Adventure Magazine Cover, June 18, 1921 — page 178: what you’re looking at

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

168 I admitted it, and took her home, and went about my own affairs. Late that afternoon I passed the Put- nam House, and Roberts hailed me. He stood on the steps, clutching a sheaf of telegrams; and his face shone. “Oh, doc! Monty, old man! Mr. Mac- Kenzie’s car’ll be up about six tonight. He’s wired on, asking me to dine with him and bring two guests. Will you come?” “Humph!” said I. ‘What have I to do with your railroad?” But Warren would have it that I had helped him more than all his aides together; I don’t know why. , “Humph!” said I again. Lily-White?”’ “Why, he’s-‘my other guest, of course!”’ “TI can’t come,” I told him. I had no wish to share anything—not even praise— with Lily-White Hand. “I’ve been using my dress clothes to clean the furnace in.” One has so few uses for evening dress in Black Valley. Then, seeing the boy’s crestfallen look, I melted. Also, the mem- ory of Michael O’Shaughnessy’s flitting urged me on; I wondered what might be the outcome of Lily-White Hand’s meeting with this other veteran railroader. “All right, son,” I decided. “I'll be there.”’ The boy smiled his pleasure, and put a hand on my shoulder. “That’s a good chap! I need your hard head back of me. I’m just the least bit afraid of the Big Boss.” And on that I went home to tell Molly, who began to flutter about excitedly, and set Jack Mack to blacking my best shoes, and ordered Sarah Kilrain to put the flat- irons on, for my dress clothes must be sponged and pressed. “And you, Kirke—run right down to Eddy’s and get shaved and have your mustache trimmed; and whatever you do, don’t let him smell you all up with bay rum.” ‘“‘Fiddlesticks!”’ said I, to tease her. “TI shaved last night. I’ll go as I am; Black Valley doesn’t mind a twenty-four-hour beard.” She stamped a little foot. “Oh, Black Valley! You maketme mad, Kirke. As if you didn’t know what an honor this is!” I have no doubt that she saw me al- ready surgeon-in-chief to the whole Ontario ~ System. “How about Adventure “Well, Molly dear,” said I mildly, “Black Valley buys our meat—when we have it.” Two years after the armistice my wife was still obsessed by the ideal of meatless days. “And this man Mac- Kenzie only runs a raijroad; but here in Black Valley I am high-priest of both ends of life. I think mine is the more important work.” None the less, I went down to the barber shop; for, though I reason and protest, at the last Molly always has her way with me. And so, when I started out at half-past six, I was prettied almost beyond my endurance; for I love comfort. My evening clothes, relics of a more agile youth, were unpleasantly tight about waist and arm- holes; my boiled shirt irked a chest more used to flannels, and my collar was a garrote upon my neck. But Molly was pleased. “You look lovely!” she whispered, and kissed me twice with wet eyes; and when I had started ran out after me, waving a clean silk handkerchief, and kissed me again. And, since she was pleased, I made no protest, but stalked off, chin high against the scrape of my collar" edge, stoically striving to take short breaths, lest I burst my magnificence somewhere. CHAPTER XII A DISMISSAL MET Warren at the Putnam House, and together we waited there for Lily- White Hand. But the man was not to be found; and after fifteen minutes or so, Warren grew impatient. “Can’t think what’s keeping him,” he grumbled. “Anyway, we.,mustn’t keep Mr. MacKenzie waiting like this. Come on, doc; he’ll be along presently, I guess.’ So we set forth, leaving word with Phil Riley that Hand was to be sent after us as soon as he came in. Stuart MacKenzie proved to be a tall, | saturnine man, hard-faced, with a Scot’s burr still upon his tongue. His wife was with him, and two or three other guests; I found them a pleasant party enough, though Roberts seemed a thought more deferential than I would have had him. He looked quite shocked when I contra- dicted Mr. MacKenzie upon a point of metaphysics. We were discussing the COmiclboo oN ) ©