The Argosy, August 1914 — page 85: what you’re looking at

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

NOBODY LOVES A LOSER. “Don’t you see?” she began ear- nestly. “It’s like this— Butch and me were engaged before he fought Jack Garrett. He was only pretty good then, Butch was, but I—TI loved him just the same, and so he did me. “Then he thought he saw a way to break through to the top. You know how I helped him. Just at first he was erateful. We were going to be mar- ried before long. “Then you gave him his chance. It was the biggest thing ever came to Butch. He was going to have a go with the champion.” “JT had to have some one — but never mind. Go ahead,” growled Sam. “Well, after that Butch wasn't the same any more. Just as [ tell you, he got the swelled head. It seemed like I wasn’t good enough for him. But it was too late to talk that way then. Oh, believe me, Mr. Levine, he mustn’t back out.” Sam nodded, storm cloud. “Go ahead,” he said curtly. “Well, that’s about all, excepting that he puts it off and puts it off. The last thing was that he couldn't, any- way, until after the fight. Honestly, though, it wouldn’t make any differ- ence. 1 wouldn’t bother him. I promise you. If you could only help me!” “So Butch has the big head, has he?’’ was Sam Levine's first comment when her story was ended. “ P’h’aps it ain’t swelled so much now as it was at breakfast time. Such a bump he got.” A moment later, upon Vesta’s ri- sing, he ordered her to sit down again. “Wait a minute, can’t your” he said. “I got to think, ain't I? But what can I do? There ain’t any law makes a man marry if he doesn’t want to that I know of.” “Tt’s like this, Mr. Levine,’ Vesta explained. “ When a man is success- ful and way up, with everything com- ing his way, he hasn’t much use for a with a face like a T5 woman. THe thinks he has his pick of a lot of them then. “It’s when a man is down that he needs us. He wants sympathy and to be petted and all. Are you married, Mr. Levine? = > - ‘No, Gott sei dank!” was the re- ply. “Then probably you don’t know how it is, but that’s the living truth. And I’m afraid of what will happen if Butch wins the belt. Because then he will be worse than ever ; do you see? If I hadn’t helped him to fix Jack Garrett and Jack had got the decision in that fight last spring, we'd have been happily married by now.” ‘Happily, [ don’t know,” said the man. He rose in intimation that the interview was over. ‘‘ Now don’t you worry none about the Butcher winning that there championship. That’s one stick out of your path. For the rest I don’t know yet, but it seems to me like he’ll be hunting for sympathy be- fore long. Let him know where you are, so he can get it when the time comes.” Lacking a vehicle, he called Mac to escort Vesta to her hotel. After he had been left in solitary possession he retired to his bedroom and locked the door. It was his way when some knotty problem arose on which he wanted to concentrate all his faculties. The question he was called on to answer had nothing whatever to do with the relations of Vesta Dawn and Butch Horlock. As for the latter, Sam had taken him on with full knowledge that if he won the championship fight for which he was matched it would be by luck rather than merit. As he constantly reminded himself, he was a business man. The loser’s end of the purse would recoup him for the expenditure. And there was the loophole by virtue of which he could substitute a better man if he could find one. This morning he had seen Jack Gar-— rett fight, and he knew him stronger, COMMICLOOOKS (E@