Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1917-07-18

don't like TO admit that the race is
going downhill."
BY this time the sardonic humor was
once more In full possession. and he
was enjoying her keenly.
60 on" he said. "This is my night
OFF"
''Tye said enough: too much. per
haps. But when you were walking
with mamma, you reminded me SO
forcibly of a man whom met just for
a part of one evening about year
ago in a small town in the middle
West. He was one of them. He
drove over from some neighboring
town In his natty little automobile,
and gave me fully an hour of his valu-
able time. He made me perfectly flu
rious !"
Poor you" laughed Smith; but he
was thankful that the camp sunburn
and his four weeks beard were safe
guarding his identity. But why the
fury in his case in particular"
"Just because, I suppose. / remem-
her he told me he was bank cashier
| and that he danced He was quite
| hopeless. of course. Without being
what you would call conceited, you
could see that the crust was so thick
| that nothing short of an earthquake
would ever break it,"
But the earthquakes do come. once
in a blue MOON" he said, still smiling
at her. Lets get 1t straight. You
are not trying to tell me that you
object to decent clothes aud good man
ners per Sc. are your"
The colonel was coming out. and he
had stopped in the doorway to light
long-stemmed pipe. The young wom-
an got up and fluffed her hair with the
ends of her fingers-a little gesture
which Smith remembered, recalling it
from the night of the far-away lawn
party.
Daddy wants you, and I'll have to
vanish" she said; 'but III answer
your question before 1 GO Types are
| always hopeless; it's only the hun
dredth man who isn't. It's great pity
you couldn't go on whipping claim
| jumpers all the rest of your life, Mr..
Smith. Don't you think so? Good
night Wen meet again at breakfast.
Daddy isn't going to let you get away
short of nights lodging, know"
Two cigars for Smith and four pipes
| for the colonel further along. the tall
| MissOurian rose out of the split-b0t-
toned chair which he had drawn up to
face the guests and raped the ashes
| from the bowl of the cOrncob into the
palm of his hand.
81 think you've got it all now,
Smith every last crook and turn of
| it. and | reckon you're tired enough
to run away to bed"
Smith took a turn up and down the
! stone-fiagged floor of the portico with
| his hands behind him. Truly, the case
of Timanyoni ditch was desperate /;
even more desperate than he had sup
posed. Figuring as the level-headed
bank cashier of the former days. he
told himself soberly that no man in
his senses would touch it with a ten
foot pole Then the laughing gibes of
1
| the hundredth wOman-gibes which
had cut far deeper than she had imag-
| ined-came back to send the blood
surging through his veins. 1t would
be worth something to be able to work
the miracle the colonel had spoken of !;
and afterward
Colonel Dexter Baldwin was still
tapping his palm absently with the
pipe when Smith came back and said
abruptly:
81 have decided, colonel. TIL start in
with you tomorrow morning, and Wen
pull this mired scheme Of yours out
of the mud, or I'll break a leg trying
to. But you mustn't forget what l
told you out at the camp. Right in the
middle of things / may go rotten on
| you and drop out"