Evening star., 1922-12-03

Please don't take it. It amt worth
anything to anybody but me-"
| 'Is that a fact?" the hold-up guy
says. He ripped loose the lock on the
pocket an fished out the luck piece.
| please don't take that" Cocky
begged. shakin' all over That amt
any good to you. an IL can't get
along without it,
TINE hold-up guy looked at the
i thing an helfts it in his hand.
1T looks like gold" he says, ''an' it
feels like gold. If 1t is gold. l can
use it." an he starts to put it in his
! pocket.
| You could see Cocky's whole body
/ kind of contract like doubled up
fist His hands came down a little bit
| an he sort of crouched, all ready to
jump at the guy. The bird that had
been friskin' him backed up bit, an
the fellow across the room that was
holdin' the guns on US turned both
OF 'em on Cocky.
Easy there" he says. Il don't
want to shoot. but one more move
like that out of you an Ill spill a
couple of gunfuls into your dinner"
An then Cocky began to beg in
earnest. He promised 'em everything
He'd send 'em checks. He'd bring EN-
money at any place they'd say. He'd
do anything il they'd only give him
back that luck piece.
But you can't do business with a
hold-up guy. He don't make any
dates to meet YOU later, no matter
how much dough you promise to
bring along. He's got to get what
he's gettin' while he's gettin' 1t.
There was nothin' doin' on givin'
Cocky back his luck piece or maxim
any arrangement for him to buy it
back later. 1 was watchin' the kid
close. because. KNOWN what I did of
the way he felt about 1t. I figured
there was goin' to be play before
ever those two birds got out of that
room with that fool thing that the
boy set such store by. was on the
opposite end Of the line from Cocky,
an I didn't bat an eye until I was
sure he was just at the Dustin point.
I reckon a guy playin' base ball as
long as I did gets a kind of sixth
sense that tells him when a mans
/ just on the point Of startin' to do
something-to run or throw, or some
thing like that. Anyhow, knew that
Cocky was goin' to go, just the tiniest
split flash of an instant before he
started. an I knew that the crazy kid
was goin' first for the guy with the
guns.
An just that flash of an instant be-
fore he did start. took my life in
one hand an threw it up in the air
when 1t come down.
I give a sharp. quick yell an kind
of half moved; just a little bit. The
bird with the guns jumped an swung
'em my way an then he swung 'em
back toward Cocky an cut loose
with 'em.
But he didn't swing 'em quick
enough. Cocky was across the room
an into him like flash. an's as the
guy shot. Cocky ducked, reachin' for
ward as he did it. with his arms up:
, he grabbed the guys hands as he
came in on him an showed 'em up.
There were two shots an both of
'em went high Before the stick-up
! euy got fingerin' his trigger again.
/ Cocky was in on him with smash
| Of his head in the pit of the fellows
stomach, and the rest of us were right
there with him. Somebody yanked one
of the guns out Of the stick-up guys
! hand an banged the butt down hard
on the top of his head. an that was
all for him.
| The windows leadin' out on the fire
escape were open. an the other guy
the one who had frisked us-dove for
one Of 'em.
| Cocky give a yell an went after
/ him. The guy grabbed an alarm clock
off a stand that was sittin' beside the
window and drew back to throw it at
Cocky.
Well. sir-there 1t was! This guy
had what Cocky thought meant more
to him than anything else in the world
an he was doin' the one thing that
got Cockys goat. He had his arm
back like a ball players. with a thing
in his hand to throw, an he was
going to throw it at Cocky! It all
! happened faster than a guy could clap
his hands together once. but didn't
miss any Of it.
Tho fear that was in Cocky's brain.
burned in there by that ball that Dusty
Hanson beaned him with. half stopped
the boy, an he made that old motion
to pull away an duck.
I But the other thing was bigger.
His craze for that luck piece was
| greater than his fear of the guy
throwin' something at him. He give
! a great big yell an dove for the bird.
The stick-up man by the window let
drive with the alarm cloek-an' miss