The Washington herald., 1920-12-01
An O.HenryStory
The Enchanted Kiss

DUT clerk In the cut-rate Drug
% Store was Samuel Tansey. act
his slender frame was a pad
that enfolded the passion of Romeo,
the gloom OF Lara, the romance OF
p'Artagnan, and the desperate in-l
spfration Of Melnotte. PITY. then.
that he had been denied expression,
that he was doomed to the burden
OF utter tlmidity and diffidence. that
Fate had set him tongue-tied and
scarlet before the muslin-clad
angels whom he adored and vainly
longed to rescue. clasp. comfort and
subdue.
The clocks hands were pointing
close upon the hour Of ten while
Tansey was playing Billiards with a
number OF his friends. On alternate
evenings he was released from duty
at the store after Z o'clock. Even
among his fellowmen Tansey was
timorous and constrained. In his
Imagination he had done valiant
deeds and performed acts of dis
t1nguished galantry; but in fact he
was sallow youth of 20, with an
over-modest demeanor and scant
vocabulary.
When che clock struck 10. Tansey
hastily laid down his cue and struck
sharply upon the showcase with a
coin for the attendant to come and
receive the pay for his score.
whats your hurry, Tanseyy'
called one. Got another engage
ment?"
'Tansey got an engagement! 90
echoed another. Not on your life.
Tansey's got to get home at Molten
by her Peek's orders"
IT'S no such thing" chimed in a
pale youth, taking a, large cigar
from his mouth: '-Tansey's afraid to
be late because Miss Katie might
come down stairs to unlock the door.
and kiss him in the hall"
This delicate piece Of raIlIery sent
fiery tinge into Tansey's blood, for
the Indictment was true-barring
the kiss. That was a thing to dream
of. to wildly hope for: but too re-
mote and sacred a thing TO think Of
lightly.
Casting a cold and contsmptuous
look at the speaker punishment
commensurate with his own difficult
spirit-Tansey left the room. de-
scending the stairs into the street.
For two years he had silently
adored Miss Peek, worshipping her
from a spiritual distance through
which her attractions took on stel-
lar brightness and mystery. Mrs.
Peek kept a few choice bsarders,
among whom was Tansey The 9TH
er young men romped with Katie,
chased her with crickets in their
fingers. and "jollied" her with an
irreverent freedom that turned Tan
sey's heart into cold lead in his
bosom. The signs of his alteration
were few-a tremuloUs Good morn
ing" stealthy glances at her during
meals. and occasionally ooh rap-
/ tureD a blushing, delirious game Of
cribbage with her in the parlor on
some rare evening when a miracu-
lous lack Of engagement kept her
at home. Kiss him in the hall, Aye
he feared il. but il was an ecstatic
fear such as Elijah must have felt
when the chariot lifted him into TIE
unknown.
But tonight the gibes Of his asso-
, ciates had stung him to a feeling
Of forward, lawless mutiny: a def
ant. challenging. atavistic reckless
ness. Spirit of Corsair. adventurer
| lover. poet. bohemian. possessed him
The stars he saw above him seemed
no more unsttainable. no less high.
than the favor of Miss Peek or the
/ fearsoTNe sweetness Of her delect-
! able lips. His fate seemed TO him
strangely dramatic and pathetic. and
20 call for a solace consonant with
| its extremity. a saloon was near by,
and to this he fitted. calling for alb
sinthe-beycnd doubt the drink
most adequate to his mood-the tip
| pie Of the rou. the abandoned. the
vainly signing lover.
CTo Be Continued Tomorrow)