Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-04-12

W. ~~
aft Were a King I'D Make People
Stand Around"
king, I'd make people stand around.
But has the crown prince only a grand
father, and no father2"
"He died-the boys father. He was
murdered, and the princess his mother
Also"
Bobby's eyes opened wide. 'Who
did it?"
"Terrorists," said old Adelbert. And
would not be persuaded to say more
That night at dinner Bobby Thorpe
delivered himself of quite a speech.
He sat at the table, and now and then,
when the sour-faced goyerness looked
at her plate, he slipped a bit of food
to his dog, which waited beside him.
"There's a very nice old man up
STAIRS he said. 'He has a fine sword,
and ring doves, and a wooden leg.
And he used to rent opera glasses to
the crown prince, only he turned them
oiVdhd IL" SOAh6 " ~ Ahob WIN
yours, mother. We had sausage to-
gether, and he has lost his position,
and he's never been on the scenic
railway, father. I'd like some tickets
for him. He would like riding, I'm
sure, because walking must be pretty
hard. And what l want to know is
this: Why can't you give him a Job,
father?'
what sort of a job, son? A man
with one leg"
HE doesn't need legs to chop
tickets with"
The governess listened. She did not
like Americans. Barbarians they were,
and these were of the middle class,
being in trade. For a scenic railway
is trade, naturally. Except that they
paid a fat salary, with an extra month
at Christmas, she would not be there.
HE means the old soldier upstairs"
said Bobby's mother softly. She was
a gentle person. Her eyes were wide
and childlike, and it was a sort of re.
ligion of the family to keep them full
of happiness.
This also the governess could not
understand.
$50 the old soldier Is out of work."
unused the head of the family. Head,
thought the g%overness! When they
wound him about their fingersl She
liked men of sterner stuff. In her
mountain country the men did as they
wished, and sometimes beat their
wives by way of showing their author
ity. Under no circumstances, she felt,
would this young man ever beat his
wife. He was a weakling.
The weakling smiled across the
table at the wife with the soft eyes.
"How about it, mother?" he asked.
"Shall the firm of Bobby and L offer
him a job?"
81 would like it very much" said the
weakling's wife, dropping her eyes to
hide the pride in them.
Suppose" said the weakling, shat
you run up after dinner, Bob, and
bring him down. Now sit still, young
man, and finish. There's no such hurry
as that"
And in this fashion did old Adelbert
become ticket chopper of the American
Scenic Railway.
And in this fashion, too, commenced
that odd friendship between him and
the American lad that was to have
so vital an effect on the very life it.
self of the Crown Prince Ferdinand
William Otto of Livonia.
Late that evening, old Adelbert's
problem having been solved, Pepy the
maid and Bobby had a long talk. Pepy
sat In a low chair by the tiled stove
in the kitchen, and knitted a stocking
with a very large foot.
"What l want to know is this" said
Bobby, swinging his legs on the table
What are the terrorists?"
Pepy dropped her knitting, and
stared with open mouth. "What know
you of such things?" she demanded.
swell, terrorists killed the crown
princes father, and"
Quite suddenly Pepy leaped from her
chair, and covered Bobby's mouth with
her hand. "Hushl" she said, and
stared about her with frightened eyes,