Mrs. Grundy. (Tracy City, Tenn.) 1903-1930, 1921-09-29
The
CLAN
CALL
BY Hapsburg Liebe
Illustrations by Irwin Myers
CHAPTER XVII.
Illustrations by Irwin Myers
Bill Dale LAUGHS.

mad done there In the Big Pine c0un-
try. From the st0ne-and-clay CHM
neys of the cabins of the Littlefords on
the other side of the river the bowling
wind snatched sprays of blue wood
smoke. The Morelands had gone to
farms lying around Gainesville in the
Rowland, on each Of which a fair-sized
first payment had been made. the bor-
r0wed capital was to remain borrowed
for another year. The Morelands were
already losing their outlandishness
and growing into universal respect.
David Moreland's dream was at last
being realized.
Then Dale frowned heavily. If only
he could do as much for Babes pe0-
plel But he couldn't. The men of the
Littlefords still worked the coal mine.
They received almost twice the custom
airy wages, but even that wouldn't buy
them farms and educate their children.
Under his eyes lay two unanswered
letters from his parents. He found
little pleasure In answering their let
tiers, for he was still somewhat bitter
toward them--toward his father be-
cause Of his fathers i'll treatment of
David Moreland and David Moreland's
people; toward his mother because she
had let him 60 hungry for mother-love
as baby, as child, as boy, and as
a man; toward them both because he
had been reared do-nothing.
The door opened suddenly, and By
Heck came stamping In with gust of
cold air at his back. He carried In
one hand the mail satchel in the other
was his ever-present rifle. After throw
ing the satchel to the floor at Dale's
feet, he turned to the glowing wood
stove.
I'm dang nigh friz, BILL" he chat
tered. my gosh, couldn't be no cold
er'n what EN- eff I'd ha' clim' the
nawth pole neck-ed. Say, Bill, why'n't
We burn coal Std o. wood? Igod, it's
hotter"
Goal Is worth money. Wood isn't"
Dale ran through the mail hastily.
He threw aside letter from the Alex
ander Crayfield Coal corporation, which
took the entire output of the mine at
an extraordinary figure, and picked up
a letter which bore the postmark of his
home city.
1t was from Babe Littleford. Since
he paid SO little attention to the letters
of his parents. they had requested her
to write to him--they wanted him to
come home for Christmas dinner.
Wouldn't he come?
He arose and paced the Office floor
for two or three minutes, then he sat
down at his desk and dashed off let
ter that contained only two sentences.
BY Heck sat beside the stove and
watched his god with thoughtful eyes,
He understood, he believed. How any
woman on earth could turn down a
man Ike Bill Dale was utterly beyond
him. BY Heck was great deal like a
goOd-natured dog.
II Bill would only laugh, 1t would be
good for him. 1t had been so long since
he had heard Bill laugh. BY Heck de-
cided that he would make Bill Dale
laugh.
"Old boy?"
"Well?"
do We want me to tell We funny
taller" drawled Heck. He barely heard
the answer:
Il guess ! don't mind, By"
Heck's sympathy made him gulp.
But he swallowed the lump that came
up In his throat and began bravely:
"One time the was Teller named
Smith. Odd name, Bill. amt it? 'Hoss-
fly Smith, they called him, cause 1t
was said 'at he could easy shoot
hossfly often hoss's ear and never
break hide on the animile. He was
hellion, too. One time Hossf1y, he was
a-tryin' to git app'inted the chairman
o. some sort o. politics doin's, and on
that same day he was a-drinkin' sort
o. torable heavy. They agreed to
make him the Temporary chairman, but
Hossfiy, he didn't want that. So he
hops right up in the middle O the meet
In, and he hollers out and says:
'Feller citizens he says, I want
to be the permanent chairman amt
a-goin' to act In the capacity of a
burned temp'rary chairman; / abso-
d-n-lutely ain'tr
"His old inemy, Eb Wright, he yells
back and says smart-like: Set down
thar, Hossfly.' says Eb--'you're drunk,
and you don't know the difference a.
tween Temporary and permanent
"Well, they Enowed Eb had 1t a.
comm to him right then. and they lis
tened TO- 1t. Hossfy, he addresses the