All-Story Weekly, March 1, 1919 — page 146: what you’re looking at

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

: ASS ae Saito - when he recalled the utter sce of the _ ~ dady in the wood. e “Tron nerve!” he muttered, as the song grated on his ears. “‘ Hanged if I'll pay her a hundred dollars! She bilked me.” From which it will be seen that the ~Grouch had something else on his mind be- side the episode of the night before. Mame Brundage arrived at the cabin ‘with his dinner-tray and found him mood- ily pacing the floor. It was her first glimpse of him that day; breakfast had been left on the door-step, in response to an order bel- lowed from behind a closed door. She smiled wanly at him. “You came near not gettin’ your din- ner,” she said as she’placed the tray on the table; “ or any breakfast, either.” “Just as soon miss -’em,” said the ‘Grouch as he snatched the napkin from the tray and surveyed what lay beneath. “What’s the matter with .the food here? ‘Has the stove got dyspepsia?”’ But Mame was not to be driven off at a tangent. “ Ain’t you heard about last night?” He drew a chair to the table and shook ‘his head as he sat down. “TI was kidnaped,” said Mame. The Grouch studied her with a cold glance. “Tf you were kidnaped, what are you ‘doing here?”’ he demanded. “Of course, I wasn’t exactly kidnaped, ‘Mr. March. I got away afterward.” He scowled at his plate. “Never saw such a place for ineffi- -. ciency,” he said sourly. ‘‘ Nothing done more than half-way. They don’t even have decent kidnapers.”’ “ Oh!” exclaimed Mame, who did not ‘fail to interpret his meaning, even if it shocked. her. “Oh, Mr. March! You ‘don’t mean to be cruel like that.” “Who says I don’t?” ‘“‘T just won’t believe it,” she said, shak- ing her head sadly. ‘“ Because I know you’ve got a heart that’s big and kind.” 2 “ Cut out the-rot,” he ordered. “ What ‘about this kidnaping stuff? Who. tried it? Are there any lunatics at large?” “Tf you’re goin’ to insult me,”’ answered Mame stiffly, “ Vl go away. ” water up there is very beneficial. _ © What about the kidnaping?”’ ‘Opinion about that. ayy ae * hye aa — et ~ Pn ng agai ht / = se ee Se Se Pe = ‘sr _— _— ee == 2 ae ee = ‘ x i “You never did yet,” said the Grouch = in a tone of brutal incredulity. “Goahead and tell what happened.” Mame settled herself in a chair and clasped her hands. : “ Well, I'd been takin’ a all up to the spring. Maybe you know where it is. It’s up back of Miss Dean’s cottage. The We had a gentleman here once who said there was a great deal of iron in it. You wouldn’t think there could be iron in water, would your “Mom don’t like it as good as the well water, but pop drinks it whenever he ain’t too tired to go up there. Mom says that’s what gives him lumbago. They have terri- ble arguments about it. He says if there’s. any iron in it, it ought to stren’then his back, but mom says—” The Grouch stopped her with a glare. “Cut out the prologue,” he ordered. “I’m comin’ to it,” said Mame. ‘ Only I just wanted to say that mom says that iron gets into your system and stiffens it all up so that it’s hard for you to bend over, which is the kind of trouble pop mostly has. ~ “Of course, one can have one’s own But as I was sayin’, I went up there by the spring, and this kid- napin’ happened when I was on my way back. 4 She paused and rolled her eyes upward, only resuming her narrative at his ee | command. “ The first thing I cee tt was terrible dark in that path—my foot caught against something, and I lost my balance.” The Grouch dropped his knife with a clatter and turned quickly. “ What’s that?” he demanded. ie “T lost my balance,” repeated Mame, Bee “and I fell over against—what do you 7 think—tight there in the dark? A man!” = The Grouch’s face turned an alarming es shade of red. z “And then somebody else shot at me, and I swooned away.” | A paroxysm seized the Grouch. He pushed back his chair-and rose from the table, holding his napkin to his lips. A Se Viiys beokth ; 7 | i] A are ‘LIS a *y Ae pe WIDE A hae