The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1921-07-08
By
LYNDE

pulIlng the WOOL over MS eyes with
all this CUFF about Justice first and
| the public be pleased You're no
fool, Norcross. You know they won't
| lay it to Dunton and the New Workers..
| You've taken pains to advertise it far
| and wide that you are running this
railroad on your own responsibility.
and the people are going to take you
| at your word"
Dedmon, and the lawyer who
hadn't spoken single word in all the
| talk-were edging toward the door,
The boss didn't make any answer to
Hatchs wind-up except to say, 'Is
that all?"
The other two were out, now, and
Hatch turned to stick his ugly jaw cut
| at the boss, and to say, just as If
| hadn't been there to look on and hear
| him:
mo, by Juplter-it isn't all! In the
past six months you've made Gus
Henckel and me lose a cold half-mil-
lion, Norcross. For less provocation
than that, many man in this neck
of woods has been sent back east in
| the baggage-car, wearing wooden
overcoat. You climb down. and do 1t
while you can stay alive!" ...
| For some time after the three men
went away the boss sat staring at the
slip of paper on the desk slide. At
last he got up. sort of tiredlike.
| thought. and said to me: "Jim-
ME, you go down and see if you can
find a taxi, and we'll drive out to
Major Hendricks. promised him
I'd go out to the house. you remem-
her,"
When our taxi stopped at the ma
jor's gate, somebody was coming out
just as were getting ready to go in.
The man had the visor of his big fiat
golf cap pulled down well over his
eyes, but knew him just the same.
II was Collingwood!
This looked like more trouble. What
was the presidents nephew doing
here? wondered about that, and
also. if the boss had recognized Col
lingwood. If he had, he made no
sign, and moment later l had pushed
the bell-pusI and Maisie Ann was
opening the door for us.
"Both OF you? oh, how NIGEL" she
said, with smile for the boss and
queer little grimace for me. "Come
in. This Is our evening for callers.
Cousin Basil is out, but he'll be back
pretty soon, and he left wcrd for you
to wait if you got here before he did"
That message was for the boss. and
l Jagged behind in the dimly lighted
hall while she was showing him into
the back parlor. had dropped down
on the hall settee, in the end OF 1t
next to the coat-rack, and when Mrs.
Shela came downstairs and went
through the hall. she didn't see me.
A second later I heard the boss jump
up and say, "At last 1t seems as
if you had been gone year rather
than a fortnight" and then Maisie
Ann came lodging out and plunked
herself down on the settee beside me.
You needn't tell me that we had no
right to sit there listening; I know
it we'll enough On the other hand,
1 was just shirky enough to shift the
responsibility to Maisie Ann. She
didn't make any move to duck. so
didn't.
"You came out to see Cousin Basil?"
Mrs Sheila was saying to the boss.
And then: He had telephone call
from the Billiard. and he asked me to
tell you to wait" After that. guess
she sat down to help him wait, for
pretty soon we heard her say: "Cousin
Basil has told me little about the
new trouble: have you been having
another bad quarter of an hour?"
"The worst of the lot" the boss said
gravely, and from that he went on
to tell her about the Hatch visit and
what had come of it; how the graft
ers had new claw hold on him, now,
made possible by an unwarranted piece
of meddling on the part of the New
York people in the political game.
II was while he was talking about
this that Maisie Ann grabbed me by
the wrist and dragged me bodily into
the darkened front parlor. the door to
which was just on the other side OF
the coat rack. thought she had
come to her right senses, at last. and
was making the shift to break off the
eavesdrOpping. That being the case.
I was simply Mortified when l found
that she was merely fixing it so that
we could both see and hear. The slid
ing doors between the two parlors
were cracked open about an inch, and
before | realized what she was do
ing she had pulled me down on the
floor beside her. right in front of that
crack.
"If you move or make a noise, I'll
scream and they'll come in here and
find us hoth!" she Kissed in my ear;
and because I didn't know what else
to do with such kiddish little terma-
CANT, I sat still. 1t was dastardly.
know: but what was l to do?
Whan the boss finished telling her