Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1921-03-26

The cop came, and found PROSTATE,
bleeding Montagu supported by three dis
| trait and reticent followers of the House.
Faithful to the ethics Of the gangs no
one knew whence the hurt came. There
| was no Capulet to be seen.
"Raus nit der interrogatories," said
Buck Malone to the officer. Sure I know
who done it. l always manages to get
a birds eye view of any guy that comes
up an makes a show case for a hard
ware store out of me. No I'm not tell
! Ing you his name. III settle with um
meself. Wow-ouch! Easy, boysi Yes,
III attend to his case meself. I'm not
making any complaint"
At midnight McManus sLroIled around
a pile of lumber near an East Side dock,
| and fingered in the vicinity of a certain
| water plug. Brick Cleary drifted casually
to the trysting place ten minutes later.
! He'll maybe not croak," said Brick
land he won't tell, Of course. But Dutch
Mike did. He told the police he was tired
| of having his place shot up. It's IN
handy just now, because Tim Corrigan
in Europe for a weeks end with Kings.
! He'll be back on the Kaiser Williams
next Friday. You'll have to duck out of
sight till then. Tim1l fix it up all right
for US when he comes back"
This goes to explain why Cork Nc
Manus went into ROoney's one night
and there looked upon the bright, strange
/
precarious career
Until Tim Corigan should return from
| his jaunt among Kings and Princes and
hold up his big white finger IN private
| Offices, IL was unsafe for Cork in any OF
the old haunts Of his gang. SO he lay
! perdu, in the high rear room Of Capulet,
| reading pink sporting sheets and cursing
/ the slow paddle wheels of the Kaiser
/ Wilhelm.
1t was on Thursday evening that
| Cork's seclusion became intOlerable TO
! him. Never a hare painted for water
! fountain as he did for the cool touch Of
drifting stein, for the firm security
of a foot rail in the hollow Of his shoe
| and the quiet, hearty challenges OF
/ friendship and repartee along and across
! the shining bars. But he must avoid the
/ district where he was known. The cops
were looking for him everywhere, for
news was scarce, and the newspapers
I were harptng again on the failure of the
/ police to suppress the gangs. If they
/ got him before Corrigan came back, the
/ big white finger could not be uplifted; 1t
would be too late then. But Corrigan
would be home the next day, so he felt
sure there would be small danger in
/ little excursion that night among the
Grass pleasures that represented life TO
him.
At half-past twelve McAfanus stood In
a darkish cross-town street looking up
at the name Of "Rooney's" picked out by
incandescent lights against a siCnbO9rd
over a second story window. He had
heard Of the place as a tough hang
ont: with its freuuenters and its local
ity he was unfamiliar. Guided by GER
tain unerring indica tons common to all
such resorts, he assembled the stairs and
entered the large room over the cafe
Here were some twenty or thirty
tables. at this time about half-hlled with
( Rooney's guests. Walters served drinks.
At one end a human pianola with drugged
eyes hammered the keys with automatic
and furious Impression. At merciful in
tervals a waiter would roar or squeak
a sOng-sOngs full of Mr.. JohnsOns
and "babes" and "coons"-historic
word guarantees OF the commences OF
African melodies composed by red
waistcoated young gentlemen, natives Of
the cotton fields and rice swamps OF
/ West Twenty Eighth street.
For one brief moment you must ad-
mire Rooney with me as he receives,
seats. mauipulates, and chaffs his
guests He is %. He has Wellington's
nose. Dsnte's chin. the check bones Of an
IroquOis. the smile Of Talleyrand, Cor
belts footwork. and the poise Of an IL
year-old East Side Central Park Queen
Of the May. He is assisted by lisuten-
ant known as Frank, pudgy easy
chap. swell dressed. who goes among
the tables seeing that dull care does not
! intruie Now, what IS there about
/ Rooney's to inspire all this pother? 1t
I is more than respectable by daylight;
I stout ladies with children and mitteps
/ and bundles and unpedigreed dogs drop
up of afternoons for a stein and a chat.
Even by gsslight the diversions are mel
ancholy L the mouth-drlnk and rag
| time and an occasional surprise when the
/ waiter swabs the suds from under your
/ sticky glass. There is an answer. Trans
migration! The soul Of Sir Walter
| Raleigh has travelled from beneath his
/ slashed doublet to a kindred home under
! Rooney's visible plaid waistcoat. Reon-
! ey's is twenty years ahead Of the times.
I Rooney has removed the embargo. Rooney
has spread his cloak upon the soggy
crossing Of public opinion, and any Eliza
beth who treads upon It IS as much a
queen as another. Attend to the revela-
ton Of the secret. In Rooney's ladies
| may smoke.
McManus sat down at a vacant table.
He paid for the glass Of beer that he
ordered. tilted his narrow brimmed derby
| to the back Of his brick dust head, twined
his feet among the rungs OF his chair.
| and heaved a sigh of contentment from
| the breathing spaces of his fnnermost
soul; for THIS mud honey was clarified
sweetness to his taste The sham gay
ety. the hectic glow Of counterfeit hos
pitality, the self consciOus, joyless laugh
/ ter, the wine-bOrn warmth, the loud
music retrieving the hour from frequent
whites of awful and cOrrodjng silence,
/ the presence of well clothed and frank
! eyed benehciaries Of RoOneys removal
! of the restrictions laid upon the weed,
the familiar odors Of soaking lemon peel,
! fiat beer and peau d'EspHgne-all these
were mama to Cork McManus. hungry
/ for his week In the desert Of the Capu-
/ let's high rear room.
A girl, alone entered ROoney's, glanced
/ around with leisurely swiftness, and sat
/ opposite McManus at his table. Her
eyes rested upon him for two seconds in
/ the look with which woman locomotives
all men whom she for the first time con-
fronts. In that space of time she will
, decide upon one of two things-either to
/ scream for the police, or that she may
! marry him later on.
Fer brief inspection concluded, the girl
/ laid on the table a worn red morocco
J shopping bag with the inevitable top
! gallant sail Of frayed lace handkerchief
! flying from n corner of It. After she
/ had ordered small beer from the I'm
\ mediate waiter she took from her bag a
/ box of cigarettes and lighted one with
! slightly exaggerated ease of manner
/ Then she looked again in the eyes Cork
! McManus and smiled.
Instantly the doom of each was sealed
| The unqualified desire of a man to buy
! clothes and build fires for n woman for
a whole lifetime at first sight of her is
not uncommon among that humble pOr-
! tion Of humanity that does not care for
Bradstreet or coats of-arms or ShaWs
plays Love at first sight has occurred a
time or two In high life; but, as a rule,
the extempore mania is to be found
among unsophisticated creatures such as
the dove, the blue tailed dingbat and
the S10-a week clerk. Poets, subscribers
to all fiction magazines, and schatchens,
take notice.
With the exchange Of the mysterious
magnetic current came to each of them
the instant desire to lie, pretend, dazzle,
and deceive, which is the worst thing
about the hypocritical disorder known as
love