The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1917-06-08

and most rigidly exclusive country club
in America.
That night the frightened Major tel
egraphed to Munnville, Maine, an offer
to buy the O'Hara place at double its
real value. The business-like message
ended. "Wire reply at my expense"
The next morning an incoherent reply
came by wire, at the Majors expense,
refusing to sell, and quoting several
passages of Scripture at Western Union
rates per word.
The operator at the station counted
the words carefully, and collected eight
dollars and fourteen cents from the
Major, whose fury deprived him Of
speech.
Colonel Hyssop awaited his comradc
at the clubhouse, nervously pacing the
long veranda, gnawing his cigar,
Hello!' he called out, as Major Brent
waddled up. Have you bought the
O'Hara place for u.s."
The Major made no attempt to reply;
he painted violently at the Colonel, then
began to run about, taking little, short
distracted steps.
made a mess of it?" inquired the
Colonel, with badly concealed sheer
He eyed the Major in deepening dis
pleasure. " If you get any redder in the
face you'll blow up" he said, coldly;
land don't propose to have you spat-
ter me"
"He--he's an impudent swindler!"
Kissed the Major, convulsively.
The Colonel shifted: 81 expected it.
What of it? After all, there's nobody
on the farm to annoy us, is there?"
Watt" groaned the Major" waltz
and he toddled into the hall and fell on
a chair beating space with his pudgy
hands.
When the Colonel at length learned
the nature of the threatened calamity,
he utterly refused to credit it.
Rubbish" he said calmly-"rub-
bish! my dear fellow; this man Mum is
holding out for more money, dye see?
Rubbish rubbish! It's blackmail, d we
see?"
"Do you think so?" faltered the
Major, hopefully.
at isn't possible that they mean to
come, is it? Fancy all those fanatics
shouting about under our windows"
Rubbish" said the Colonel, calmly.
"l'll write to the fellow myself.
All through that rainy month Of May
the two old cronies had the clubhouse
TO themselves; they stopped about to-
gether, fishing cheek by jowl as they
had fshed for thirty years; at night they
sat late over their toddy, and disputed
and bickered and wagged their fingers
at each other, and went to bed with the
perfect gravity of gentlemen who could
hold their own with any toddy ever
brewed.
No reply came to the Colonel, but
that did not discourage him.
They are playing waiting game, F"
he said sagely. "This man Mum has
bought the land from O'Hara's daughter
for a song, and he means to bleed us.
I'll write to Sprowl; he'll fix things"
Early in June Dr. Lansing and his
young kinsman, De Witt Coursay, ar
rived at the clubhouse. They, also.
were of the opinion that Munn's object
was to squeeze the club by threats.
The second week in June, Pevster
Sprowl, Master of Fox-hounds, Shadoe-
brook, appeared with his wife, the cele-
brated beauty, Agatha Sprowl, nee Van
Guilder.
Sprowl, now immensely large and fat.
had few cares in life beyond an anxious
apprehension concerning the durability
of his own digestion. However, he was
still able to make a midnight mouthful
Of Welsh rarebit on a hot mince-pie,
and wash it down with a quart of cham
payne, and so the world went very well