The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-06-19
Chapter q
Hugh's Problem

Hugh's Problem
BRENDA knew the story of
- Hugh'S quarrel with his wife,
now.
It was a strangely dramatic in
cident-if incident was a strong
enough word. It appeared that
soon after Linda and Hugh were
married Linda'S brother, assistant
manager in a wholesale lumber
company, had abSconded with
some of the company's funds. It
was not a large sum of money,
and the court had let it be known
that the penalty melted out to the
boy would not be too severe; but
Jim McCaSkey had fled in terror
from any punishment.
Late one night while Linda
slept, Jim appeared at the studio,
pennileSS, hungry, ragged. Hugh,
who was finishing some work, fed
him and then talked to him. As
one man to another, he appealed
TO him to give himself up, serve
his sentence, and live down his
one mistake. His employer would
be glad to offer him his former
place.
Perhaps jim had found the
world more terrifying to a fugi-
tive than he had expected; per-
haps his brother-in-laW's elo-
quence overpoWered a never
strong will. At any rate, he agreed
to the plan, and, dressed in one
of Hugh's suits and with money
in his pockets, he had taken a
train to the scene of his theft be-
fore Linda was awake.
81 thought she would be gladI"
the artist said bitterly. Fool that
] was. / was patting myself on the
back all the time | told her about
il. She'd worried, you see, about
where the boy was; hotD he was.
She used to cry for hours some
times, wondering if he was dead.
told her all that was ended now
That in a few yearS-maybe only
a couple-Jim would be a free
man. and all the past forgotten.
/ told her it was the one and only
way to make a man of him."
sand it was" Brenda said
sturdily. He'd have got into
worse trouble, drifting around the
country like that. But suppose
your Linda flew into a rage. and
accused you of practically arrest
ing her dear Jim yourself. and in
the end she packed her bags and
walked out on you"
He nodded gloomily. "You talk
as if you'd been there! Nothing l
could say Gained her. was Jim'S
enemy. and therefore hers. She'd
die before she'd see me again. She
would 60 to the town where Jim
was serving his sentence, and wait
for him; and when he came out
they'd 60 away togetherl"
I've Written And Written
BRENDA had given a good deal
- of consideration to Hugh's
problem. More than that, she had
acted, inactivity of any kind be-
ing impossible to nature like
hers.
She began a series Of letters to
the friend in New York who
knew Linda. She painted a glow
ing picture of Hugh as a success
full artist, as a friend and neigh
Dor; a pathetic one of him as a
deserted husband. She limited that
a great wrong had been done him
by his wife; that wife whose con-
science apparently hurt her since
she had not used the generous
sum Hugh sent her monthly.
The puzzled girl in New York
began to ask why Brenda was get
ting so worked up over the mat
ter. That stopped her in mid-air,
so to speak, and she let a week
pass before she wrote again. The
friend made an entirely erroneous
deduction as to the situation; and,
never a reticent person, she passed
it on, with footnoteS, photography
and an introduction, to Linda her
self Then silence-for a long fort
night.
''But / don't know what more
to do, Hugh" Brenda protested
one morning. "I've written and
written. I've told you before that
il you hunt up Linda you'll simply
scare her away. Short of going
back to New York to see her my
self"
He gripped her arm tenSely.
DO that, Brenda! Why didn't we
think of that before! Linda doesn't
know you. she won't try to hide
from you. you can show her my
side of the story. She"
"Hush!" Brenda cooked her
head on one side and listened.
Didn't you hear a noise then,
Hugh?"
"Confound the noise! Brenda.
you'll do this for me, won't you?
The expense is mine, of course"
tits behind those bushes, Hughl
Do you suppose somebody's lis
tening, or is it dog?"
"Don't you call me a dog, Bren-
da Burnham," said a severe voice.
Nor intimate that I'm caves
dropping, either" Miss Ormond
stalked into the open. $50 this is
what happens when / see you dis
appear around the old house so
oftenl Brenda, I'm shocked be-
yond measured"
Brenda patted the old doorstep