The daily Alaskan., 1917-04-12
Romance of a Back Yard
By DWIGHT NoRwooD

houses on another street, I saw tiny white handkerchief pinned to the win dow sill The same afternoon, going to my room, was about tO open the blinds when l saw through the slats e pretty girl kiss her hand to some one in the house adjoining my domicile. She at once. disappeared, but it was evident that a filtration, perhaps one that had developed into an affair of the heart, was n progress. ..-
 After this l saw many signal in the window opposite which would probably not have recognized as such had l not seen the throwing of the kiss. My next door heighbor, of courSe, I could not see, but I had noticed a good looking young man going and com ing, and presumed that he was the fortunate possessOr of the young lsdy'H favor .-..-.
 was one afternoon sitting at my window, with the blinds CloSe6, when through a crack between the Rlats l saw a pantomime between the loVerG The girl looked down into ber back yard and shook her head. After she had left her window I looked down into his back yard myself, It was in- closed in a high brick wan topped with broken glass. was not long in deciphering the pantomtme- The girl had put veto on her lovers under l H,I- NN afp fn premises over the wall.
 About a week after this saw c ne gro bring 2 barrel into the back yard through a rear basement door. He set 1t down very carefully and turned to go away. He had taken but a few steps when he turned, went back to the barrel and busied himself eXamin- ing the head, which could see was not fastened in the usual way. While he was doing this his lips moved, Moreover, saw something passed from the barrel to his hand. Present ly be went away again and this time disappeared through the placement door.
 l was reading a love story without words, or, rather, was seeing one en- acted, not on the stage, but in real life. It struck me that something would oc- cur in the premises on the other side of the wall Should I be mean enough to spy with a view to satisfying my curiosity? Would 1t be mean to enjoy what could of a drama in real nfe8
 The barrel was deposited shortly be- fore my dinner hour, which was 6 o'clock. After dinner darkness had fallen. Without turning on my lights took a seat at the window. The space between my home and the houses in the rear of 1t was dimly yis- Ible from the lights of the houses shining upon it. I could barely discern the barrel standing where It had been placed. Not caring to reveal myself by l lighting my room, I concluded to while away the time in the darkness by smoking. I had consumed half dozen | cigarettes and was thinking that If there was any one in the barrel he must be pretty well cramped when something rose out of It's top end There was a pause; then something | larger followed. Curiosity sharpened my eyes, and saw a bulk that looked like a mans figure get out of the barrel, take It up and proceed with 1t to a cor ner in the wall. where he was hidden | from me. fancied he was using the | barrel for concealment from the Oppo- site direction.
 That's the last of him for me" I | remarked, It'll the lights are put out" Nevertheless I was too interested to leave my post. smoked till fell ! asleep. When awoke it was II o'clock, and there was but one light In the house visible to me, and that was fin the room of the heroine of my story. As looked 1t was turned o6.
 1 was now thoroughly awake and be- 1 lieved that had no great time to wait to see something more. l was right. Not long after the last light was turned of I saw the space occupied by the basement door of the house l was watching grow darker, indicating that the door was being opened. Then something stood In the opening. A dark spot fitted from the wall to the door, entered and the door closed.
 l regretted that the elopement-Ior such believed 1t to be-could not have been effected over the rear wall, where I could have seen it. They would 20 out the front basement door.
 I went to bed and had just fallen asleep when heard the crack of a pistol Rising, l looked through the window at the house of my story. The basement and the two upper floors were lighted. l saw figures passing before the windows, but heard nothing. Aft CT awhile the lights began to be turned 1 off, ana in time all was again dark. #
 The next morning saw in my news paper an account of an attempted rob bery of premises 73 Elm street The police were called in, but the robber had escaped-nobody hurt, nothing lost. Elm was the street back of my home. After breakfast I walked around the block to note the number of the