The times-news. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1927-current, 1938-02-12

because VII. " uIIIlc4u .dlu nun w
look after the dog. He'd given
him 4 coin last night with orders
10 feed and water the dog early.
Mr.. Toby said kindly, Go to
vour room and wait, Miss Chelsey.
This is a busy time for me, as
Won can see. I'll send breakfast
mn to YOU. There's no knowing
when something unexpected will
change a mans plans.
Polly went upstairs to her room.
She tried 10 cat the excellent
breakfast that the porter's boy
brought up. but she could not.
She could only look at it, blankly.
She noticed, with some fragment
NJ her mind. that the boy was
nooriv dressed, as many London
nrchinS were, bat that his face
was more open and appealing
than most. She smiled ut him
ahscutly and gave him a coin out
of her knit bag, for which he
thanked her eagerly.
"You can take the tray away
now" she told him.
He carried out the untouched
breakfast. and when he was in the
hall he sat on the floor with the
trav before him and disposed of
soisagcs and coffee and wheat
! bead and honey, very happily.
! T. ,r,os -, rood dav for the porter's
boy.
An hour passed. Two hours.
! Polly paced the floor. She knew
when the Dover coach came and
went. She said to herself at five
minute intervals, 81 must do
something" -- .
At noon she went down to the
pubIic room and called Mr.. Toby
aside. She noticed that he seemed
| loathe to talk to her for her per-
ceptions were sharpened by anxi-
etv now, and by speculation.
She said, "Mr. Toby, is there
ANYTHING you know about Jerry
| Whitfield you've not told me?
Because if there is, you must
tell me now. He's more than my
cousin. He's my sweetheart and
we were on the way to getting
married"
1--WE figured it that way, Miss.
Nv wife and me. It's pleasant to
see young things in love right I'M
! der your nose. In this tavern,
now, a body sees plenty of crab
bed couples disagreeing over the
food. Plenty Of business men
| from Liverpool and Bristol and
the like. Plenty of young men
coming down from Oxford and
Cambridge for a fling of fun.
Plenty of spinstcrS travelling with
their nieces or their maids. Plenty
| of-well, of everything but sin
cere young sweethearts, Miss. |
was saying to my wife only yes
terday-"
! Polly caught the innkeeper'S
wandering eye and held it. "Mr,
lobby. you're evading. I asked
you if you know anything about
Jerry Whitfield that | ought to
know"
"Wen, there's nothing to
amount to, Miss Chelsey. Things
come up in a mans life, unex-
pected like. If l was you, now,
| I'd take off my bonnet and settle
down for a couple of days to wait
for him. He'll be back, like as
not, as apologize as can be for
upsetting YOU"
"I'm more than upset" Polly
said. Pm frightened. Some
things happened to him. Some
thing terrible! Nothing else would
make him desert me just when
we're getting out of England,
. You're a good man, Mr.. Toby,
though you ARE an Englishman,
and Pm not afraid to trust you.
, ! We're Americans"
My wife and me knew that
too, though we've not told it. Are
you bound for France?"
Eyes. We expected to slip
across the Channel in a smuggler's
, boat. Jerry arranged it. That's
why | say he'd not have deserted
me unless he'd met foul treat
. mcnt."
"No, Miss" said Mr.. Toby de-
liberately, for he believed he saw
his duty now. "You can put your
mind at rest on that score. It's
not that. It's something else.
There was - there was a young
, lady came into the public room
/, and talked to him last night at
: the table where he was sitting,
near the door. take it they were
!, old friends. They had coffee to-
! gether - they and another man