The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-03-31

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/ and darkened worse. He spoke also
but single word, Thanks" He
! turned sharply on his heel and
went to the door.
81 say, Twyningi" Sabre jumped
/ 10 his feet and went to Twyning
y with outstretched hand. Il didn't
4 mean to take it like that. Don't
think I'm mott congratu' lite you.
/ Jolly good. Splendid. l tell you
| what don't mind telling you-it
/ was bit of smack in the eye Cor
l me for a moment You know, I've
l rather sweated over this bust es5,"
Ibis glance indicated the stacked
bookshelves, the firms publications,
his publications See what
umean?'
A certain movement in his
/ throat and about his mouth indicat
l ed, more than his words, what he
/ meant. A slight.
Twyning took the hand and
/ gripped it with a firmfless charac-
] teristic of HIS handshake.
Thanks, old man. Thanks aw-
/ fully. OF course l know what you
mean"
Outside the door he clenched his
hands. He thought, Smack in he
eye for you, was it? You'll get a
damn sight '. orse smack in the eye
one of these days. Dirty dog!"
II.
Immediately the door WIS closed
+ Sabre went what he would have
called plug in to Mr.. Fortune, that
is to say, without hesitation and
without reflection.
1--WE just heard that you've told
Twyning you're going to take him
into partnership"
The whale-like front gave a sud
den leap and CULVER precisely as if
n it had been struck by a cricket
ball. Mr.. Fortunes voice hardened
| very remarkably las to that,
| will permit myself two remarks. In
the first place, l consider it highly
reprehensible of Twyning to have
communicated this to you"
/ Sabre broke in. We'll, he didn't.
l inferred it. 1t seems l inferred
correctly"
= There flashed through Mr.. For
tunes mind a poignant regret that,
this being the case, he had not de-
MED it. He said, II am exceedingly
glad to hear it,"
Sabre, despite his private feel
ings in the matter, characteristic
ally followed this reasoning COM
pletely, and said so. Yes, that's
your way Of looking at it, sir, and
don't say it isn't perfectly sound
"a from your point of view"
Mr. Fortune inclined his head
solemnly: Il am obliged to IL"
Only other people look at
things on the face of them, just as
they appear. You know-it's diff
fcult to express tive put my
heart into these books. can't
quite explain it but l felt that the
slight, OF what looks like a slight,
| is on them, not on me-" He put
his hand to the back of his head,
habit characteristic when he was
embarrassed or perplexed. I'm
afraid | can't quite express it, but
=. it's the books"
No, l confess that is a little be-
yond me- said Mr.. Fortune,
smoothing his front; and they re-
manned looking at one another.
sudden and unearthly moan
sounded through the room. Mr. For
tune spun himself with relief %
nexihle speaking tube.
Sabre reused himself and stood
r. up abruptly. "Ah, well! All right,
sir"
Arrived again in his room, Sabre
dropped into his chair. In his eyes
was the look that had been in them
Ehen he had tried to explain to Mr..
fortune about the books, what Mr..
fortune had confessed he found a
nttle beyond him. He thought: The
!. books Of course Fortune
= hasn't imagined them seen
aeil 1t hurts And l can't ex-
pain to him how I feel about them
can't explain to any one"
His thoughts moved on: i've
oeen II years with him. Twelve
years we've been daily together, AMI
when l said that about the books /
sat there and he sat there-and
lust looked. Stared at each other
IKE masks. Masks / sit behind my
mask and he sits behind his and
mats all we see. Twelve mortal
yearsi And there're thousands Of
= people in thousands of Offices :
thousands Of homes just the
same. All behind masks. Myster-
1 ious business. Extraordinary"
= He thought: All looking for
something You can see it in
half the faces you see. Looking for
wnat? Love? But lots have love.
happiness? But aren't lots happy?