The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-08-09
Eucning Story
When Brown Meets Brown.
BY MARY MORRISON.

square, He was 1eel1nS rdInef tenn
peramental as he watched the sea-
son dying before his eyes. The thought
of all the nice things he had missed
during the summer haunted hin1-he
wished he had gone in for more tennis
and golf, that he had not spent so
much time indoors. His mood was
one of pleasant melancholy rather
than actual unhappiness. and the
sharp discordant ring of the telephone
was a distinct jar to his nerves
Eyes, hello" he answered, trying to
remember that the voice with the
smile wins.
MAY I speak to Miss Brown ?"
asked a man at the other end of the
wire.
There is no Miss Brown here; am
Mr.. Brown" answered Henry.
ST want Miss Henrietta Brown II Y
Stuyvesant Square" persisted the
voice.
''WelI. the names all right, and the
address is all right, but the gender's
all wrong. What's the answer"
Henry was annoyed but interested.
mo, no." came thru the receiver,
Its not joke. Miss Brown has just
moved in. on the second floor
ooh, we'll" said Henry, you have
the wrong number. I'm on the first
floor" and he rang off.
He returned to his stand by the
window and nuttered to himself about
the nuisance of having been born with
a name like Brown. "A feminine
shadow on the next floor" he ex-
claimed wei. it's a queer little old
world we live in
From that day on there was no
doubt as to the presence Of Miss Hen
rietta Brown upstairs. He grew to
hate the telephone-for whenever it
rang it always seemed to be for Hen
rietta. People seeing his name in the
book just took it for granted that
Henry must be a mistake and sub
stituted Henrietta; and apparently
everybody in the world knew and
wanted to talk to her. His apartment
became a sort of receiving station for
her parcels and callers. And Henry,
without having ever seen the lady, or
heard her voice, took an ardent dislike
to her.
One morning, while the chill No
vember wind howled thru the square
outside and the steam wouldn't come
up, Henry felt that insult was being
added to injury when a large drop
from the ceiling above fell with a gem
tie splash into his coffee cup. A leak
from Henrietta's apartment! At last
he had a definite cause for complaint
and up the stairs, three steps at a
time. he went to tell her few home
truths. He gave her bell a vicious
push-and the door opened.
Henry first thought that he was
dreaming-that nothing as pretty and
dainty as the apparition that greeted
his eyes could be real. And when the
vision spoke and said. Good morning
In that indescribable way usually only
attributed to the heroines of fiction.
he forgot the stored-up resentment of
weeks, he forget the telephone calls
and the parcels-he even forgot his
manners and stood there staring
speeches..
did you want to sneak to me?"
continued the lady. smiling at his very
apparent discontinue; and then,
struck by sudden thought, But per-
haps you are looking for Mr.. Henry
Brown IN the apartment downstairs.
People often come up here first be-
fore they know the wild ways of an
apartment house with two Browns in
it." Merriment radiated from her as
the rays from the sun.
Henry gulped. mo; you see, I am
Henry Brown.
oh" said Henrietta, holding out
friendly hand. What can I do for
you? Won't you come in?"
Henry entered, explaining as he
came Il just ran up to see if I
couldn't be of some assistance to you
There seems to be just a tiny leak in
your kitchen-and perhaps I could fix
1t up for you in minute. The janit6r,
OF course. doesn't get up as early as
this!' He spoke in a jocular manner
but his head was swimming with
sense OF his own unwOrthiness and ut
ter abasement for the cruel things he
had said and thought about Miss Hen
rietta Brown.
Henrietta laughed all the most joy
Gus way in the world. Thanks aw-
fully" she said. But it wasn't a leak
at all, you know. I just forgot to turn
off the water when I ran down to the
corner to buy a paper. and when I
came back the kitchen looked like the
Mediterranean. Wasn't 1t too stupid
of me! I hope, tho. it didn't ruin
rare Chinese print or first edition of
yours!" At the idea of such a catas-
trophe, she looked so bewitchingIy
contrite thatNif Henry had had any
lurking animosity left in his system, it
would have vanished before such a
picture of beauty in distress.
Perish the thought! I keep such
things out of the kitchen on purpose"
he assured her, his really very nice
eyes gazing with riscreet admiration
into hers. 1T just cooled off my cof--
fee for me-"
How perfectly dreadful" gasped
you're going to let me give you an
other cup. or I'll never forgive myself.
Sit right down here, please" And be-
fore he knew it, she had a cup of
steaming fragrant c. flee before him,
with three Jumps of sugar on thu. side
and exactly the right amount of
cream
To sit opposite a lovely girl at the
breakfast table and watch the fire
behind her make all sorts of fascinat-
ing little lights and shadows on her
hair was a new intoxicating sensation
to Henry Brown. who had led a batch
elor existence now for almost thirty
years. It suddenly occurred to him
how-wel1-dreary was the ground
floor apartment and how grabbed liv-
ing alone can make a man.
I've often wondered what you
were like" said the girl, leaning
her chin on her hands, i've talked
to lots of your friends over the teIe<
phone, and I've opened two boxes of
collars marked for II. Brown, and de-