The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-05-12
EVENING STORY

(BY John MontgomerY.)

It was at the house of a mutual
friend in the city that Miss Lena Rives
and Mr. Arthur Graves were intro
duced.
Miss Rives was the daughter of the
Widow Rives of the manor house, the
Larches, down Long Island way. and
Mr.. Graves was employed in a bank
in the city.
There was talk of this and that, and
it finally turned on the country, ana
Mr.. Graves expressed a wish that ne
might be out among the woods and
meadows. He followed that by saying
that it would be a delight to see the
quail sailing round and round in grace
full flight, and the chipmunks spring
ing from tree to tree.
The Widow Rives had occupied the
Larches for eight months a year for
four years, and yet she could not tell
a rabbit from a cat She had hearo
of smartweed and mayweed and cal
nip, but she could not tell one from the
other. OF what use if she could! Inc
subject of catnip is never discussed In
the drawing rooms of the wealthy
Miss Lena was a little more curious
and enterprising than her mother. In
time she learned that a quail was not
a crow, and that a chipmunk was not
a rabbit. In fact the farmers ooy'
who was employed now and then to
assist the gardener, told her fots ana
lots of things about animal and pro
and plant life Some of it she had
forgotten by the next day, ana some
of it she stored away
Miss Lena wasn't perfection. she
had the usual number OF faults ana
among them was that of speaking
right out in meeting. as 1t IS termed:
When young Mr.. Graves spoke OF
the quails sailing round and round
and the chipmunks springing from
tree to tree he was met with:
"Oh, but you could never have lived
in the country"
Because quails fly straight ahead
and because chipmunks don't climb
trees"
III think they do
You have seen them do it, have
you?"
Miss Rives, I must insist that. I
am correct about the quails and chip
munks," he firmly said.
And, Mr.. Graves, / must insist that
you are wrong" she as firmly replied.
That closed the conversation on nat
ural history. but neither one was quite
satisfied.
.I don't believe she knows a chip
munk from a calf" said Mr.. Graves
to himself.
II don't believe he knows a quail
from a goose,' she said to herself.
Some weeks later, when Miss Lena
went home, she drove over to see the
Widow Rogers, who lived a mile away.
After the greetings the widow said:
Wasn't it awful ?"
why, WHAT
The robbery. Didn't your family
tell you about ?''
Not a word. Where was it,"
why. my adopted son Arthur,
whom you have never met. went to
the city and learned the banking bust
ness, and few days ago he opened a
hank at Chester with 500 000 CON
tributed half the money
And he failed?
mo, dear. On the night of the
opening day it was robbed of every dol
lar 1t comes hard for me to lose my
share, but Arthur is just heartbroken
He is without dollar
ON reaching home after her call
Miss Lena asked of the gardeners as
sistant:s
Boy, when quail are scared up
how do they 1y?"
They go away with a bazz-z-z-z!"
do they fly high or 1ow?"
Not over ten feet high, and not
very far. Lemme show you"
| Opposite the Larches was a field
of wheat belonging to farmer. The
boy picked up a stone and walked
across the road and gave it a fling
| 1t fell among the wheat a hundred
feet away, and instantly there arose
a flock of a dozen quail and flew
straight away and flew low.
'See?" grinned the boy.
| yes, L see-thanks.'
And then to herself:
IF that young Graves was here he'd
| have to give in or do some awful
wriggling to get out of it. How braz-
en- of him to dispute me! 1 think I
will go ahead and solve the chipmunk
/ question now"
| Behind the house was bit of wood
| land, and the girl was soon there and
| seated under a tree and watching out
| for the lively little animals. AS soon
as the noise of her arrival had been
succeeded by silence two chipmunks
began chasing each other across the
| leaves, and they played for ten min
utes before disappearing in a hollow
| log. When two or three minutes had
| passed without temperance the
watcher unused:
| 1T must be their home and they
may have a little family in there"
AS she walked over to the log the
chipmunks ran out, but she knelt
down, just the same, to have look.
The hollow in the log was stopped up
with something, and she put in her
hand and pulled out small leather
satchel. 1t looked as good as new,
and its contents were of no great
weight. The satchel was securely
locked.
This is funny" she exclaimed
well, I'll take it home and have it
opened. 1 want a chance to tell that
smart Mr.. Graves that chipmunks
don't climb trees and spring from one
to the other, but run about on the
ground
No key could be found to fit the
satchel, and the lock had to be brok-
en-. When it was held up and shaken
out tumb1ed four packages of green
| backs.
Ten thousand dollars!" gasped Miss
Lena, as she looked at the figures on
the bands.
| "Gee!" shouted the boy who had
stoned the quails-
"Lena.lI am going to fainti" warned
the mother.
Say, mother said the daughter
after "a moments thought, the Ches
ter bank was robbed of just this
sum-