Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-11-24
Evening Star S
Daily Story
WAITING ON THE CORNER
BY JOHN PHILIP ORTIZ.

5R-S pldHO IN the uSssTlOf OF Ile1 IdlueI
'nsse when all at once there came a
jangie. If one is playing THE Old
Folks at Home" and absolutely Won
ders off into the air of Yankee
Doodle, there's going to be a jangle.
and then you suddenly remember
that you borrowed Bessie Walters
dream book a day or two ago, and
solemnly promised her that it the
reading of 1t caused you TO dream
you would faithfully relate that
dream to the lender of the book with
out unnecessary delay.
Well, Miss Madge had read the book
from cover to cover. Much of its
contents had made her gasp and
shiver. What hadn't had appealed to
her romance. She had dreamed. She
had dreamed of being chased by
snakes, wolves, brigands and run
away locomotives.
They had run her through swamps,
thickets and meadows; they had run
her up hill and down: they run her
through streets and alleys.
But for her hobble skirt she could
have outdistanced them. AS 1t was,
the pesky thing wopsed her ankles
and shortened her stride until she
could only keep about ten feet ahead
standing up and shivers kept chasing
up and down her spine.
At last, after the chase had con-
tinued for miles and the poor girl
had just jumped a fence nine feet
high without her French heels touch
ing a splinter, she caught the lower
limb of a tree and clambered up to
safety. And she was getting her lost
breath back when chevalier came
that way and told her that it was his
business in life to rescue fair maid
ems in distress.
Wasn't that a dream worth telling?
Gould the dreamer walt until she met
Miss Bessie face to face? She went
to the telephone to relate the dream.
in full, even IL ii took an hour and q
half, and three or four persons
wanted to send for the doctor. Miss
Hadse settled herself for cosy chat
when the answer came back from
the central office:
Cant do it.; the lines are crossed"
Whats the matter with the line?
TITS never in order,"
"And ] wanted to talk to Wall
Street,"
You man with the big bull voice,
shut up!"
Miss Madge found herself interest
that dominated the rest, though it
was lost In the shuttle now and then.
The girl caught these words:
AT least ten thousand. About ;
o'clock. The corner of Willow and
Stark streets. Don't strike to Kill,
but to stun. Yes, two of them. Then
upstairs and down the back way.
Sure thing"
What was the meaning of those
words Miss Madge seldom read the
Gally papers. and when she did she
skipped all the criminal news. Had
she repeated the sentence to her
brother Joe, who was still in knicker-
lockers, he would have replied:
What a doughhead girl Isl
Why, that is to be an elopement.'
"Eut il says ten thousand" pro-
tested the sister.
THAT means the fcller is TO have
ten thousand dollars to see the thing
through"
But some one is told not to strike
to gill;
'1ts probably the chap who is go-
ing to take care of the girls old DAD
IL he gets wind of the elopement and
comes around to raise a row. lie
isn't TO be killed, but only half
killed."
"But how about upstairs and down
the back way?"
why, the clippers will have a taxi
in the alley, and that will be the
way to reach it."
? II don't believe you know a thing
about it!' exclaimed the sister.
"Oh, you don't? Then you so
hang!"
Here was something different from
a dream. II was a mystery. There
was romance in IL. Perhaps there
was crime. At any rate, 1t excited
the girls curiosity.
II am going to be there and see
it, she unused. II never saw an
elopement in my life. l can go out
in the auto and after seeing the fun
| can go along and tell Bessie about
the dream. A dream and an elope-
menti Won't | have news for her.
At 1:45 that afternoon an auto with
Miss Madge Seaforth seated IN the
tonneau was at the corner of VIII
low and Stark streets 1t was yet a
residence street, but two Or three
lar1e factories had been erected.
There was nothing unusual going ON
at the corner Aside from pedes-
TRANS passing to and fro, there were
three tough looking men leaning up
against a wall.
.'The clippers are to meet here,
unused Miss Madge. The girl VIII
probably come down Willow street,
and the young man is in that drug
store across the street keeping Walch
I'll bet they are both fun OF thrills.
How mean 1t would be il the father
appeared"
Two O'Clock and no girl appeared
No father showed up. No. lover move
in sight with his heart beating tu-
multously.
ter?"
From down Stark street came two
men. One of the men carried leather
bag.
Miss Madge noticed them, but care
lessly. The trio on the corner straight
ened up and passed a word with each
other.
A moment more and things began
to happen. The three loungers at
lacked the two men with the bag.
There were shouts and blows and
scuffling. The chauffeur leaped to the
walk and ran away Miss Madge
opened the door of the vehicle and
stood screaming. She hardly realized
it when one of the men threw the
bag at her feet. -.
''Save it from the thugs if you cant
And then the girl found herself at
the wheel and speeding away. There
was more shouting, and perhaps some
of it was meant for her, but she did
not heed it. One of the loungers came
running and sought to pull her down
or climb up.
Straight home, a mile away, and
the bag was carried into the house.
II was then that Miss Madge had a
lit OF hysteria.
"But what were you doing at that
corner?" asked the mother.
II went to see an elopement,"
"You silly goosei'
ut must have been robbery"
"Of course it was. and now there II
be q great hurrah in the papers. with