slim and dark, and her face was won
derfully lovable and alert.
For n fraction of a second she had
inclined in his direction-eyes, face,
fgure-with parted lips, as though
about to speak to him.
Then something in his attitude-he |
was the most delicate minded of men |
or some second thought Of her own !
had made her hesitate.
The girl passed hurriedly on. VIII !
liam passed into the house.
The oddly of the experience had not
appealed to him. But |
minute later as he climbed the stairs |
and later still when he washed his face |
and on through supper he recalled the /
alertnesS of the way she had looked a !
him.
1t gave him shadowy feeling of /
uneasineSs and regret. He tried over /
and over again TO imagine the words /
that she might have said had he given
her the opportunity
Recollection of the incident returned
to him necessarily long after Mrs
Johnson had gone to bed.
He was nervous and wide awake =
Suddenly amid the little sounds of
the deepening night-the ticking of the
clock, the rumble of distant trolley /
car the stirring of an uneasy window
saSh-there came q soft, distant TIP /
ping at the door.
Johnston started and looked up
1t was past II. For an interval he
Gid not stir The summons was re-
Deated, little louder. but still guarded
and cautious.
Johnson tiptoed to the inner hall.
turned up the gas and cautiously open
ID the door.
He had pretty good nerves for an
;ffice man. still he couldn't suppress a
of surprise
Standing there before him, gro
esquely black and misshapen. was .
segro dwarf.
The visitor didn't attempt TO come in.
Instead. he Immediately plunged into
series of urgent signs that Johnson
vas to follow.
He was obviously in a hurry.
Johnson came to a swift resolution.
The night had begun adventurously.
lie would see it through.
As best he could he made the dwarf
understand that he would come rs
DON as he could change his slippers
or his shoes. 4 few minutes later.
Without having disturbed his wife, he
vas following the negro silently down
he stairs.
1t was but few minutes walk from !
he placed Johnson lived to a park,
acing upon which were the houses of
he wealthy. That's the way it is in
lew York-poverty and opulence sep
rated by line as narrow and intan- .
ible as a meridian.
To this park Johnson followed the
warf, the only clear thought emerg- {
lg from his bewilderment being that
Is wife might wake up and find him :
Kissing.
His guide went fast. with shut
ing lOoSa iointed glide that kent him