Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-10-07

of stout and proceeded to point
the moral of the story he had
4 just told US
Eyes, gentlemen" he said,
shakespeare was right. There's
divinity that shapes our ends, rough
hew them how he will.
We nodded He had been speaking
of a fayorite dog of his, which, entered
recently. by some error in a local cat
show. had taken first prize in the class
for short-haired tortoise-shells; ana we
all thought the quotation well chosen
'SThere is, indeed" said Mr.. Mulliner.
"a rather similar thing happened TO
my nephew, Lancelot."
In the reunions in the bar-parlor OF
the Anglers Rest we have been trained
Ito believe almost anything of Mr.. Null
liners relatives but this, we felt, was
b little too much.
"You mean to say your nephew TOOK
n prize at cat-ShowP"
mo, no." said Mr. Mulliner, hastily.
cCertainly not. I have never deVlateo
from the truth In my life, and hope
u never shall. No Mulliner has ever
taken q prize at cat show. No Null
liner, indeed, to the best OF my knoWi-
edge, has even been entered for Sucn
IA competition What meant was That
the fact that we never know what the
future holds in store for us was ex-
ennplified In the case of my nephew,
IanceIot, lust as it was in the case OF
1this gentleman's dog, which suddenly
found itself transformed for all prac-
tical purposes into a Short-talled tor
Soise-Shell cat. It is rather a curious
htory. and provides good Illustration
Tof the adage that you never can tel,
and that it is always darkest before
the dawn"
lat the time at which my story opens
VA. (said Mr.. Mulliner) Lancelot, then
IA years of age, was spending rev
'dayS with old jeremiah Briggs, the
founder and proprietor of the famous
Briggs Breakfast Pickles, on the lat
tiers yacht at CoweS.
This jeremiah Briggs was Lancelot'S
uncle, and he had always interested
himself in the boy. It was the wish
of his heart that his nephew should
Join him in the business. 1t was
shock to the poor old gentleman when,
as they sat together on deck on the
first morning of the visit Lancelot,
while expressing the greatest respect
for pickles as a class, refused to start
in and learn the business from the
bottom up.
"The fact is, uncle" he said, 81 have
mapped out career for myself on dlf-
5erent lines. / am a poet"
"A poet? When did you feel this
coming on?"
Shortly after my twenty-second
birthday"
well" said the old man, ct don't see
why that should stop us getting to-
gether. I use quite lot OF poetry In
my business"
IT fear could not bring myself to
comnercialize my Muse" 80
young man." said Mr.. Briggs, III an
onion with head like yours came into
my factory, would refuse to pickle 1t.
He Stumped below, incensed. But
Iancelot merely laughed He was
young; it was Summer; the sky was
blue; the sun was shining: and the
things in the world that really mat
tered were not cucumberS and vinegar,
but romance and love. Oh, he felt, for
some delightful girl on whom he might
lavish all the pent-up fervor that had
been sizzling inside him for weeks!
And, at this moment, he saw her.
She was leaning against the rail OF q
yacht, some 40 yards away; and, as
he beheld her, Lancelot'S heart leaped.
In her face, 1t seemed to him. was con-
centrated all the beauty of all the ages.
He was stil gazing at her in a sort OF
trance, when the bell sounded for
luncheon.
Although at heart a dreamer, Lance
lot Mulliner was not without certain
practical streak Thinking the matter
over, he soon hit upon rough plan of
action for getting on the track of the
fair unknown who had flashed in and
out of his life with such tragic abrupt
ness. A girl like that was sure to be
fond of dancing. The chances were,
therefore, that sooner or later he would
md her at some night club or other.
81 X x
hFE started, accordingly, to make the
4 round of the night clubs. AS soon
as one was raided, he went on to an
other Within a month, he had visited
the Mauye Mouse. the Scarlet Cent?
pede, the Vicious Cheese, the Gay Fritz
ter, the Placid Prune, the Cafe de
Bologna, Billy's, Millys, Ike's; Spikes,
Mixes, and the Ham and Beef. And 1t
was at the Ham and Beef that he found
her.
Well, you know what poets are. When
their emotions are stirred, they are not
like us dull, dif1dent fellows. They gG
OF to a flying start. In one bound
Lancelot was across the room. his heart
beating till it sounded like by-request
solo from the trap-drummer.
shall we dance?" he said.
Can YOU dance?" said the girl.
Lancelot gave short, amused laugh.
He was a man who never let his left
foot know what his right foot was
doing.
Il am old Col. CharIestons favorite
ken," he said
A sound like the sudden descent of
an iron girder on sheet of tin, fol-
lowed by jangling of bells, wailing
Of tortured CATS and the noise of few
ECeam-riveterS at work, announced to
their trained ears that the music had
begun. Sweeping her to him with a
violence that, In any other place would
have earned him sentence Of 80 days,
coupled with some strong remarks from
the bench, Lancelot began to push her
through the sea Of humanity till they
reached the center of the floor. There,
unable to move in any direction, they
surrendered themselves to the ecstasy
of the dance, wiping their feet on the
polished flooring and occasionally
pushing an elbow into some strangers
rib.
This" murmured the girl, "is divine"
''What?" beloved Lancelot, for the
orchestra, in addition to ringing bells,
had now begun to howl like wolves at
dinner time.
Divine" roared the girl 'You GER
Aainly are a beautiful dancer"
"a beautiful what?"
Dancer"
''Who tsp"
"You are"
Good eggl" shrieked Lancelot, rather
wishing, though he was fond of music,
that the orchestra would stop beating
the floor with hammers.
What did you sayp"
II said, Good egg"
'Why?"
Because the idea crossed my mind
that, If you felt like that, you might
@aPa IN marry mo