Detective Bob Bridger — page 245: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

238 DETECTIVE BOB BRIDGER. ‘Well, come on,” said Meg, and she led directly across to the church. Ascending the church steps, Meg passed within, fol- lowed by Billy and the bundles. A committee, arranging the details of a coming church fair, occupied the building at the time, and two reverend fathers stood behind the railing at the sanctuary. Up the aisle Meg progressed ina business like manner, and pausing directly before the more portly of the two fathers, said : “Your riverence, I have just drapped in to pay you twinty dollars for the celebration of our union.” As she spoke she blushed deeply, and directed her glance toward Billy. He had paused at her elbow, and dropping the bundles on the floor, leaned forward upon the railing, extending a handful of candy toward the clergyman. He had also failed to remove his hat, and the two fathers glared at him in astonishment. Snatching the hat from his head, and giving his coat tails a jerk that brought him to an erect position, Meg sarieked in his ear: ‘‘Do ye think yer at a bar, ye unmannerly vagabond, ye.” The eyes of the committee and of the fathers had rested meanwhile upon the bundles, and as their ideas ran toward contributions to the fair the portly father, in response to Meg’s proposal, said : “Tam glad to see, my child, that you take so much interest in the fair.” ‘““Yer riverence,” returned Meg, indignantly, ‘‘it ill be- comes one of yer cloth to joke wid a poor woman. Ye know very well, by the cut av the jib av ’um that he’s not fair, but he’s good, and that’s whoy I take interest in ’um.” ‘‘T was speaking of the church fair that we are about to have,” said the father. ‘‘And Oy was spakin’ av the husband that Oi’m about to have, wid your consint, for twinty dollars.” ‘‘Oh, I see!” ejaculated the priest, eying Billy, who had begun to dance. ‘‘And do you really wish to marry him?” ‘‘Av coorse Ido. Whoy not?” ‘‘And does he wish to marry you ?” ‘‘Av coorse. Don’t you, Billy?” ‘‘Hanythink has’ll suit Misses Meg’ ll suit Billy.” ‘“But he acts somewhat strangely,” observed the priest. ‘“Whist! yer riverence,” quoth Meg, and she leaned forward, and whispered in the father’s ear: comicbooks.com “ wa wy ri * at ee da af . ne -