Evening star., 1926-10-10

"It must be, seeing you so much"
"A little personal. old horse" said
Ukridge reprovingly. But I know
you don't mean it. Yours Is a heart
Of gold, really. If I've said that once.
I've said 1t a hundred times. Well,
good-by for the present, laddie. I'm
sorry there was any misunderstood
ing. but 1t makes up for everything.
doesn't it, to feel that you've helped
brighten life for a poor, little, down
trodden thing who has few pleasures"
Just one last word,' said.
"Yes?'
I'm sitting in that corner of the
balcony over there" / said. IF you
come dancing underneath there, I
shall drop a plate on you. And If it
kills you. so much the better. I'm a
poor. downtrodden. little thing, and I
have few pleasures"
OWING to a mawkish respect for
~ the conventions, for which I re-
proach myself. took no punitive
measures against Ukridge that night.
But his demeanor, when he called at
my rooms next day, could not have
been more crushed If had dropped a
pound of lead on him. I had been
passing in my mind a number of good,
snappy things to say to him, but his
appearance touched me to such an
extent that / held them In.
He lit one of my cigars
Poor little DOra!"
what about her?"
shes got the push!"
THE push? From your aunt's, do
you mean?"
YES"
"What fOr?"
Most unfortunate business. old
horse, and largely my fault. You see.
my aunt goes to bed at half past 10
every night, so it seemed to me that
if Dora slipped out at II and left a
window open, she could sneak back
all right when we got home from
Mario's. But what happened? Some
dashed, officious fool" said Ukr1dge,
with honest wrath, went and locked
the window. / suspect the butler"
What happened?"
Dora remembered that her bedroom
window was open. Her rooms on the
second floor. but I knew where there
was Il ladder, so got 1t, and she was
just hopping up when somebody
flashed great, beastly lantern on us.
and there was a. policeman. wanting
20 know what the game was. The
whole trouble with the police. laddie,
is that they're snoopers. Why they
can't attend to their own affairs Is
more than I can understand. Dozens
of murders going on. and all this bloke
would do was stand and Wiggle his
Internal lantern and ask what the
game was Wouldn't be satisfied with
plain statement that 1t was all right.
Insisted on rousing the house to have
US identified"
"And then?" I said
I'VE were," said Ukridge briefly.
"What?"
Identified BY my aunt. In
dressing gown and a revolver. And
poor little Dora has got the sack"
1 could not find it In my heart to
blame his aunt for what he evidently
considered a tyrannical outrage. But,
as Ukridge desired sympathy rather
than an austere pronouncement on the
relations of employer and employed,
| threw him a couple of tuts, which
seemed to soothe him Il little. He
turned to the practical side Of the
matter.
"What's to be done?"
II don't see what you can do"
"But I must do something. I've lost
the poor little thing her job, and
must try to get it back. It's g. rotten
Job, but It's her bread and butter. DO
you think George Tupper would have
chat with my aunt If asked him =
II suppose he would. But l doubt
!f he'll be able to do much"
Nonsense, laddie." said Ckridge. his
unconquerable optimism rising. II
have the utmost confidence in old
Tuppy. And he's such q dashed re-
spectacle sort of bloke that he might
have her jumping through hoops be-
fore she knew what was happening to
her. Yes, I'll try old Tuppy. I'll go
and see him now"
II should"
"Just lend me a trifle for a cab, old
son, and I shall be able to get to the
foreign Office before / o'clock. /
mean to say, even if nothing comes OF
it, I shall be able to get lunch out of
him. And I need refreshment. laddie."
X X X
TT was three days after this that
Ukridge dropped in to breakfast
with me- as was often his practice. lie
seemed cheerful again.
I started to open the letters by my
plate, and became aware that my
guest was eyeing me with a stare of
intense penetration through his pnce-