, 1919-07-10
Kitty, My Pretty
White Kitty
Copyright. 1919. by the Mcclure News
paper Syndicate.)
By 8. B. HAcKLEY


DE house is full Up, sa>,' The
shining, white-aproned enrichment of
suavity and Importance, on the steps
! of the high-class boarding house of the
Misses Lovejoy. in the little health
resort town of Boiling Springs, bowed
until his clipped head well-nigh
. touched the elusive pink spider lilies
n the flower boxes beside the piazza
steps. 81 has to ostend to you de in
tensitest regrets o. my ladies', but eb-
buh room is takened. De last one wah
bespoke by -wiah dis foahnoon."
When a man all his fifty years gets
everything he want and goes 700
miles on his physicians recommended
ito of the water and baths for a rheu-
matte knee, he naturally feels vexed
when, at his journeys end, he doesn't
get the first of his wishes granted.
Terry Alderson's fine dark eyes
clouded a bit as he turned away and
started across the high sloping street
toward the Coppell house, recommend
ed as the second best boarding house
in Boiling Springs.
And just then Miss Nellie" a little,
slim, authenticated and smiling lady
about thirty-five years of age, with the
gentlest, softest brown eyes, came up
the street. Anderson met her at her
gate. His face cleared instantly, and
when she stopped to pat the immense
white cat that advanced to meet her,
with kitty, pretty white kitty, are you
glad to see me?" on her lips, an unrea-
soning twinge of jealousy went over
him. Why should a beauteous creature
like that waste affection on a cat?
. That evening Anderson sat on the
upstairs porch that opened off his room
at Mrs. Coppell's, and in the full light
of the moon he watched Miss Nellie
Lovejoy as she stood by the row ot
sweet-scented daturas, whose great,
dew-covered white bells made a glory
of the Lovejoy side yard. Then he
saw her stoop and pat the white cat
that followed her.
81 wouldn't mind being that cat" he
thought whimsically.
The next afternoon, coming from the
~bathhouse at the springs, some dis
lance from the boarding place, Alder
son overlook Miss Lovejoy going
home from her work as a clerk at
Framm's store. He spoke to her, and
making a p%retense of desiring some in
formation, walked along with her as
far as her gate.
Ten days of religiously drinking the
mineral waters and taking the baths
and Alderson's rheumatic knee was
nearly well, but he was having strange
feelings in the vicinity of his heart.
He had never cared anything for
women as he knew them in the North,
but he had never before been acquaint-
ed with an authenticated Southern
lady, with a voice like soft, ripping
water and eyes like pools in the forest.
Boxes of roses began quite frequent
ly to come dow on mo. IL" the late
afternoon train, from the nearest big
town for Miss Nellie Lovejoy, and
fancy wicker boxes of chocolates with
out number, with l""T. NJ. Alderson's'
card inclosed.
And Miss Nellie glowed and dimpled
and smiled until the Framm customers,
who had always loved her, fairly wor-
SHIPPED her.
And in the seventh heaven of delight
Jonathan received the boxes of candy
and flowers, and watched through the
front door screen each afternoon the
gentleman from Detroit, as he fingered
at the gate, loath to lift his hat from
his handsome gray head in good-by to
Miss Nellie.
About three o'clock one morning of
the fifth week of his stay in Boiling
Springs Anderson was awakened by a
~'meowing" in the back yard. For an
hour there was n continuous squalling.
When the cat finally ceased its noise
Anderson, who loved late sleeping,
could sleep no more. He rose thorough.
ly exasperated.
The ext night there was a repeti.
.tlon of the feline serenade. Anderson
bounded frem his bed and saw in the
yard below the balcony the big, white
cat that belonged at the Lovejoy
house. He threw a convenient golf
stick in its direction and returned to
bed, but sleep was gone.
ITO whom does the white cat that
stays at your house belong7" Anderson
asked a bit stifiy of Miss Nellie as he
overlook her on her way home that
afternoon.
"Snow Darling?" she smiled. "Oh
he belongs to Mrs. Gilman, an old lady
who has made her home here so long
and we all make a pet of him." she
went on in her musical tones.
"If he keeps up that after-midnight
noise as he did last night and the night
before" Anderson commented, some
body'Il make a corpse of him."
"Why, we've didn't hear any
noise," Miss Nellie demonstrated. 'yor
must have been dreaming. Mr.. Alder
son."
Three nights went by before tn,
white cat again serenaded the Coppel
house. Then two nights together AL
defson's rest was broken. At tina time