The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-03-14
BEGIN HERE TO-DAY.

BEGIN HERE TO-DAY.
 10 keep life from growing too dull in Red Thrush, Iowa, GINGER ELLA TOLLIVER. daughter of a minister and stepdaughter of the wealthy and indulgent former PHIL VAN DOOIN, organized Junior Country club.
 BARD HOLLOWAY, a young ar- tist who was hOboing through the country, stopped in Red Thrush. Alt ] tracted by Ginger, he agreed to stay and paint portraits and decorate the clubhouse. He suggested sending | who could cook and sing and strum guitar.
 But Nicolo could not come. In his place came three of his country men. ANGELO could play; PIETRO could cook; BENITO could sing. Ginger took them on. Beginning to realize he was in love with Ginger, Bard suggested leaving. But Phil persuaded him to stay longer as their guest, and she wrote to SPEED RONEY, former friend of Gin gers, and invited him. She felt he would give Bard some cOmpeti- tion.
 Ginger met this move by invit- ing PATTY SEARS to take care of Speed. When Speed wired that he was bringing his sister she also persuaded EDDY JACKSON to come and Eddy decided to ball things up by keeping Ginger and Bard separ- ated. This he did. Speeds sisters nickname was COTTON. Eddy devilishIy contrived to keep her and Bard together while he stuck to Ginger and paired Patty off with Speed. Everyone had 8 miserable time.
 Meanwhile, Benito had made a J trip to Chicago and returned with presents for all and a plan to kid nap Ginger and hold her for ran- som. He bided his time out at Mill Rush, site of the club, and waited for his opportunity.
 When Speed ROney, not know ing how matters stood. told Bard that Ginger and Eddy Jackson were engaged. Bard determined to leave. And at that point of the Shortly afterward a note was found, containing instructions and 8 de- mand for $3O,OOO. Phil immediate ly wired to Chicago for the money and a pair of private detectives. When the detectives arrive they dis. close the fact that Cotton is not Speeds sister and denounce her as an impOster. Speed then confessed that he and Cotton had been secret ly married. and then Angelo and PietrO were questioned.
 NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY
 CHAPTER xxXvI
 "Yeh?" Marker said.
 'I," said Benito, "am a great singer"
 "Yeh?"
 Benito was used to proving what he said. He went off at once into amor, qual che ristoro," he roared.
 Marker stopped him.
 "All right. all right. we believe you. What are you doing out here |? Come to start an Iowa opera, eh ?"
 Benito was also a farmer. He had left his wife and children in beautiful Italy while he came to ' the new country where farmers made more money. But when he reached New York he was amazed to find complete lack of agricul- tural interest among his friend in Little Italy.
 | Those he met were singers or taxicab drivers, they were walters or chefs. they were boottleggers or bootblacks, but of farmers there was not one. Not being without money, however, he made inquiries as to the price of just a small farm in the neighborhood and was told that forty square feet on Manhattan would cost him perhaps a half-mil- lion dollars. He went to Long Island, and found that he coulud get a good acre for $20,00O. Benito didn't have $2O,000. Besides. he was enough of a farmer to know that the soil would never pay -in- terest on any such investment as that.
 But Benito was a persistent man, and he carried the pursuit further. He learned that the real farming of the United States was carried on in the middle west.
 "Where," he asked his friends, "is the middle west?''
 "Oh," they told him, that is Chi cago."
 i Benito had read about Chicago in Na