Evening star., 1926-03-14

A SOUND as of the Galloping OF
~ heavy cavalry sounded up the
"A stairway of the Kendrick
4 A home: Paula kendrick turned
from the task OF painting the
shelves in the old nursery in time q
see her two elder brothers, f1icking
imaginary horses with equally imagi'
nary whips, draw up and dismount at
the threshold.
''He has come. your highness!" they
panied in unison.
Polly dipped her brush into the
paint can and looked at them indul-
gently.
"Who has Gomez" she asked them.
The Highly Improbable He," Bill!
answered grinning.
"We haven't wasted a moment,
Wally assured her solemnly. They
were unrolling him from the train as
We passed the station. He occupied
two cars-lengthwise. of course.
Polly leaned her elbow on the top
unpainted shelf and looked at two of
IIarvards most promising students
DISCUS: edly. would you mind telling
me what you're talking about?" she
demanded
1--WE thought he'd come with cir
Gus at first" Bill said illuminatingly.
But then we found that he was a
mere amateur-cOme to visit Frances
knight"
Hes seven feet tall. if he's yard"
Wally continued "and we felt it only
fair to you that"
The object nearest her hand was
the paint can. and her two brothers
ducked as they saw the dawning of
that light in Polly's deep blue eyes
whir h meant that she was going to
throw some hing.
Its really an opportunity you
shouft0't overlook. Poll" Bill said In
part!u sticking his red head about
the ,o~ner OF the door frame for an
instant and w; hdrawing il quickly.
81 use 'over!ook' in its t1suratlVe
sense, of course By-by!"
Paula KenGlick stood listening to
their des cent. half Sr.!ing. hal! pout-
ing !: was u!ce 10 nave the boys
bacl rom college, but il only they
wouldn't tease her about it So If
only-she shrugged as her mind re-
turned to that inescapable if.
Ii only she wasn't feet IL inches
tall!
TNTIL her twelfth birthday Polly
~ Kendrick had been a normally
happy and contented little girl. A lit
tie girl. But in the year which fol-
lowed some careless drug clerk must
have slipped a dose of Alice'S Drink
Ne into one Of the sodas she was so
constantly consuming. Something OF
the sort For in her thirteenth year
Paula kendriCk performed the almost
miraculous feat of growing II inches.
Twelve. X seemed to her family and
friends that they could actually watch
Poll grow And she had continued
growing! Even now, at 10. she
sometimes slipped off her shoes and
stood tremulously against the family
uieasuring board in the old nursery to
make certain that the growth was
over. It was over; for three years
Polly's height had remained constant.
but there was small satisfaction in
that--a little late in the day.
The fact that Wally and Bill out
stripped her by two inches each gave
them neither brotherly sympathy nor
understanding.
"a likely story!" Bill would quote,
soto voce. to Wally apropos of moth
ing at all. She says she's a little girl!
I've seen a good many little girls in
my time" At that point some arti-
Gle, well directed and with the force
OF a long. muscular arm behind 1t,
usually hit Bill upon the nose and
quotations would cease for a time.
Wallace Kendrick, senior, was quite
as had; that there lay tragedy in a
surplus of inches seemed an incom-
prehensible fact to the male sex.
Polly's father went even so far as to
carry in his wallet picture he had