The Lynden tribune. [volume] (Lynden, Wash.) 1908-current, 1916-12-28

Fat zoe. Dut his good night was gay.
For time after his departure Joe eyed
Steve sidewise.
'.Hum-m-m," be cleared his throat
"Hum-m-m! And I was expectin' you
to turn up any hour of the last twenty
four with a request that l come and
help bring home the remains. You
must be quite a silver tongued ex-
horter, aren't you, Steve?"
Stephen O'Mara was silent over the
paper which Joe had handed him ear
lier In the evening, and the lack of any
offer on his part TO go into details did
not trouble his questioner. Fat Joe sat
and bobbed his head over what would
never cease to be miracle In his eyes.
And he'll stick this time" he vented
his wonder aloud. Hes surely going
to stick Then he smiled widely
And / reckon you'll have to admit
that i handled the small part thai
came my way with ease and dispatch
when tell you that he didn't catch SO
much as one lonesome pair all the time
was dealing. I'm ashamed of my
self. l haven't seen such NEAL,
crooked game of stud dealt since
came east!'
Garry was very quiet the next morn
ing when he and Steve went back to
their work; before noon came his I'M
easiness had become very apparent to
the man he was assisting. But neither
his silence nor his nervousness any
longer worried Steve. Instead the latte:
let himself smile over both those out
ward evidences of inward panic, when
ever his thoughts were on Garry at all.
For the latter's diffidence as the day
aged became a flushed and warm
checked thing, until at in the after
noon Steve could no longer withhold
the suggestion for which, wordlessly.
Garry was asking.
Joe was more than half right" he
remarked. one eye to his level ''in
spite of the fact that we refused tc
take him seriously. We can't let those
people come in and find everything
too hopelessly uncomfortable, so per
haps you'd better run ahead now
Garry, and see what he has accom-
plished don't want to leave this
spot myself until l have some figures
upon which i know l can rely. But
you might run ahead, If you will. III
be along later
1t was coucbed in the form Of re
quest, but Garry's face famed. Il,
went. albeit q bit reluctantly. And b.
stopped more than few times in hi
climb from the edge of the timber t,
the door OF Steve's shack. But once
ne had passed over the threshold f,
find that unrecognizably trim room
empty, his face grew heavy with dis
appointment. He was on the point
of going back outside to scan the bow
of the valley when a tall, short skirteG
figure, enveloped in voluminous
apron which Fat Joe in a moment OF
mistaken zeal had once provided fol
the cook boy, flashed through the pas
sageway from the kitchen annex and
barely missed catapulting into his
arms. Miriam Burrell, pink faced
from the heat of the roaring wood
stove and smudged with -four on fore
head and cheek, lifted her apron and
swung 1t like a flag of victory.
I've found it," she sang triumphant
ly. 1--WE found out what was the mat
ter! Id just forgotten the baking pow
Ter. that was all. Next time
Then she recognized him. WIZ. Jut.
stretched hands stlll clutching the
edge Of her apron. she stood. almond
| eyes widening, and scanned him from
head to foot. Even Steve. who had
been with him every moment. had
noticed the Lrir to hour change that
had been taking place III Garry's ap-
pearance. To the girl who had not
seen him for weeks. that flushed, SELF
conscious man was a different Garry
than she had never known before
Hungrily her gaze went from open
shirt TO caked boots, from steady
hands to clear eyes which made her
own eyes shy. And then Miriam Bur
rell, cool and poised Miriam, did what
many another maid in checkered
apron has done in similar situations
She lifted that stiff gingham to hide
her unutterable happiness. But be
! fore he could speak she found bel
I
voice, nor was it very steady at that.
81 thought you were that party of
idlers come back" she hesitated. How
how tanned you are becoming, Garry
l thought they-oh, | can't tell you
how glad l am to see you 500 well
I'm making biscuits for supper-that
is, I've just been practicing until now
1t seemed as though I'd forgotten some
thing that was necessary TO the recipe
because they were fatter after they
were cooked than when | put them In
the oven. And most marvelously heavy
too! But it was just the baking pow
der. that was all. Do you-do you
think YOU'D care to help"
Ito be continued next week.