The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-12-14

one" cad night and the scene with Peter had dmmed the flame of her courage, and she felt a sinking of the heart instead of a a trolley She would be sure to lose her self in searching for the boarding house.
 Forty pounds--two hundred dollars--had looked magnificent in her handbag that a lordly manner and seemed able to buy so many separate things. But by the time the merciless taxi had bumped her through de- vious ways up to Fifty-fourth street three of the beautiful green dollar bills were as good gone. She longed to pray "Oh, do stop taxyng?, at the doorstep before she darted up to inquire whether Miss Hamp- shire still kept the boarding house.
 A black woman who flung open the door was startling as a jack-in-the- box for the English girl What with the surprise and the nervous strain of the disappearing dol lars. she asked no further questions after the welcome news that Miss Hampshire ex- isted and has room to rent" Hastily she paid off the chauffeur and breathed again only when her trunk and dressing-bag blocked the narrow hall.
 From the lower region came Miss Hamp- shire. smelling slightly of Irish stew. She was graciously willing to accept guest recommended by Miss Child's friend, hint ing that, she was of British ancestry, the English in her came am! under the favored
 
 board'll be $10 week." she said with flat tering emphasis.
 Primed with intricate instructions con- corning street cars, Winifred started out soon after midday. She went first to see the editor. She found that he had died a year before and his successor was evidently not interested.
 The address of MT. Noble, the organist, was that of private house. When she found it at last it was only to learn that six months ago the organist had accepted po- sition in Chicago
 This was indeed being alone in New York! And at the very thought-now she could guess what it might be like-her one hun dred and ninety-siX dollars and twenty eight cents seemed to be shrinking in the wash.
 That evening, on the invitation of one of her -boarders, Winifred saw Broad way, illuminated. To her it was astonishing, marvellous, unique. The whole sky was alight and pulsing with magnificence. Twenty moons would not have been noticed.
 Green sea-waves billowed brightly, giant cat winked golden eyes, two brilliant boxers fought an endless round, dazzling girl put on and took off unlimited gloves; Japa- nese Gelsha, twice life-size, told you where to get kimonos, and above all, brighter than all, rose against the paling sky from some where behind Broadway a pair of titanic hands.
 These hands fascinated Win. They beck oned her gaze and held it. Slowly they came up and drew attention to themselves, then to drop out of sight. Three seconds gone, then blazing back again came fingers, hands, wrists, arms.
 They were the hands of Peter senior. His coWmercial genius had spread them across the sky to beckon the public to his great department store on Sixth avenue. Every body in the United States had heard of Peter Rolls or it was not the fault of the maga- zines and Sunday papers. Peter Rolls had been for years one of the greatest adver- tisers in America. This had now become the snappy way of saying that you intended to shop at Peter Rolls store: "Tm going to the Hands," 'I'n get that at the Hands," And Peter Rolls had emphasized the phrase on the public tongue by his method of ad- Vertlsing.
 Chapter III-No. 2SS4
 It was not until Win had been in New York for month that the Hands gave their twitch at the hem of her dress. They had teen on her mind often enough during the four Weeks-morning, noon and night--but she had never known that she was physical ly within touching distance.
 The happy omen" of getting her passage t. New York free had stopped working on the Monarchic. Since then bad luck had walked beside her and jumped on to her lap and purred on her pillow, exactly like a cat that perSiStRntIv cIiprz to o narzou xx.o