The Elk Mountain pilot., 1916-05-20
THE gikeA GAT
e. LOUISE OLIVER.

B ..-.'.'.'.-.-'.''.' - -''.'.'.'.'.'.-'-
Jack Morrow returned late OF . night
from the office. He had walked all
the way home in vain 10 iind Il way
out OF very embarrassing dilemma
Botty Ho!lister and he were to be
married within the month and he mad
Just discovered that he was almost
without a cont III the world. Donald,
his younger brother at college, had
got into trouble and there was no one
else 10 help him. The check he had
mailed in the afternoon had just about
cleaned hin out. Unless some miracle
happened. there was nothing lett in
i the stocking.
There was no way he could thin.
OF to postponius the wedding without
breaking Betty's heart. AL OF her
arrangements were complete and he
mad heard her say once chat shc
/ would rather die than change the dato
of her wedding.
Yes, there wac a possible wey-iuSt
mere chanoe IS Slim as spiders
thread! Jim Bar,og had dropped in
that day and advised him to invest in
Cascade Steel. Jack never played tn.
market. but Jim did with more or less
luck, ami whom Jack had replied that
he coul;nt afford It, jim had offered
10 lend hin the wherewithcl.
He took out his iatchkcy and un-
locked the front door as a nearby
cloc!i started to strike -. As he
.urEed the knob. ecmething soft
rubbed against his legs. He opened
the door and the hail light revealed
Jet black cat that started to pur con-
!entedly as 1t turned for another rub
against bis trousers.
Midnight and black cat!
Jack looked cautiously around lie
had come from n New England town
md was as full of superstitions as a
aantaloupe is of seeds. Surely this
was lucky sign. tie must keep the
cat! Nothing could be more hazardous
to luck than to turn it loose now.
But
His landlady hated cSts, and, be-
sides. she was relative Of Betty.
Betty must never know about the cas
because the one thing they ever dis
agreed about was Jacks "suporsti-
ton" rs practical Betty put it.
Put this lucky sign meant that he
was almost sure to win If b took up
inns offer of the morning. II had TO
be done! He picked up the cat and
held & under his coat ae he slipped
stcalthily up to his room.
Early the next MORNING Betty, look
Ing pale and hollow eyed, met Jack at
lhe front door on his way to work.
She eyed the travelling bag he carried
eugiously. but he explained hastily
that he was carrying papers to the
Office.
He had been up since dawn trying
to devise methods OF feeding and hid.
ing his new pet. For two hours he
had looked out of the window in vain
for milkman. Tho trunk. the cup
BOARD and each bureau drawer had
el;cito'l only dismal yowls OF lonesome
ness. There was nothing for It but 10
carry his good luck fetish back and
forth with him TO the Office. where he
could feed it aud keep an eye on it
through the day. Better The ieers OF
the boys than the wrath CT Betty.
A few days passed-days OF moro
han one kind OF anxiety for Jack.
First, there was Cascade Steel. which
,ouldn't decide whether 10 20 up or
down. Then there ives the cat, which
made him the butt of 4 thousand jokes
1t the office and miserable al the
house nightly for fear of discovery.
But, last of all, Betty had tahcn a no
ion 20 eroop.
She was as sweetly ailuring as ever.
lut there was something indc6nabie
about her he could not Understand.
She protested that she was weli-yot
The was pale ard abstracicG a,:1 her