Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-07-25
CHIV AIRY


! The door had not been quite closed,
after ALL Linnys was the voice, tear
| full and dramatic and rage-high. She
| might have spoken lower or not at
all had she guessed her listeners. But
| their previous silence had pointed to
| departure from the room and the
house. Certainly her recital of facts
was nothing for a normal girl to wish
her male relatives to hear.
Anne, where've you been for the
last hour? I've been hunting you like
mad. Anne. I've got something to
tell you. You know Hugg Brown and
Bat Westby? I wish the two of them
were boiled I'm ethyl! 1t was all Hugg'S
fault, though! l detest him worse
than Bat and wish him worse luck!'
Anne may have put query. AT
least four of the six listeners, who
for various reasons did not care to
interrupt the telephoner, jumped as
Linny's -cicada high outburst tore into
their ears.
Good heavens, Anne. I'm getting
at what happened as fast as r can.
You remember last Wednesday night
when we We're over at Claire's till
all hours-well, l was Just feeling a
little humorous And it seemed like
trivial joke to take Hugg's bill
book out of his pocket--Say, tell me,
Anne, tell me this: would you or any
one else in the possession of your six
senses expect Hugg Browns bill
book to have anything in it worth a
second squint? Tell me!
Il give you my word, Anne, ]
thought it was only his cigarette
case-that is, at first. You know
he's always got his good one in pawn
and using some old leatherette article.
But, anyway, that's what / thought
] was soft-fingering from his pocket.
and l had an idea of filing it up
with dead butts. But he saw me take
it. Or he says he did. | think some
one else blabbed to him.
Eyes, Anne, you're little Houdini.
That piece of leather was stuffed full
like just-replenished gas-tank, and
Hugs says he'll have it back intact.
or put me in the hoosegow. Hugo is
a cobra! I don't know how he ever
got into our crowd! You know, Anne.
our crowd may have it's faults. But
most of it is human. Anne. Human"
Linny's youthful voice seemed to
hold pure sorrow for one individuals
lack of character.
"Hugg turns out not TO be one of
us. That's all. And as for Bat-~-yes,
Anne, Bat took me home that night.
And in the car he took the hill-book
from me. At that, I thought he was
Joking and would give it back in the
end. But when heard this unholy
shout of JOY at the contents-and
when l got a glimpse of the platinum
chain itself--cant you guess, Anne,
what that was? Exactly, Annel
Hugg had sneaked it from his
mothers jewel-case only three hours
before. And you know Hugo was
only one of several who had refused
that week to lend Bat few dollars
Bat was two hundred dollars to the
bad over that motor smash-up last
month. Well, of course, Bat must
have been looking for just such
find. / wonder, Anne, who else in
our crowd has paid and paid and paid
for knowing him!
st went on my knees to him last
night, and begged him to return it to
Hugg. And he said there was only
one way for Huge to get.it back, and
that was by Dempsey stuff-nice
news for Hugg, who weighs one hun
bred and twelve, poor shrimp, with
Bat tipping the Fairbanks at. two
hundred and ten, and besides used
to be coach's pet at school.
i've put my side of the case plain
ly before Hugo. You see, Bat simply
defies me to prove that he took 1t
from me- Still, that doesn't excuse