The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1914-01-03
leone and OMELET
BY JUNE oAHAN. -

Leone yawned and wandered once
more around the big studio, where
there was a fascinating clutter Of cas-.
els and paint tubes, sheaves Of brushes
In ancient pottery jars, portfolios
spilling their contents in dusty cor
ners, cabinets of curios from every
corner Of the world, and the melan.
choly assemblage of Jim's unsold pic
lures.
IF poor Jim's bread and butter de-
pended upon the sale of his pictures
the dear boy would have to sharpen
his teeth on crusts!" giggled Leone as
she picked up her ermine stole and
muff. Il suppose he is dashing around
In that nerve-racking car while am
waiting here for him-probably for
gotten that he invited me to dine with
him. Heigh-ho, for the particular
form of lunacy some people call &c
centricities Of genius"
She went to the front window and
looked down into the street. The
limousine had disappeared. Henri had
followed her instructions to return
home at once.
The room was rapidly growing dark.
and LEONE lighted lamp and sat
down at the table to write few caus-
tic lines to her most forgetful brother.
"There!" she murmured, as her lit
tie hand folded the paper. you won't
forget that lecture very soon, Master
JIM"
A moment later she had extin-
guished the lamp and was cropping to-
ward the door. 1t resisted all her ef-
forts to open it. The knob simply re-
fused to turn. She pounded on the
door in the vain hope of attracting the
attention of some other tenant of the
building. She remembered with
tremor of fear that Jim had said the
other tenant of the top floor had gone
abroad, that there was no telephone in
the studio and its position on the fifth
floor of the old-fashioned building
made it impossible for her to summon
help without attracting undesirable at
tention,
There was no fire escape and the
great windows in the slant of the roof
did not offer hope of escape. There
was no possibility of Jim missing her
for hours and he would only seek the
studio after he had been home and had
been reminded of the dinner engage
ment. This was the second time he
had forgotten her. It would be the
last.
"He won't have another opportun-
lty." half sobbed Leone as she leaned
drearily against the window that
looked out on the fiat roof of the build
Ing next door. It was an older build
ing and Leone knew 1t as a place
pigeon-holed with the tiny studios of
mpecunious painters and art students.
Tim had started there. but had moved
nto the more pretentious building next
loor when It was opened.
Il believe l could get down there"
The daring thought came to Leone as
he looked down at the roof below. 1t
vas drop of twelve feet, but Leone
3olson was like cat On her feet and
luite fearless.
She pushed the window wide open,
selected sofa pillow from the heap
On the couch, tossed it to the roof be-
low, gathered her trim skirts about her
little feet, sat on the sill, slipped to
the wide coping below, and from there
jumped toward the light patch that
represented the pillow.
The moon peered over the roof Of
the taller building and saw Leone
struggle to her feet. She was gasping
for breath and she felt bruised and
beaten as she picked up her scattered
belongings-stolea and muff and hand
bag, and as many of her amber hat
pins as the moonlight revealed.
"Silly idiot" muttered Leone, limp,
ing toward a skylight which showed
yellow patch Of light. How do know
whether anyone win let me into the
building? My story sounds incredible
-but-ah!" She peered down into
the room beneath.
It was small room and meanly fur
nished with the barest necessities. A
convertible couch bed, table, a few
chairs, bookcases, and some painting
paraphernalia. The canvasses were
turned face to the wall.
"A young udu, Sduut Oh frame, grim
Of countenance, was cooking some
thing over small gas stove. Present
ly he came and laid a table for one
person. It was a meager meal when it
was set forth-a pot Of coffee, half
loaf of rather dry-looking bread, and a
most appetizing omelet hot from the
pan.
At that moment, when the young
man was about to sit down to the
meal-and somehow Leone knew that
he was hungry for it-she arose with
the intention of finding some stairway
that would lead into the building. The
sight Of the appetizing meal had made
her hungry.
As she turned away her heavy gold
mesh bag slipped from her careless
grasp, struck the glass skylight and
disappeared from her startled sight.
From below came the SOUND of a
crashing Of china and a surprised
shout Two minutes later a door burst
open and the gaunt young man, ex-
cited and wrathful. appeared on the
roof.
Leone hurried toward him.
Il am so sorry," she tried to ex-
plain: but was trying to find the
way down and dropped my bag
and"
you spoiled a perfectly good ONE