Evening star., 1924-01-06


L certain hill somewhere in
westchester county the watch
stopped. and the girl. it's driver and
sole occupant, was utterly unable 70
wind 1T up.
Petulant and irritated the girl de-
scended to the ground and surveyed
the polished green and nickel mon
ster with that critical. knowing look
OF the helpless amateur. Then, de-
spairing, she sat down on stone
wall in the shade of an oak and
waited.
Fortunately, il was good weather
FOR waiting-a fine. clear day in mid
lune and. sitting on the wall,
breathing in the warm smell of the
earth and the things growing from
the earth, the girl was not unhappy.
She was pretty girl-pretty in
an original way-but I don't think
any one could have labeled her beau
tiful. There was nothing command
ing about her; perhaps there was
something demanding, which is
slightly different. She was small and
very slender. She wore n dark green
linen suit almost the shade of the
car: her hair, the color of the cover
Of a French novel, was abundant.
shining and straight; her face was
narrow. the chin pointed (and. a. n
rule. pointed upward) her skin was
.slnu-r cotorless but healthily SO, and
Ter eyes set rather wide apart We're
II mixture of brown and green. They
were scarcely soft pleading eyes;
rather they were alert. appraising-
eyes that seemed to consider one
guilty until one were proved inno-
cent.
She sat, then. in the shade of the
oak, with her chin in her hands, and
contemplated nature. She, who could
scarcely distinguish a snapdragon
from a buttercup. found. neverthe-
less. something of pleasure In the ap-
pearance of both.
Il must do more of this sort of
thing" she reflected. II must read
up on wild flowers and wild animals
and all that. There is probably a
lot in it. and I've been missing it.
Just the same. 1 wish somebody
would come along and give me a. lift
home to lunch. 1t must be late
At the end of ten minutes she heard
the faint squawk of motor horn,
and fiivver. 1917 model, came bounc-
ing over the brow of the hill like a
bowling ball rolled on an uneven
alley.
Audrey climbed hastily from the
wall. planted her slim figure in the
middle Of the road and stood there
like a semaphore, with warning out
stretched arms.
THE fiivver stopped with much ado:
the young man behind the wheel
look at her critically. and then took
off his hat.
Can l help?" he inquired
Il hope So" she said coolly Are you
going my way?"
Which is your way?" he returned
'The way you were going"
In that case" he answered gravely,
II am going your way. VIII you
step in?"
Thank you" she said 'It is not
far. Ny car has broken down."
You should get a fiivver." he mur-
INJURED, they are so satisfactory and
adequate"
He opened the door of the front
seat for her.
Don't sit on my ukuleIe," he eau
toned.
What? 1 beg your pardon
Don't sit on my ukuiele," he re-
peated. 1T is part of my stock in
trade" And he removed the instru-
ment carefully from the seat and
placed it in the tonneau beside
large kit bag.
She looked at him with some inter
est. "You play the ukulele?"
Yes; very well, too. It's about all
/ can do. Except. OF course, I sing
little"
She looked at him with more inter-
est He was no Hawaiian, surely.
His skin was white and he had blue
eyes.
Now said he. Shall we get
along? You tell me the turnings to
make well in advance, because I bought
this-racing car only day before yes
terday and-and, well. I don't like to
your car by the roadside?"
She nodded. "If any one can move
ii. he's welcome" she said Besides.
I'll send one of the men for it when
I get home"
''Ah,'' he said pleasantly. "one of
the men"
Something in the tone of his voice
annoyed her. Was he being sarcastic
at her expense? She could not quite
be sure.
Straight ahead" said she, and re-
fused to look at him again.
He guided the car erratically, but
not at all nervously. 1t was she, per-
laps, who was nervous. His method
seemed to be to keep the throttle con-
stantly wide open, whether going up
hill or down. and in consequence the
machine seldom had all four wheels
on the road
You drive fast for beginner" she
remarked at length.
He took his eyes from the road to
answer her and the car narrowly
escaped a ditch.
II like to go fast" he said. 'It is
stimulating. 1 get wonderful ideas
for my songs when / strike forty
miles an hour"
And when you strike a rock"
They did, just then. He got the car
back to the road rather adroitly.
You see.' he answered proudly.
I'm really not a bad chauffeur"
You're a very strange person. I
think" she asserted you say YOU
write songs-and play the ukulele?'
Yes. Words and music"
And you sing them, too?'
"Oh, yes. That's the way 1 earn nv
living"