Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1922-09-08

have talk with him."
"You can't salve Jim with soft
SOAP"
did I mention soft soap?"
II heard some one most killed Jerry
Durand last night" said Annie abrupt
ly, staring at Lindsay's bruised face.
"Was it your"
"yes," said the Arizonan simply.
did you get the grip
They dropped her to save them
selves. My friend found her with a
man and took her from him."
Il hope you did up Jerry rightw
cried Annie. a vindictive flash in her
| dark eyes.
Il haven't called him up this mon
in to see how he's feelin',~ said Clay
whimsically. Miss Annie we're wor-
| rted some about you. Mrs. Muldoon
Is right anxious for us to get you to
come and stay awhile with her. She's
honin' to have liz girl to mother.
Don't you reckon you can go?"
Il wish yuh'd come, ANNIE"
blurted out Tim, looking down his
| nose.
''Pm an alley cat you're offerin' to
take in and feed, Tim Muldoon," she
charged suspiciously.
"Yuh're the girl-my mother loves"
He choked on the impulsive avowal he
had almost made and finished the SEN
! tence awkwardly.
The girls face softened. Inside,
she was river of tenderness flowing
toward the Irishman. "Pn go to your
mother. Tim, If she really wants me-"
she said almost in a murmur.
YOU'RE shoutin' now, Miss ANNIE"
said Clay, smiling. "She sure wants
/ you. I'll hit the trail to have that talk
with Jim Collins"
He found "Slim" Jim at his stand.
That flashily dressed young crook eyed
him with logged and wary defiance.
| He had just come from a call at the
] bedside of Jerry Durand and he felt
healthy respect for the man who
could do what this housekeeping
! young fellow had done to the cham
pion rough-houser Of New York. The
story Jerry had told was Of an assault
from behind with club, but this Col
Inns did not accept at par. There were
too many bruises on his sides and cuts
on his face to be accounted for in any
way except by hard toe-to-toe fight.
"Mo'nin', Mr.. Collins. I left you in
a hurry last night and forgot to pay
my bill. What's the damage?" asked
Clay in his gently ironic drawl.
| "Slim" Jim growled something the
meaning of which was drowned in an
!; oath.
"You say it was free ride? Much
| obliged. That's sure fair enough"
Clay went on easily. swell, 1 didn't
got other business with you this mon
In"
The chauffeur looked at him sullen-
ly and silently.
Suppose we get inside the cab.
where we can talk comfortably" Clay
| proposed.
"Slim' Jim stepped into the cab and
sat down. Clay followed him, closing
the door.
"Have you seen Jerry Durand this
| sunny mo'nin'?" asked Lindsay, with
surface amiability.
"Wot's it to you?" demanded Col
Inns.
mot thing. Nothin' a-tall," agreed
| Clay. "But it may be somethin' to you
| I'm kinda wonderin' whether I'll have
to do to you what I did to him."
"Slim" Jim reached for the door
hastily.
A strong, sinewy hand fell on his
arm and frightened, slightly twisting
the flesh as the fingers sank deeper.
Collins let out yell. 3Gawd! Don't
| do that. You're KILN me-"
''Beg yore pardon. An accident. If
I get annoyed I'm liable to hurt with
out meanin' to-" apologized Clay,
suavely. ''Tll come right down to brass
tacks, Mr.. Collins. You're through
with Annie Millikan. Understand"
"Say, wot tells this stuff you're pip
In? Who d. you .t'ink youse are?"
"Never you mind who / am. You'll
keep away from Annie from now on
dDSOluLcly. LII you DOLueT uSF-iI any
thing happens to her-well, you go
and take a good long look at Durand
before you make any mistakes"
"You touch me an TIL croak you.
Seer Kissed Collins.
"a gun-play?" asked Clay pleasant
ly. "Say, there's shootin'-gallery
round the corner Come along.
wantta show you somethin'."
| "Aw, go to HI"
The sinewy hand moved again to-
ward the aching muscles of the gun
man. Collins changed his mind hur-
riedly.
"All right. I'll come" he growled.
| Clay tossed a dollar down on the
counter, took a % and aimed at the
row Of ducks sailing across the gal
| lery pool. Each duck went down as it
appeared. He picked up second rifle
and knocked over seven or eight mice
as they scampered across the target
screen. With a third gun he snuffed
the flaming eye from the right to the
L n