Evening star., 1925-03-08

Ndly to"H IL term lot ponce station. lie
| lived there alone, with a cornet. They
could hear his cornet all up and down
| Main street on Summer evenings, and
| stragglerS in the calaboose woke and
| cursed or were charmed by it's wav-
| ering strains.
| Two thousand down, balance in
| payments at stated times said he.
Have the papers for you tomorrow.
| Drop in my office. Coin to live in it
| yourselves, are you?
| "Not-not right away" Foxhall
owned.
| HEAVY boots were on the stairs
leading to his rooms. A voice
was calling: Ben Tilson. Ben TIL
| son"
He flung open the door and Bart
Robey, the katytown chief of police.
stood there. Bart was vast and
gentle-an but his boots and his
voice.
Say" he said. have you got any
skim milk"
In his arms was a baby.
Say, no." Ben said imperturbably.
but ! got some coffee hot on the back
of the stove. I'll get a cup"
Peach of a father. you'd be-" said
the chief. You might pass i'm the
root beer. Evenin' Miss Marcia.
Il
hibit, will you?"
1t was little baby, hardly six
months old. She was quite silent save
for cropping breaths, but they were
contented breaths. She stared fix
edly at the light of Ben's tipsy CEN
tral burner and with an air of in
tense abstraction chewed a blanket
corner. She was quite clean and
dainty and owned a fuzz of black
hair.
Have you arrested-it, Bart?"
FoXhall asked.
Run in its ma" said the chief.
she come to town on the through
got off the train drunk and mussed
up. l happened to be up there and
/ escorted her down to headquarters.
She's pretty sick-got the doctor with
her now. Say, amt it a cute little
bundle?"
emptorily.
Ben's room had one rocker and
| there Marcia sat with the baby in her
arms.
open the draft, Ben" she said, "it's
cold here. Bart, pull down this
shade, please, and give me that box
for a footstool Foxhall, you run
over to the hotel and ask Madge to
boil a little water and fill a clean
help her. What are you going to do
with her?" she asked Bart.
Leave it with its ma, / s'pose.'
But it she's sick?"
Jacks, l dunno"
Would you mind seeing what the
doctor says about her?"
The chief took his orders and re-
treated. Ben was building up
roaring fire.
Foxhall came back and the bottle
was set to cool, with him to watch
it. When the baby nestled and
grunted, Marcia stopped to it, rocked
it, crooned. Watching her, Foxhall
thought how restfully she was unlike
the girls he had seen who, in the
presence of a baby, became self-con-
scious and absurd, extravagant in
adulation. Marcia was, he decided,
unlike other girlh.
Seems like if it clicked every time
it kicked" Ben said, "there'd be quite
a rattlin'." And when the baby cried
a little: DO you reckon it'd care to
hear Angels Serenade?'" he asked
earnestly.
Yes, Ben, 1 think she would"
Marcia told him.
Ben was playing with terrible in
tentness, fame-colored in the face,
his air wholly unacceptable, when
Bart Robey came back up the stairs.
Bart's round eyes had grown tri-
angular and his eyebrows were half
moons of concern. They're goin' to
take her up to the hospital" he said.
Says bring the kid and the nursesll
have to take care of it. So if you'll
give it to me"
I'll do nothing of the sort" said
Marcia decidedly. 'Tll take her home.
A hospitals no place for a well baby"
she added firmly
That's princely, Miss Marcia" said
Bart in relief. "I feel responsible be-
cause l run in its ma And l own up
I kind o dreaded askin' my wife to
do it-she's a right positive woman.
And of course the calaboose is no
place to entertain a kid"
II could keep her." said Ben mod
estly.
Bart laughed but Foxhall said:
You and l don't seem to be of much
use, do we, Benz
"Oh, yes, you do" said Marcia to
Foxhall: you're to carry her. And
Ben's been the most useful of any
body"
'If it wants anything in the night"
said Ben "and the calaboose is asleep
which il will be-gimme a ring"
And you'll make it some hot cof-
fee," said Bart from the stairs.
They parted in the quiet street, the
chief almost violent In his thanks.
The same icy crackle was in the
branches, the same protesting squeak
was in the snow-but there was an
other area of sensation In the two
who footed there. The house of Liz
Fred and Liz Henry was forgotten,
and SolWere their Intellectual tears.
When they reached Marcia's home,
Foxhall insisted on coming in and
watching.
Marcia, you know" he said, I've
seen you drive a car and lead
woman bill meeting and make an
omelet-but 1 never did see you care
for a baby. l hope" he added simply.
that this isn't the only one I'll see
you care for"
$50 do t. said Marcia quite as
simply.
* X !:
MARCIA'S mother was little and
A'A fussy, after the manner Of
1890, perhaps it was: later than hoop
skirts, but before short skirts. She
had no gift for the casual. Every oc-
currence of life she regarded with