New Britain herald., 1926-07-28
THE PETER s' s,..:: :::':5: s:s's: ::::;
 HER MAN"


-. lost around the house. I've always
 had an idea that Cassie did some,
 thing with it. Hid it, or burned it
 up, or something. Anyhow. when ! finally got around 10 telephoning Tony, he'd left town. and that was the end of him until tonight. It
 just seemed as if everything hap. Ipened to keep us apart"
 Merry never blamed herself fof
 anything that happened. As she
 saw it, the Hand of Fate had
 brought her and Tony togethsr
 only to fling them apart again.
 t"I know" Lillie answered. Her voice was full of sympathy. That's the way men are. They leave a girl lying around like an old straw
 hat in December, and then expect to find her waiting for them, when they want her again. don't blame you for stepping out, if this Gaines neglected you"
 "Oh. but he didn't!" Merry cut in, her nose ins the air. She was not at all flattered by Lilies remark about the old straw hat in Decem- Der. 'No man ever got much of chance 10 neglect me. Lillie Dale! I've always been too popular"
 billie looked up, and her shrewd bright little eyes twinkled more shrewdly than ever. ..
 "Too popular! That's what's wrong with you, Merry!" she said bluntly.
 "You're too pretty and too popu- lar.' Too many men are crazy about you. and you're too crazy about too many men,"
 "Thats where you're wrong, I never honestly cared for any man in my life but Tony Gaines!" Mer- ry said coldly, And I still dol"
 Then, all at once her breath caught. She had said the thing almost without knowing that she had said it.
 But now that she actually had put it into words, she knew that it was the truth. She still was in love with Tony Gaines!
 Furious with herself for letting the cat out of the bag - and espe- ciaIly to the gossipy Lillie! - she got up and went into the sitting room.
 It was strewn with papers and the ash trays were filled with gray cigar ashes left there by MT. lief finger. The cushion tied to the back of Dads old easy chair still bore the print of Mir. Hefflinger's bald head. He took his ease there every afternoon, when he was in town and lately he seemed always to be in town.
 Such a pumping -station!" she aloud, as she looked at the untidy room.
 She was still violently setting it In order at 8 o'clock when Tony's friend from Montana rang the front doorbell.
 MT. Benson was not at all the sort of man she expected to see. Montana somehow suggested a cow boy type in Q wide hat, boots and a ranchmans way of talking.
 But he was much better dressed than Morley Kaufman, much more of a gentleman than Bill Erskine, and almost as good-looking as Tony Gaines-this John Benson.
 He was tall and blond. His gray eyes were full of friendliness, and there were laughing wrinkles all around them. He shook hands as if he meant it. Merry liked him in- stantly.
 They sat down, and he began to talk about Tony Gaines almost at once.
 Irony and I went to college to- gether," he said. Years ago. My uncle, Judge Zimmerman, and Tonys father had always been good friends and so were Tony and l, Then we left school, and I didn't see him again until he came out to Billings to live. I have a ranch near there, YOU know. Let me show you some pictures of it" and he pulled out an envelope from his inside coat pocket.
 T brought these along just 10 show you" he told her with his friendly smile. What do you think of this? Isn't it a wonderful old | ranch house? That's where l live! And look at this" He rambled 1! on, showing her pictures ot the Montana ranch, and of another one | that he owned down near Palm Springs in southern California.
 He told her about his pony named "Henessy," and about his young sis ter who was with him on her way | to school in Virginia, and about his nickname Benny"
 Irony hung that on me, when we were at school,' he said with laugh, and then he told her, very | simply and naturally, how he hap pened to be here with her tonight.
 q saw picture of you that Tony | had in billfold of his, last spring. he explained, Tt tumbled out one night when he was hunting for some papers, and looked at 1t and | asked him who you were" .-.--
 Merry drowned. She couldn't re- member any pictureL of her that Tony Gaines had had. Yes there was one! She suddenly remem- bers that he had taken some snap shots of her one long-ago day when | they had gone for long drive and | had eaten their lunch under willow | tree away out in the country near Sunset Lake.
 "Oh. yes-I know the picture you mean" she answered dream ily. q had on Tony's cap, didn't IF"
 Benson nodded, his direct, un- smiling gaze on her face. Yes, you did" he said, well, to make long | story short. he wouldn't tell me who YOU were, at the time. But l asked him again, about month ago. l couldn't see why he shouldn't teR me. so long as he was going'to mar ry Katherine Zimmerman, anyway.| And I asked him for the picture. |