Evening star., 1923-11-14
tcontinued from Yesterdays starr
Y AWKINS pushed the swing
ing doors open and sidled up
to the bar.
u y ..Hnlln Hawkins Grlnned

ing doors open and sidled up
to the bar.
Il i Hello, Hawkins" grinned
tbe barkeeper. Been out of town?
] amt seen you the whole afternoon!
You mind your own BUSINESS!
said Hawkins surlily.
sure" nodded the barkeeper
cheerily. Same as usual?' He slid
a square faced bottle and glass
toward the old man.
Hawkins helped himself and drank
moodily He set his empty glass back
ON the bar; jerked down his shabby
vest and Strengthened up. his eyes
resolutely fixed on the door. Then
he felt in his pocket for his pipe and
tobacco. His eyes shifted from the
door to his pipe. He filled il slowly
Give me another" said Hawkins
presently-without looking at the
barkeeper.
Again the old man drank. and
jerkcd down his vest, and squared ms
thin shoulders. He lighted his pipe
tamping the bowl carefully with his
forcfinger. His eyes sought the
swinging doors once more.
I'm going home" said Hawkins
defiantly to himself. I've. got tc
vest pocket for money. and produced
a few small bills. He stared at these
for a moment. hesitated, started tc
replace them in his pocket, hesitated
again, and the tip of his tongue
circled his lips: then he pushed the
money across the bar.
Take the drinks out of that, and
and give me a bottle" he said. Il
don't like to be without anything II
the house, and I got to go home"
You said something" said the bar
keeper Have one on the house be.
fore you go?"
NO" said Hawkins with stern de-
termination.
the side pocket of his coat, passed
out through the swinging doors, anc
resumed his seat on the car. Ant
again the car started forward. Bu'
il went faster now Hawkins 1ac'
was flushed; he seemed nervouslS
and excitedly in haste. At the drive
way he turned in, garaged his cal
in an old shed at the rear OF one
Of the houses. locked the shed witt
a paddock, and, by way of the back
door, entered the house that was II
front of the shed.
II was quite dark inside. but Haw
kins had been an inmate of the some
what seedy rooming house too many
should be burning at that hour, ol
for that matter, to require any light
lie CROPPED his way up a flight O.
creaking stairs, opened the door o.
"a room. and stepped inside. He shu
the door behind him, locked 1t. ant
struck a match. a gas jet wheeZet
automatically. and finally flung thir
and sullen yellow glow about tn
place. 1t disclosed a cot bed. a small
strip of carpet long since worn bare
of nap. washstand. an old trunk
q: battered table and two chairs.
Hawk kins, with some difficulty. ex
tricated the bottle from his pocket
and lifted the lid of his trunk. HI
thrust the bottle inside, and in tn,
act of closing the lid upon it-hesi
tated t-..
'I-I amt myself tonight, I amt,
said Hawkins tremulously. TT!
shook me, it has-bad. Just one
so help me God.-just one"
Hawkins sat down at the table will
the bottle in front of him.
And while Hawkins sat there it grew
very late.
himself. AT times he stared owlishl.
from a half-emptied bottle to tn
black square of window pane a.bov,
the trunk-and once he shook his fis
in that direction.
"Crang-cr-dam you he grittet
out You think you got her. do you
Some dirty, cunning trick you'v
played her. But you don't know OLE
Hawkins. Ha. ha! You think he
only a drunken bum"
Hawkins, as it grew later still, be
came unsteady in his seat Gradual.
his head sank down upon the table.
'1--hic gotta think this-out," salt
Hawkins earnestly-and fell asleep