Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-02-03
to wash the crayon, water cofors and
% Hh0n ont Of hor aYatAm -

to wash the crayon, water colors and
carbon out Of her system.
She filled her cup with the aromatic
brew and took a sip. "Um! how de-
licious!" She nipped at q dainty cake
with her pearly front teeth. It melted
and was gone? Cornelia purred con-
tented little noises and pulled her
chair nearer to the table, prepared to
enjoy her feast to the full. She
propped up the magazine, opened the
box of candy and the show was ON.
Bang! The door Of the living room
opened like a gunshot, hitting a black
and-white striped china j%ardiniere with
a Jerusalem cherry tree in it and
knocking the whole business over, and
as instantaneously and explosively
closed again. So quickly did it hap
pen that Cornelia would have thought
she had been dreaming except that In
the place of the striped jardiniere
stood a striped young man, or rather
the bathrobe effect in which he was
sheltered was awning striped, and the
person concealed beneath was evident
ly shivering under the shade OF the
awning, from the way the stripes were
wiggle-waggling in dizzy waves. More
over the feet which appeared below
the stripes were bare and still damp
looking, and the head which stuck out
above the stripes was covered by a
mop Of red hair recently 1aundered. In
plain words, a redheaded young man,
evidently Just emerged from the bath.
was standing in Cornelia's little sitting
room trying his best not to have a chill
and doing all he could to get enough
ao~&r1J 1f L{o Nh " orin q 10 w0 tn az.
plain the situation.
"T-I-I-I-" The jaws seemed to
have st. Vitus' dance. Not another
word could they utter. Cornelia sprang
up and in spite of her establishment
managed to get out: Come over here
by the fire and take my chair. You're
freezing"
And when the shaking youth, and his
stripes had subsidized into the willow
chair and Cornelia had covered up the
bare spots with rugs and pillows and
things, the jaws consented to yield to
reason and became tractable.
II guess I surprised you'll grtnned
the newcomer, trying to smooth some
kind of order out Of the startling
angles of wet hair.
"Rather!" answered Cornelia with a
smile, for she had had time to see that
her visitor had fine eyes, q good nose,
excellent teeth and the most attrac-
tive mouth she had seen for months.
She went on: "Only I hope Das1e, my
combination cook and sentry, doesn't
return while you're here. l can't an
swer for the consequences II she hnds
you"
"You see, it was this way" he ex-
planned hastily. II live in there" jerk
ing his head toward the wall, thereby
indicating the companion fiat to the
one Cornelia occupied. MY bath is
across the hall, and when l was
through the spring lock on my door
had slipped and I couldn't get in. l
knocked at every door on my side OF
the building and not a soul was at
home. Then I slipped down to the
entry and rang the janitor's bell, but
I guess he is out somewhere for ne
didn't come, either. I barely escaped
arrest by a passing policeman who
looked in, so I made a dash up your
side Of the stairs, and then I happened
to think we had a common veranda
out of our front windows. l can get
out here, smash a pane in my window
and-presto! chango-Pm home"
But you didn't knock!" n
Neither would you if you thought a
COP was after you below and a pair of
ladies descending from above. n just
hadn't time, that's all"
"Well-here's a cup Of tea. Now
drink 1t while l hunt up some shoes
and stockings Of Dasie's. I'm sure you
could e them across the balcony to
YOUR window-it's only five or six feet.
And I'll lend you my topcoat and a
hammer. I'll have to cave the rest
of your rescue to the gods"
mo need when a goddess is so
kind"
"You sound Hibernian. Only an
freshman could pay compliments under
such circumstances
II am as Irish as Paddy's pig, INK
proud of It," promptly answered he,
and my name, to prove 1t, Is Dennis
| H~arrigan. But II the rest OF Dasle 10
in proportion to her shoe, l think III
be going, if you don't mind. Ker-cnoo!
Beg pardon, I meant good-by. Yes,
I'll take %quinine right away. Thanks
! for everything and good-by again. An
opened and closed window, a SOUND
of splintering glass, and the stripes
were gone.
! A week later Cornelia was watching
| a teacher chaperoning a bevy Of young
| girls to a pond to skate. "You are i'll,
| Miss Conway" exclaimed Cornelia.
.You look shocking. Do let me take
your place! I'd love 1t and can easily
! wait until the next train to go home.
Mice ANYWAY gladly accented Cor