The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1920-02-06
THOSE MlRcE PIES
y MARY POWER.

It. Mrs. Deane slyly hints some credit
rectly responsible for the unlighted
gas Jet at the head Of the stairs. Miss
Barbara, however, keeps mum. 1t hap
pened like this:
Eric had fallen asleep owe a game
of solitaire. He awakened with a start
when the i%mprovised table across his
knees, with the cards atop. tumbled
noisiiy to the floor. He frowned at his
watch which said eight o'clock.
Suddenly Eric shifted eagerly. An
aroma. a delicious honey smell, filtered
into the roOm. 1t was the unmistak-
able odor Of mince pies. Craning his
neck. he beheld several succulent
brown things on the ledge of the win
dow directly below. ,
He liked his present quarters i'm
mensely. Mrs. Deane. the landlady.
was a rare motherly soul. And there
was TeddybOy across the hall, dear.
lovable kiddie. Teddyboy was seve2-
~brOwn-eyed and wistful. Yesterday
the child had said:
"Wisht Corp'ral Jim'd come home
for the party" Eric's hand had trem-
bled as 1t strOked the soft. yellow hair.
Corporal Jim would w come
home-alas!
Such morbidness! Eric swung
around. Those mince pies had upset
him. He would go for a stroll.
n Hn %r,rrl Tho hall tn <1orlyrocc-0n
unusual thing.
A door below opened softly and
omeone swiftly assembled the stairs.
Dazedly, Eric drew aside. Immediate
~ there was q smot1ered shrek and.
with presence of mind. Eric reached
out.
Her surprised cry had betrayed her
sex. while the quivering of the supple
young body, held close. told him she
was a mere slip of a girl. The thump.
humping of the handles as they
bounded downward proclaimed q pre-
vious shopping expedition. And then
she laughed. a little sheepish laugh.
which straightway brake the tension.
"All right, kiddie," be told her. "hOld
tight. I'll light up" The light flick
cred garish'y.
She was a dainty creature, to he
sure; sweet and pretty. But q kid
die! The mischievOus twinkle in her
dark, pansy eyes made him chuckle
inwardly. Then. with a guilty flush,
he noted the miscellaneous collection
- ..A.Avc. ..c;nv thu St0ipS
Through it's covering OF stout brown
paper the leg of a plump chicken pro-
traded. Midway below reposed q
bunch Of celery. And c~ranberries!
There were other things; clusters OF
grape oranges a bottle Of olives lay
at his feet. Mechanically, he stopped.
She bestirred herself. They're all
OF them all right. I shall wash them.
of course; n mustn't be too waste
full. Mrs. Dcane Is out" she apol-
ogized, and / was to light up. But
I've been cooking. and I Thought you
she blushed for no apparent reason
-"mOst Of the rOOmers are away. /
, was fetching these things up for Ted
dyboy's inspection. We're to have q
regular party tomorrow.
I'm glad It wasn't my mince pies"
she dimpled up at him.
"Um-m. yes. smelled EN-" he
smacked his lips boyishly.
"Oh, Captain Dorr," ~irrelevantly,
.TeddybOy told me all about you.
You've a room directly over my kitcii-
enette. / hope / don't disturb you,"
~anxiOusly.
He hastily treasured her. She
smiled her appreciation, then sudden
" her face grew grave.
'Teddyboy says you were at s.
where our Jim was KILLED" Her
chin fell. "I-we-miss him sow
He sensed the Inevitable heartaci,e.
~Are you sure you want-the details?'
he asked gently. She nodded bravely.
He tried to tell her.
.And he was there. brave laddie, IL
the thickest Of the fray, calamity night.
ine. when" His voice trailed Of
huakily. IF only We might have ex-
changed places" he addsd . hit fierce
u. ~He had 70 much - live for.
whl3o I'll had nobody who care4.
ut I escaped unscathed," bitterly.
sDst-" She wondered 1t IT, scar
neGr hls temple. \
sOA, thatY-casual iiks--Bayonet
thrueG" ~succinctly.
AOLosoh!"
TAsy had finished the task now. The
bundles we're heaped % tie botte0
stair. 1Aore ri IN awkward pausa.
nric fouad hdsl heart popndins furf-
os1y. no lacked y wan ard dreoDg-
-, sftea nenttoasa Te14uhoy out
thsre. Ard you-1e callsd - sDab-
aoe..s
= Gooes. thfeaty ssunA lesa9a from
~ ~ itkss - held - choe4. Then
- 49, hnA hpnwhnW4 ~