The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-12-17

 quarter of an hour He was still in a bad temper. and he proposed to take it out"on this duffer who had caused it. In the first round he used all his skill for knockout. He was a hu- man thunderboIt. He believed in rush. ing his man at the start, smothering him. In the last 30 seconds of the first round he was brought to his knees by swing on the neck that robbed him of half his speed He took the count of eight and was get ting to. his feet again when Birch sang out: "Bell.'
 The unknown did not hunt for a chair to. sit in. He flung himself down on the mat and lay there Imply, breathing slowly and deeply. Cholly. squatting in his corner. eyed him with suspicion The man knew how to rest as~well as how to box. The old idea of waving towels. massage, of lean- ing back against the ropes with arms outstretched, has gone by the board. Pure relaxation is the thing.
 "Timei"
 Cholly went to work with redoubled fury, hunting, seeking, feinting for an opening. For some time it had been apparent that his man was fighting solely on the defensive, and
 
 that the other had something in re- serve and was content to depend upon his defense.
 Three minutes of the last round passed and then Cholly saw his open ing. He struck viciously. The other tucked instinctively, but not widely enough
 The blow cut him cruelty on the ear, splitting it. He laughed. Cholly became whirlwind. Birch told me he did not see the blow, but he heard the smack of it.
 cholly erumpled up and fell on his face. Immediately the victor rushed over and picked him up.
 I'm sorry. MT. Birch, but that wasn't fair and square on my part. It was that whack on my ear-vstarted the Irish.'
 Fair and square?" cried the be- wildered Birch.
 "No. He hadn't the least chance in the world after the first round. But don't ever tell him that Help me to get him into chair. There, that's better.p
 "Who are you?s demanded Birch.
 september first. Here he comes Remember, it was a fluke on my part
 Al right. choily2" asked the anxious director.
 Sure Cholly smiled and worked his jaw bit. "A clean knock out. The job is yours and no questions asked"
 You're thorough sportsman, sir. Flukes will happen
 "I should smilei" murmured the comedian. standing up and shaking himself. None of that sympathy stuff, old top. It was the swiftest right-cross l ever saw. You knocked me out regularly. And it's the first time any amateur ever did that. You are an amateur, aren't you?-'
 On my word of honor. I ann
 Well, we'll go up and have lunch together. If you pass the censor, nobodyll question you about your past. All you've got to do is make good"
 Brennan made good. When his work was over. however. he always disappeared He never intruded; on the other hand. he met all approaches aloofly. For awhile we ran around like an ant-vilIage when you lift back the stone. We made thousand guesses and asked thousand ques- tions and never got anywhere, which is where our resemblance to the ants ends. Birch swore that 1t was Des- mond. but we all gave him the laugh The last place in the world for a man in love was the job opposite Cholly. But Birch clung to his opinions stubbornly; and at the end of the sec ond week he perked up and began to murmur: T told you SO"
 When and where and how Sir Cutb bert met Miss Desmond. don't know. Anyhow, after the second week we saw him get into her car and she drove him into town. Mighty strange the only other man who ever put foot in her roadster.
 She wasn't uppish-not Nora Des- mond. She was always kindly and patient; simply she didn't mix. And here she was, scouting around the country with the pie eater. There was a lot of talk, but we finally agreed that it was because none of us know who and what Brennan really was, and Miss Desmond had seriously undertaken to find out. A lot we men know about women,-
 Toward the end of the fourth week. things slackened up a bit. The sce- mario of the new five-reeler was be- ing reconstructed, and I was help ing out Cholly with a two-reel sea- side stuff, when the real thunderbolt landed in our midst
 Friday afternoon Miss Desmond and ST Cuthbert-I'll always be calling him that.-went off picnicking somewhere. Cholly told Birch, and Birch told me and the two had taken