The Argosy, Vol. 83 No. 1 — page 54: what you’re looking at

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

Ad said the girl, when they were alone, “but I * @m sure about his clothes. I can’t under- stand father’s obstinacy about that!”’ Jerry seemed peculiarly listless. “I’m very sure that his clothes were light, too,” he said. ‘Perhaps it makes no great difference.” She shook her hegd, gravely puzzled. ‘Please come again soon, Mr. Hamp- ton,” she murmured, as he put his hand on the doorknob. “I hope we may meet some time without having unpleasantness all around us. But I do thank you for being always at hand when there’s trouble, and for helping me.” ‘T’ve done little or nothing,” he replied soberly, “but I shall always be ready to do anything for you, Miss Delroy.” They clasped hands, with a suspicion of embarrassment on both sides, and he went away. He passed the physician’s waiting mo- tor-car and walked to the curve of the road. There he paused and leaned wear- ily against a tree, looking at the thousands of twinkling lights in the city below and beyond, and he sighed dismally a shook his head. He was thinking of the man that had crashed his way through the library win- dow. He had reason to feel assured that his clothes were light, for he had recog- nized him as Exmoor. CHAPTER XII. A TRICK WORTH TWO, RANDMOTHER HAMPTON sat up far beyond her usual hour that night, vaguely disturbed by the recent up- setting of the staid routine of her sur- roundings. Before the arrival of the agreeable Mr. Tarleton, Jerry had complacently managed the affairs of the farm by day, with the ex- pert assistance of Denny, and by night he had retired early to his chamber and de- voted himself assiduously to study and the | practise of writing. With a program so chaste and ordered, she had been well con- THE ARGOSY, tent and her sleep o’ nights had been peace- ful; but now Jerry did nothing but talk secretively in corners with the visitor, bolt his meals, and dash in and out—mostly out—upon mysterious errands. He came in while she was thus working her cheerful soul into a state of worry, and she was appeased for the moment. ‘Il am all alone, Jerry,” she said, “‘and I have a message for you from Mr. Tarleton. He was called away unexpectedly.” “Oh, he was called away!” Jerry ex- claimed — with some indifference, she thought—as he slumped into a chair and sighed wearily. ‘A postman fetched a special- delivery letter for him just after you went out,” she explained, with careful pains; “not more than ten minutes after you’d gone. It seems like as if he got some money in the letter, for he went upstairs and then came right down and handed me a ten- dollar bill to give to you. to cover a lot of little expenses that you had met for him, and that you would un- derstand.” “They didn’t amount to half of that!” Jerry protested impatiently. “Why did he have to leave in sucha hurry? Did he tell you where he was going?”’ ‘Why, he really did leave in such a rush,” the old lady explained, “that he didn’t have time to tell me much about it. He said I might tell you that he would come back to-night if he could, but that it might be that he would not come back at all. He said he would communi- cate with you after a while, in case he didn’t come back, but he thought you would understand it, anyway. He was very polite indeed, Jerry, and I’m sure he couldn’t have been more appreciative of what little we have done for him.” Jerry nodded slowly. “Yes, he’s a very polite man,” he said, with an odd gleam in his eye, though the old lady found nothing equivocal in his tone. “Y made sure you’d be very disap- pointed, Jerry,” she said, a bit critically. ‘You and Mr. Tarleton seemed to get on COPMICLOOOLKS He said it was (E@)