Argosy All-Story Weekly, November 12, 1927 — page 101: what you’re looking at

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

THE RETURN A sparkling in the darkness of the dining room doorway attracted his attention and he saw, standing there, Mrs. Gore—the mysterious, hostile woman who had taken up Polly’s abandoned duties as _ house- keeper. The woman who tortured cats in the interests of biology! Her pale-gray eyes were fixed coldly upon George Washington in a stare not unlike that of a reflective feline. She had, Larry thought darkly, tortured, vivisected cats, helped her husband, the aloof Professor Gore, to analyze their ner- vous systems, in the elaborate preparations which had gone into the remaking of George Washington. She was not looking upon him as the object of a nation’s, a world’s, emotions, but as the product of laborious years spent with test tubes and scalpels. The great diamond on her hands, as mysterious as the essence of her own person- ality, glittered and flashed. “J will take him to his room,” she said, in her slurring Southern voice. “It is ready.” And she went to the stairway. George Washington placed his right hand, lightly clasped, over his heart and bowed deeply, first to Polly, then to her aunt, in what is sometimes described as “ the con- tinental manner.” He did not smile. Bowing more briefly to Larry, he accom- panied Mrs. Gore up the stairs. Larry, following him with glowing eyes, did not see Aunt Sally gesturing frantically to Polly. He turned only in time to see Polly seize the microphone from the table and lift it to a level with her trembling gray lips. Breathlessly she spoke to those tensely listening millions: “Good evening, everybody! This is Polly Morgan. Hasn’t it been simply thrilling? Colonel Washington has gone up to bed. We all hope that he will feel much more at home with us by to-morrow, don’t we? The poor boy was simply all in. I want to wish everybody good night and to tell you that my thrilling experiences will be made into a film by the Classic Features Corporation. Good night, all! Polly Morgan signing off!” “ Good Heaven!” Larry moaned. OF GEORGE WASHINGTON, 575 He removed the microphone from her hands, took it to the window, which he opened, and hurled it into the night. CHAPTER XXIV. THE OLD STORY. UNT SALLY, when he turned about, was holding Polly in her arms, rapt- urously hugging her. Her face was flushed and her large blue eyes were ex- citedly shining. So furious he almost sobbed, Larry cried: ‘How dared you do that?” She retorted enthusiastically: “ It was the greatest publicity stunt in history!” “Publicity!” he groaned. “ Publicity! Debasing a great moment with that cheap, horrible speech!” Polly burst into tears. She dropped into a chair and covered her face with her hands. He raged: “I was trying to avoid just that kind of thing. You’ve spoiled every- thing!”’ Aunt Sally ran her slim long fingers through her tousled blond bob. She said angrily: “Don’t take things so deuced seriously. What Polly said was no worse than the stupid, dull, pompous things you said!” Wretchedly, he shook his head. ‘Running up to him. Kissing him like that. Oh, my God!” “You’re acting like an ass. It was good publicity. They were both fine stunts. The first woman to kiss him! Millions of women will be furious with envy—and they’ll all flock to see her picture!” “ Polly,” he groaned, ‘‘ how could you?” “Don’t blame her,” Aunt Sally snapped. ‘Both ideas were mine. What are you kicking about? I didn’t see you galloping out of the limelight! I’ve noticed that you’ve kept in the center of the stage ever since things started! Are you jealous?” “ Jealous!” repeated the wretched young man. “All IT wanted was—was dignity. It’s all I’ve been fighting for from the start. He mustn’t be cheapened. Tf won’t let him be cheapened!” “Oh, stop being so silly. People don’t Gomichbooks (E@)