The Snowflake herald. [volume] (Snowflake, Ariz.) 1913-1969, 1922-03-10
The Girl
Bootlegger
By FRANK II. WILLIAMS
x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x~x.

x3x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x:
6. 1922. by Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate
The girls name was Agnes Cunning
ham. She was young, pretty and alert.
In the khaki suit, with regulation
army trousers which she wore, she
looked more like boy than a. girl.
Now she was seated in her small
touring car beating it rapidly over a
stone road from Detroit to Indiana.
The space just In front of the rear
seat of the car was piled with six
cases of whisky which had been
brought from Canada the night be-
fore. Over this was a worn carpet.
In the Indiana city to which the girl
was bound, her partner was waiting
for her. He was the actual sales
agent-the man who disposed of the
wet goods at prices running up to SIS
quart to the leading business men
of the city. Since Agnes had gone
into partnership with him In this
bootlegging deal they had cleaned up
over $4,000 and the start Of their
partnership in crime was only three
months past.
But as Agnes drove swiftly and au-
daciously, her pretty face looked
troubled. She wasn't happy at all.
Two things were worrying her deeply.
One of these was the fact that it was
against her better nature to be boot
logger, and the other was that her
Dld-time sweetheart, Tom Moore. whom
she hadn't seen for years, had turned
up in Detroit just before she had
started on this trip to Indiana and
had made violent love to her again.
Agnes had thought that all her for
mer sentiment for Tom had left her.
She had thought that her affections
were entirely conferred on John Green
leaf, her bootlegging partner. But
now she wasn't so sure about 1t.
Though Agnes didn't fully realize 1t,
the conflict which was now going on
In her heart was really a conflict be-
tween right and wrong. Before going
into partnership with Greenleaf she
had been as poor as a church mouse
but had led an irreproachable life.
Now she had more money than she
had ever had before and her con-
science was hurting her.
Toms arrival had brought affairs
to a crisis, for Tom was undeniably
good, undeniably square and honest.
What was to be the outcome? Would
she continue to make money boot
Logging? Or would she give heed to
Toms avowals of love and turn around
and be the sort of woman he would
like her to be?
1t was while Agnes, unhappy and
discontinued, was hurrying along the
Indiana highway, that she became sus-
piciOus of a car some distance behind
her. 1t was her habit while running
cargo of liquor through to keep a
wary eye for suspicious cars and now
she realized that the car behind her
had been following her for some time
Was 1t the car of a prohibition officer?
This thought troubled Agnes more
than ever, now that her conscience
was awake and active, and, conse-
quently, she put on more speed than
ever, hoping quickly to leave the car
behind
But the car kept coming right along
More than that, it kept gaining on her.
Soon 1t was abreast of her.
Then Agnes gasped. The driver Of
the car was Tom Moore
Quite astonished at Toms unex-
pected appearance beside her. Agnes
brought her own machine 30 quick
stop. Tom did likewise. Agnes got
out of her car and rushed up to Tom.
''Why, Toni" she cried. what are
you doing here? I thought you were
back in Detroit
1t seemed to Agnes that Tom looked
avasive.
1--WE got job" said Tom briefly.
what doing?' queried Agnes.
Tom hesitated. He looked at her
for brief moment, then looked away
"Well, you know" said Tom, "you
always said I didn't get ahead or
make any money because l was too
righteous and honest"
His handsome young eyes were deep
and inscrutable as he looked at Agnes
upon saying this.
Eyes," said Agnes.
"Well," went on Tom. "Tve about
come to the conclusion that you're
right about 1t. A fellows got to be a
little crooked to get ahead nowadays.
I guess I'm no better than any one
else. guess it's up to me to quit be-
ing so sanctimonious."
Agnes heard him almost unbeliey-
ingly. But there could be no doubt
about what he was saying. And as the
real meaning Of what Tom was saying
sank into Agnes's consciousness she
felt her heart sinking Somahovv n