Evening star., 1924-01-06

Vickers write them-so long as he
doesn't have to read the ones I
write you ."
The badly written sheet dropped
from the conscientious secretary's
hands as II 1t had burnt them. He
had just read on automatically. And.
quite as automatically, his eye picked
up the signature, which was type
written like the rest, only in caps.
She had a rather nice name-Audrey.
He saved the letter out from the
rest Of Warnings correspondence and
when the boss came in, he handed It
to him separately.
II opened this by mistake" he
said apologetically. IT think per-
haps-that is, it's from your wife"
From my wife" said Waring. star
ing at It. What in blazes-" And
then. What sort Of joke is thisT'
Vickers told him it wasn't a joke.
IF you'll only read It," he protested.
But Waring only went on turning
1t around in his hands, so Vickers ex-
planned little further.
ITS the answer to the letter you
had me write. ] said in it-that is,
you said, that you couldn't write let
ters by hand and that you were die
tatlng that one to me, and that you
only wished she'd get a typewriter
and write her letters to you on 1t, so
that YOU could read them. Just stuck
it in for atmosphere, you know"
Waring had begun reading the let
ter. Atmosphere he observed.
ha
dollars. Add and subtract
This was an aspect OF the matter
that hadn't occurred TO vickers. and
he couldn't help feeling rather pleas
ed about It. II seemed like poetic
Justice, somehow. But tho boss grim
ned as he handed the sheet back to
Vickers.
''She seems to like your line OF
goods. sonny" he observed.
The secretary held it between
thumb and finger. rather helplessly.
asked.
DO with it," echoed waring. An
swer it. What would you do with it?
Have it framed?"
TTICkERS waited discreet three
days before writing his next
letter. He found, when he sat
down to it, that the job was a great
deal easier. There was no difficulty
whatever now about visualizing an
image of the lady he was writing to-
1t wasn't the same image, either. The
effect of her reply had been to make
her at least ten years younger and
potentially-well, rather jolly. 1t
was rather a shame that any one as
nice as that should be neglected.
The neglect wasn't Warnings fault.
The man was driven almost to death.
Still. one would think that with
wife like that
vickers found himself getting quite
sentimental about it. The emotion
was vicarious. of course-strictly vi
carious. AS he wrote Dear Audrey"
at the top Of the letter. he was aware
Of an impulse to transpose those two
words. Audrey dear"-that would
be rather more like IT. But he would
not do it-yet.
The letter finished, Vickers stamped
the carbon copy with a special file
number and laid the original on War
ing's desk. He wrote on a pink men,
orandum slip, "Sign this Bert" and
fastened it to the letter with a paper
clip.
Would the boss read it? vickers
waited to see, and sternly frowned
down the feeling Of satisfaction that
came when he didn't.
1t was about two months later, the
fag end of an August day, when War
ing. writhing into his alpaca coat,
was stopped on his way to the door
by the implacable Vickers.
What is it?" asked the boss. Il
don't care what I've forgotten. I'm
not going to do anything more before
dinner"
1T won't take but a minute" Wick
ers persisted. "A letter came in to-
day from-from Mrs. Waring"
"Oh, yes-yes," said Waring vaguely.
Yes, saw it,
He was halfway out of the door
She's coming" yickers said.
The boss whirled around "Com-
ing" be cried. Where? Who's COM
ing?"
Your wife" said vickers clearly.
I'm the letter that came in this morn
ing she said she was coming on at
once, in day or two"
What for?" asked the boss. Moth
ing the matter. is there?"
NO" said tho secretary. "She just
said she wanted a visit with you.''
Visit" cried Waring with a
gesture of despair. 'I can't visit with
anybody! Have had free evening
for the last two weeks? It will be the
same way for two weeks more
maybe a month. Then we'll have
broken the back of it and can begin
going home over Sunday"
"Yes. I know" said the secretary.
81 told her that a month ago. mean
you did. Two weeks ago she wrote
again that the two weeks We're up
and il you weren't coming home she
was coming down here. I wrote an
other letter then, in which you said
that you were buster than ever just
now, but were sure that in ten days
or two weeks you'd be able to come.
Now she says she's coming"
We'll, she can't como here IL all
this weather holds, anyway" said the
boss. ''Wfre her. Tell her anything
you like
'T did," said yickers "I put q copy
of the. telegram on your desk and
asked you to read it,
"Oh, yyes-yes. Certainly" said
waring. You were quite right to
wire her."
yes" said vickers. "But she wired
back. It's just come in. 1t says: