The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1937-11-12
CHAPTER H-Continued

Ihere was nOIilIlB W PlSNCht
them from looking in at the win
dows as they walked up to the front
door. Hodge was surrounded by a
group of amused girls with whom
he was kidding in a free-and-easy
way. Now and then he gave his
head a jerk to toss back lock of
hair that soon fell down again over
his eyebrows. Judging by his
iaunty, cock-sure manner, he felt
that he was doing all right for
himself.
Barney made a queer sound in
his throat. Hold me, Frank" he
said, "before I go in there and
bounce the big chicken charmer out
of a window"
At that moment Merriwell, him
self, was itching to do something UNI
pleasant to BARLEY Hodge, who was
giving particular attention to the
slim, fair-haired girl who had
played the piano at supper time.
But what surprised Merry most
was the way he felt about that girl.
She was good looking, all right;
even better looking now, laughing
up into Bart's face, than he had
previously imagined. But wasn't
that always the way? The summers
were always easy marks for any
f1attering show-off. They never
seemed to have enough sense to see
through such fellows. INA Burrage,
he decided, was just another in the
beautiful but dumb class.
Now the girls were urging Hodge
to sing again. "Again?" Of course
that meant he had sung for them
before this. But he hung off just
enough to make them urge him
harder. The system worked well.
He yielded gracefully at the proper
moment, on condition that INA Bur-
rage would accompany him on the
piano. Then, together, they looked
through Belinda Snodd's music to
find something.
"Come on, Barney" said Frank.
Lets get upstairs where we won't
have to hear this"
you'll have to plug up your ears
if you don't want to hear it up
there, my lad" said Barney. "Me,
I'm for sitting down on these steps
and listening to Caruso MARBLE.
Don't leave me. Somebody may
have to keep me from throwing
rocks at him through the window. :"
So Merriwell, hoping for the
worst, sat down with Mulloy.
Meanwhile Hodge had found a
song over which he was laughing.
He called it comic song, and that
made INA Burrage laugh, too.
Frank wondered if he would be
able to sit it out, but he didn't
want Barney to know about that.
There came a ripping prelude on
the piano, and Bart Hodge struck
into the song. 1t was something
about "a maiden young and fair"
who "dwelt by the blue Alsatian
mountains" and it went on to tell
how came a stranger in the
spring" who hung around whisper
ing in the moonlight 'till her heart
was all his own" But Hodge could
sing and he was burlesquin& the
sentimental old ballad in a way that
made it really funny.
Frank squirmed on the step.
Something inside him was squirm-
ing, too. Suddenly he laughed soft
ly.
"Stay right here, Mulloy," he
said, getting up. "I'm going to get
my uke out of my trunk. I know
a comic song to match that one
and, by Jove. I'm going to sing it"
Hodge had just finished and was
being warmly applauded when
Merry came down again with his
ukulele, which he had already put
in tune.
''Now this" chuckled Mulloy as
Frank sat down beside him once
more, twill be the surprise feature
of Belinda's party. ! hope it's
good"
''I'n let you be the judge" said
Merry. Then. stunning the uke.
he sang:
mot long time to come. remem-
Der it well,
Alongside a schoolhouse a maiden
did dwell,
She lived there In peace. her life
was serene.
Her age il was fair and her hair
was sixteen.