The guardian. [volume] (Boston, Mass.) 1901-1960, 1939-10-14
Up for Love
By NINA SLOAN SMELL
released by Mcclure Syndicate
WNU Service.l

SLlSA yOu have, he HluIHDlSU, re-
signedly. "You been stalling for an
opening to talk about her ever since
l came. Go ahead, brother. Get
it over"
Gleason laughed sheepishly. 81
guess it was your coming from her
town started me thinking about
her." he said. mot that don't do
that a good deal, anyhow. It's
what's kept me from blowing my
top these nine years"
"That long? You are an old-tim-
er. Does your girl visit you often?"
"Well, buddy, she amt been to
see me-yet. amt encouraged her
to. I figured it wouldn't look too
good for a rich, society lady like
her to be running up here all the
time"
A skeptical smoker came from
the bunk. whats the idea of rib
bling me?"
Il amt" he protested, earnestly.
'My girls among the highest. Hon
est! Why she's so up in society
they put her picture in the papers
sometimes. / cut one out last week.
Wait!" He rose and went to shelf,
returning with newspaper portrait
of a beautiful woman.
The new prisoner took the picture.
He squinted down at it moment,
then handed it back. "Uh-huh," he
assented, grinning, ''this here
DANES a swell all right. But SOS
Mrs. Roosevelt and the queen of
Greece. Why didn'ja pick on one
of them stead of Katherine Van
stone?"
Because they amt neither of
them my girl and Katherine is,
Gleason avowed firmly. How'd
yuh come to recognize herr" he
asked. Have you seen her face
before?"
"a hun1 led times. Whatever
Mrs. Vanstone does is front-page
stuff I guess it's partly because
of the talk there was about her at
the time her husband was muir
dered."
Gleason swallowed. Queer you'd
remember" he murmured.
81 don't. Not all the facts"
"You never knew all the facts.
Nor anybody else didn't. l kept
my mouth corked. And l reckon
l better keep on keeping it corked. "
"Pshaw! shoot the works, brother.
This is getting hot, I'm interested.
And won't let it go no farther.
Let's see-wasn't you the Van
stones gardener"
"Their chauffeur" the older man
corrected. I'D been working there
a few months. And it was funny, "
he went on, musingly, chat l
didn't have an inkling Katherine had
fell for me until the-the night of
this-this trouble. Gosh! I was
dumb"
Hadn't she said nothing to let
you on?"
"She never spoke to me, except
to give an order. Then, this par
ticular evening, she called to me
over the house phone. She wanted
her car brought around. Said she'd
be waiting at the porte cochere,
And she was. But l didn't hardly
recognize her, at first"
''Why?"
"She looked younger, somehow
and smaller. and-well, sort of pitt
full"
"Well, she put her head down on
my shoulder and commenced to cry.
II couldn't hardly believe l was
awake.
"Well, after a while Katherine lei
out that she and Vanstone had quar-
reled-about me. She'd told him
straight that she loved me, and il
sent him off his nut. The row ended
by his rushing out of the house
threatening to get even with her.
Which he did. The skunk"
The young convict made a GEES
ture of protest. you're going toe
fast for me, brother" he objected.
Lets turn back to the page where
you and Mrs. Vanstone are driving
around"
"-discussing plans for our flu
ture," Gleason resumed. "Think
of it, buddy! She was willing to
ditch her rich husband and give up
her fine place in society and all her
heightened friends, just to marry
me. l could have listened all night;
but she finally decided we'd best
go home. And it was after we did
that the works got gummed."
81 don't sabe."
"You will. 1t was the servants
night out and the house was dark.
Katherine asked me to 60 in with
her; because she was afraid. II
was good she asked it. For the
first thing we seen, after l snapped
on the lights, was Vanstone's body.
The dirty coward had shot himself
At the inquest, they said it happened
three hours before we found him,
"Oh! So you took the rap?"
"What else could l do, buddy?
Vanstone had used his wife's gun.
He'd fixed things so she would have
had trouble proving her innocence
if somebody hadn't took the blame.
An look what she'd been willing to
do for mel"
Pm not forgetting, brother But
did she really give you-well, Sc
much as kiss, before you was