Mountain Home Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1915-1946, 1922-01-14

WOfkSu, anu ihpHcu tut uopic Joath
| affectionately on the back when he
| came and got In the way with anxious
industry.
AS l wanted to observe develop
ments-a very necessary thing when
you are playing Providence chose
a central position In the shade and
pulled out some very smudgy tatting,
d sort of Peneiope's web which there
was no prospect Of my ever complet-
ing. but which served admirably to
give me an appearance Of occupation
at critical moments,
Mr.. Tubbs also had sought a shady
spot, and was tanning himself with
his helmet. From time 10 time he
hummed, In n manner determinedly
gay. However he might disguise 1t
from himself. this time Mr.. Tubbs hat
overshot his mark. The truth was,
since our arrival on the Island Mr..
Tubbs had felt himself the spoiled
child of fortune. Aunt Jane and Miss
Higglesby Browne were the joint com-
manders Of the expedition, and he COM
manded them. The Scvtchman's the
o~retical rank as leader had inyeived
merely the acceptance Of all the re-
sponsibility and blame, while authority
rested with the pettlcoat government
dominated by the bland and willy
Tubbs.
But now faced with the failure OF
his coup d'etat, Mr.. Tubbs' situation
a to say the least, awkward. he
had risked oil and lost 1t. But he
maintained an air Of jaunty self-con-
ndence. slightly tinged with irony. 1t
was ai very well, he seemed to I'M
ply, for us to try TO get along without
II. III. We would discover the impos-
sibility of 1t Don enough.
Aunt Jane, dropping, had been led
away to the cabin by Miss Higglespy-
Browne. You now heard the voice
OF Violet In exhortati0n, mingled with
Aunt James sobs. | seemed TO see
that an ear of Mr.. Tubbs was cooked
attentively In that direction. lie mao
indeed erred In the very wantonness
n of triumph, for a single glance would
nave kept Aunt Jane loyal and prodl'
gal of excuses for him in the face Of
n IN, treachery. Not wen Violet could
nave clapped the lid on the up-welllne
4 font of sentiment In Aunt James heart
\ only the cold contemning eye OF IL. IL
himself had CONCEALED that tepid How
The morning wore on with ever-in-
creasing heat, and as nothing hap
. pened | began to find my watchiul
waiting dull. Crusoe, worn out per
haps by some private nocturnal pic
hunt, slept heavily where the drip OF
the spring over the brim of Old
Heintz's kettle cooled the air. ] be-
gan TO consider whether 1t would not
be well to take a walk with CuthberI
Vane and discover the tombstone all
over again. | knew nothing, of course
of Mr.. Tubb's drastic measures with
the celebrated landmark. AS to Cuth'
bert's interrupted courtship, depend.
7 ed on the vast excitement of discoy-
ering the cave to distract his mind
from ii. For that was the idea: OF
course-Cuthbert Vane and would
explore the cave, and then whenever
, | liked / could prick the bubble of Mr..
Tubbs' ambitions, without relating the
whole strange story of the diary and
! the Island Queen.
But meanwhile the ave drew me
, like Il magnet. ! jealousy desired t.
: be the first to see 1t, to snatch from
Z Mr.. Tubbs the honor Of discovery. And
, | wanted to know about poor Peter
and the doubloons that he had gone
back TO fetch.
But already Captain Magnus had
forsaken the post of duty and depart
ed on an unknown errand. Could / ask
. Cuthbert yane to do 1t, too? And
) then | smiled a smile that was half
proud. l might ask bim-but he would
refuse me. In Cuthbert's simple code,
T, certain things were dome" certain
. others not. Among the nots was to
fail In standing by a friend. And jus,
now Cuthbert was standing by Dugald
Shaw. Therefore mods and becks and
wreathed smiles were vain. In Cuth.
bert's quiet, easy-mannered, thick.
headed way he could turn his back
calmly on the face Of love and follow
the harsh call OF duty even TO death
Ii would not occur 10 him not to
And he never would suspect himself
/ Of being a hero-that would be quite
the incest part Of II.
And yet | knew poor Cuthbert was
an exploded superstition, an anachro-
/, hism. part Of a vanishing order Of
: things, and that the ideal which WAS
, replacing him was a boiler-plated mon
ster with clockwork heart and brain,
named Efficiency. And that Cuthbert
must 90, along with his Jaeobean ma
nor, and his family ghost. and the
oaks In the park, and everything else
that couldn't prove It's right to live
except by being fine and lovely and
full of garnered sweetness of the
past
AT this point In my medithtlons the
door Of the cabin opened and Miss
Browne came out, looking sternly res.
olute. Aunt Jane followed, very pink
about the eyes and nose. With q