Argosy All-Story Weekly, March 15, 1924 — page 69: what you’re looking at

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

_ 698 party but didn’t have the stamina to carry the fight to a finish. He spied me, and come over to me and shook hands with me very grave, notwithstanding I had lately spent about all my time with him.. “Some doings,” he said, and his lips curled. “Why, it’s a right nice party, Jimmie,” says I. ‘It’s too bad you don’t dance.” “Me?” he snaps. “ Why, I shake one of the wickedest legs you ever saw.’ ‘ Whyn't you do it, then?” says I. “ You go in ‘and grab off ‘that red haired, bob haired girl, She’s got vim, that girl, Y ou'll ~ ike her.” “Pretty?” he says. | : “ Homely,” says I. “ But—well, there is something about her.” A slow grin come.to his lips, and he nar- rows his eyes. I could see that he was figuring on a stunt. He gets up and tosses his hat on a chair. Then the door is opened and a bunch of the boys and girls comes out to take the air. Sadie is with them, and she. catches a glimpse of her one and only love. I expected they would.shoot a look at each other, each trying to be haughtier than the other. But Sadie’s eyes glimmers like pools of deep water with sunlight on them. She comes over to Jimmie with her hand stuck out. He kept his hands at his sides, but she snatches up one of them and turns around to the gang. She introduces Jim- mie to the strangers like he was: the only real-‘man yet produced by the human race, and Jimmie bowed right and left and shook hands and was real nice about it, though I was gure he didn’t feel that way. The redhead is a little in advance of the others, and when the introducing is done Jimmie walks over to her, slow and grave, and gives her a bow with his hand on the lower part of his chest. “ May’ I- have the next dance?” he asks, “Make a bet on it and win some loose | change,” says Redhead. The phonograph begun hitting on high just then, and they all flocked into ‘the room, the redhead hooking her hand into the crook of Jimmie’s arm. Well, they not only danced that dance, but they danced ARGOSY-ALI.STORY WEEKLY‘, the next two, as I could see when I took my feet off the rail and happened to look through the window. At ‘the ‘end of their third dance Sadie comes out on the porch. She goes to the rail and stands there, looking up at the sky. “ The stars is real nice to-night, Sadie,” says I. I seen~her take in her breath long and slow and let go of it in the same manner. She was still staring up at the stars. “ Are they?” she says. She stood there till the gang comes out again for another breath of air, mixed with a good deal of cigarette smoke.. The red- head ‘and Jimmie is standing together, one of them ‘talking ail the time and sometimes both of them talking at the same time. Jimmie has his hands in his coat pockets, and he is leaning down to the slim girl while she has her eyes lifted to his face. Once in a while Jimmie teeters up on his toes and back again to the flat of his feet in a mighty: contented kind of way. Jennie gives them a few minutes and then she comes in with the phonograph. - J can see that that black girl is tickled all The only thing she did ~ - not like about this party 1 was the intermis- over by the music. sions. Well, the gang starts to troop back like they thought they might miss.a step or two | in the dance. for the door. - Sadie steps up to them. .“ Miss Byerly,” she says as sweet as sugar, “ would you mind surrendering my husband to me for this one dance? know that I wasn’t aware till this evening that he could dance! I’d like-to take ad- _.Jimmie and Redhead start vantage of my discovery. ‘Then you. can - have him for the rést of ‘the evening. I shall be busy with the refreshments.” , “Go to it, kid, and make him. step,” says Redhead. Jimmie stuck out his elbow and Sadie put her hand in the crook of it.. Redhead. perches herself on the rail and lights a ciga- rette. Do you — “T think I started something,” says she, - “Those two have been having a fuss, or ] don’t know the symptoms. That dance GOO Conn S CO© mm