Evening star., 1940-11-28
By ROBERT J. CASEY,

Y
HELL'S CORNER, Nov. 28.-They
called him "the thin man." which
wasn't bad title. Across the beam
he might have measured IL inches.
Subsequent reports whitfield that
estimate down to 7 inches, which is
libelous. Anyway, he was pretty
thin, and in general looked like
something that had gone to the
cemetery with a round trip ticket.
1t was said he had never been any,
thing very cheerful to look at even
before he had his famous quarrel
with his financee,, Miss Myrtle
Hawkes., and that after that he
looked worse.
Nobody blamed him much for
dragging gloom into the favorite
basement restaurant of Hell's Corner.
You may get used to the seismic
effect of 9-inch shells bursting in the
street over your head, and odd bits
Of plaster in your restaurant soup
are hardly noticeable.
But try as you will you don't find
much amusement in it. And if, in
addition, you have dyspepsia and
your girl ceases to smile on YOU
well, I ask you.
Finally Find Out His Name.
The multifarious crew that burrow
into this rabbit warren for their
meals had known the thin man for
several weeks before they found out
that his name was Harry and that
he was civilian engineering expert
of some sort. They never did know
the name of Miss Hawkes. whom they
had seen talking with him along the
water front between bombs until
when, in desperation, he told them:
Its Myrtle" he said, when some
body asked him why he seemed so
extraordinarily pained.
I'm not ever going to see her
again."
She evacuating?" inquired some
kindly soul.
That she is not" returned Harry.
"She evacuate? My eyel She'll
not stir while there's lot of soldiers
to stand around and listen to her
silly twaddle."
So ventured the kindly soul
even more soothingly, II take it the
lady is conversationahst."
Parrots Talk More Sense.
Harry shifted
"She could be-" he declared. "She
can talk if she wants to. But she
| doesn't want to. She's seen too
subject you bring up she never says
anything except a single Amt it
the truth. You said q mouthful,
And that's perfectly precious Me,
I'm sick listening to all that. I've
met parrots that talk more sense"
So 1t went on for days. The
photographers and sound recorders
and once in a while the radiomen
kept tabs on the shattered romance
of Harry and Myrtle because there
wasn't anything else to do. And
| they reported the day that Myrtle
had lifted her chin at Harry from
across the street and the day when
Harry had walked by the tobacco
shop where she was employed,
another girl on his arm and lofty
purpose in his eye.
One of them reported also that
he had looked into the matter per-
sonally even to the extent of buying
a package of cigarettes at Myrtle's
counter and engaging her in con-
versation.
Street Barrage Not So Bad.
''Nice day." observed this in
vestigator.
Amt it the truth" replied Myrtle
mechanically.
The investigator decided the BAR
rage in the street wasn't so bad
and went away.
She's all Harry said she was and
time and half for overtime" he
told his associates the next day at
| luncheon. He must have said it
just about 1910 because at 1918
Harry was in the place and at
1920 one of the visiting 9-inch
crumps slithered along the pave
ment to stop almost opposite the
restaurant entrance and let 60.
Walls cracked, crockery smashed
and 20 customers tried to get to
the street before the stairs could
collapse. Harry, who had been clos
est to the door. led the exodus.
And being the first to reach the
pavement he was the first to see
what had happened.
Its Myrtle's place" he gasped.
'She is under there"
He dashed across the street and
called Myrtle's lovely name. From
somewhere down under the bricks
a thin voice answered him I'M
mediately he began to burrow into
| the debris
Does Splendid Job.
1t was splendid job. Some Of
! the observers say he dug a hole