The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1917-12-13
The Key
By r. E LANYON

He's a dreamer said Boyd Wins
boro.
He's a darlingir irrepressibly sup
plemented his sister. and her practical
hard-headed brother stopped short In
their promenade about the home gar,
den with a severe expression on his
face.
But resolute. open-minded Annabellt
was not one whit abashed.
Don't think I'm in love with him
and 'gushy, " laughed this pretty, vi,
vacious maiden. Il only express the
sentiment Of our crowd of girls. Grant
Driscoll is a thorough gentleman,
obliging, u~nobtrusive, poetical-"
"Driscoll is pOetical, all rightl'
growled Boyd Winsboro.
Gracious TO his interiors. loyal and
helpful to his equals and-Oh. brother
he has done so much to alleviate the
/ poverty and sufferings of the poor and
deserving we came across in u settle
ment charity work"
"Humph! Good thing he has a rich
uncle who owns the truck plant where
we both work-that is, l do.
"Ohl don't stare so ghoulishls. You
have no sentiment" and Annabelle
iounced away with the parting shot +:
"Grant-that is, Mr.. Driscoll-will yet
make some great discovery that will
reyolutionize the world. He told me
So"
Hal ha :" laughed Boyd, ~derisiyely.
He came home wrathily the follow
ing Saturday afternoon. At the gate
he met his sister.
"Where have you beenT' he de-
manded.
"Over at the Driscoll place, with
Grant confessed Annabelle, openly.
ooh. Boyd! he has the dearest little
workshop you ever saw. It's a pavilion
modelled over. So it's more a labOra-
tory than a workshop. You see, he is
making some great experiments, but
l promised not TO say a word" added
Annabelle hastily, placing her fingers
across her smiling lips.
For the first time Boyd noticed that
AnnabelIe's hands were grimed and
stained.
what does that untidiness mean?"
he challenged.
Acid" voiced Annabelle, distinctly
and proudly. as though a positive merit
was disclosed. i've been helping
Grant,"
The ensuing Saturday afternoon the
previous program was repeated. Anna
belle came home full of suppressed ex-
element, with alternating spells of
deep abstraction. Boyd watched her
cOvertly as she moved about the sit
ting room after tea. He noticed her
scrawling with a pencil on the blank
margin of a paper. Then she stood
thoughtfully at the steamed-up win
dows. Her dainty fingers placed fur
Their script upon the surface of a pane.
When she had left the room Boyd
c%uriously inspected the newspaper. 1t
bore a single word, scrawled out half
a dozen times. The window pane bore
the same puzzling inscription-"Ehla-
tenn"
81 say, Sis" observed Boyd to An
nabelle that evening. springing the
trap, "how's 'eflatem' getting alongT'
Annabelle stared in dismay.
where did you get the word?" she
cried quickly.
1T isn't a word-it's two words"
replied Boyd, cody, /" metal life Come,
Annabelle, what is all this mystery?'
Annabelle looked ~bewildered, then
as if she was ready to cry.
ooh, brother" she half sobbed,
you've been spying into my secrets"
mot l." dissented Boyd, strenuously.
Il ran across the word incidentally. /
have half a mind to believe that eff
latem' is the key to this marvellous
discovery Grant Driscoll is working
on"
Yes, it is" said Annabelle, "and
you are mean and unmanly If you so
much as try to even think how and
why" and forthwith she fled from the
room.
Somehow there was an anxious con-
straint on the part Of Annabelle for a
full month after that, and Boyd real
lied a certain barrier arisen between
them. He attributed this, however, TO
the absence of Grant, who was away
on q two weeks vacation.
Annabelle frightened up when Grant
returned. One evening she came up
to Boyd, to put her arms about her
brothers neck, and kissed him.
"Oh, brother p she cried, almost
Historically. Il am so happy Grant
has succeeded. They have made tests
in the city, and his uncle says his dis
covery is one of immense value to the
plant and has offered him fifty thou
sand dollars for the formula"
"Of what?" projected Boyd, deyoured
with curiosity.
"Ehlatem."
And what Is eflatemf'
"Just what 1t spells backward-met-
al life. And he wants me to be his
partner" whispered Annabelle, softly.
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