Evening star., 1925-11-08

tral avenue in st. Petersburg
Fla, and instantly recognized
~ him-with a panicky little thrill
for he was a fugitive from
Justice
He as promptly recognized her. but
seemed not in the least disconnected
as he chuckled at her. Hello, Elsie
She gasped, Why, Dick Pixley"
and then had to laugh; for, although
he was a criminal, he was also q
joke.
Both had halted, face to face. Stay
ing here?" he inquired. in composed
sociability. His funny, piggy little
eyes were twinkling at her with the
utmost good nature. She laughed
again, less constrainedly, and answer
ed, Been here 10 days"
BY that time she had fully taker
him in-not so much his broad. thick
set figure and wide, fat face with a
funny little nose in the middle of 1t
for she already knew that by heart
but his gray Summer suit with Its
look Of having just been taken off
the lay figure in tailors show win
dow, his glossy shoes. new straw hat
and the fine e-plaited, beautifully laun
dered white shirt that swelled gently
down to well-fed waist line. He
looked the very image Of prosperity
with a silver buckle on his belt and a
silver handle on his shiny walking
stick.
Lets walk" he suggested. At the
moment she attached no significance
to the fact that it was she. not he, who
turned around, so that they walked in
his direction, not in hers. But she
might have remembered that he'd
always had that sort of way with him
She had known him all her life. Time
was when her heart had ached and
futtered at sound of his voice. AT
that time she was 10 or II while he
was Is or 17-captain and mighty
batSman Of the high school base ball
team. But it was not altogether ath
letics that made him her hero at a
time when somebody or other, all un
known TO himself, would have had &c
fill that office. AS far back as reCol
lection went she had heard Dick Pix
ley described as a bad boy. If ar
orchard was robbed, If a melon patch
was raided. If unseemly liberties were
taken with the signs along Main street
suspicion turned automatically to Mr.
Pixley's eldest son. There was 70
nance in that.
But when the back door of Weems
general store was forced and the an
cient safe rif1ed of a bag of silver
change, and Mr.. PiXley-as everybody
in the village promptly knew-haC
TO make good the loss and pay a round
sum besides to hush the matter up
even young Elsie Turner began tc
entertain grave misgivings.
X X X
MOT long after this exploit Dick
Pixley drifted out of her sight-tC
drift back again at irregular inter
walls, for shorter or longer sojourns. He
gave various explanations of himself
saying that he was employed in this OF
that occupation in Chicago, or Detroit
or New York. But Elsie knew that
many of her elders-especially her
mother-had their doubts about that
She heard a report. attributed to GER
tain male inhabitants of Lurton who
were said to speak from personal eX
perience, that in his Wanderings the
young man had acquired an uncanny
skill at poker. The bad boy drifteG
back to the old village once more, anc
left after three days. A fortnight
afterwards the community was electri
fed by knowledge that Dick Pixley
had induced Thomas Weems, proprie
tor of the general store. to cash q
forged check for $3.50. A warrant fol
eral alarm sent to the police in many
cities.
At that time she had been shocked
and grieved by Dicks crime. All the
same, being alone in her half-story
bedroom at home, she had laughed
heartily. For there was no denying
that Mr.. Thomas WeemS was fright
fully stingy. She had often heard
her uncritical father say, He don't
think any more Of a dollar than he
does of his life" That he had been
%
whom he knew to be a rascal-well
you couldn't help laughing.
Dick chuckled now as he questioned
her about the old town. mentioning
one inhabitant after another. For 1C
days she had been among the crowds
interested, delighted, yet with an ODD
sense of isolation, for in all the
seventy or eighty thousand who might
be hereabouts she did not know a soul
1t was good to have somebody be
side her whom she did know. Her
laugh became freer and happier. Not
bad also-at only 21-to have the
somebody beside her a man.. She was
fully aware of his being a very pre-
sentable man, in his smart clothes and
with his assured air.
Presently he remarked in his best
natured manner, II got one good deco
10 my credit anyhow. / stung ole
Tightwad Tom Weems for two-fifty.'
He gave a fat, gurgling little chuckle
He did 1t himself really. You see
| showed him this check on Chicago
for two-f1fty, and 1 said, with kind OF
an anxious, careworn air, that I'd got
TO go to New York and didn't have any
cash and If 1 knew anybody that would
cash that good check for me I'd pay
s25 commission" He gurgled again
odd Tom had to kinda hide his face sc
I wouldn't see him licking his chops
when l mentioned that S25 commits
sion. But he didn't cash the check
for me. Not on NOmr life, He SaiC