The Argosy, Vol. 90 No. 1 — page 10: what you’re looking at

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

“But he vowed he was going to get here somehow,” Mrs. Reeves was saying. ‘“What’s his name?” asked Vicky, though in a voice of little interest. ‘* Somers,” returned Mrs. Reeves. “Never heard of him. Did you, Mr. Calhoun?” and Vicky Van looked up at me as I entered. ““ No; Miss Van Allen. Who is he?” “TY don’t know and I don’t care. Only, as Mrs. Reeves says, he is coming here to-night, I’d like to Know something about him.” ‘“ Coming here! A man you don’t know?” I drew up a chair to join the group. ‘“ How can he?”’ ““ Mr. Steele is going to bring him,” said Mrs. Reeves. ‘“ He says Mr. Somers is a first-class, all-around chap and no end of fun. Says he’s a millionaire.” ‘““What’s a millionaire more or less to me?” laughed Vicky. ‘I choose my friends for their lovely character, not for their wealth.” “Yes, you’ve selected all of us for that, dear,” agreed Mrs. Reeves, “ but this Som- ers gentleman may be amiable, too.” Mrs. Reeves was a solid, sensible sort of person, who acted as ballast for the volatile Vicky, and sometimes reprimanded her in a mild way. ““T love the child,” she had said to me once, “ and she is a little brick. But once in a while I have to. tell her a few things for the good of the community. She takes it all like an angel.” “Well, I don’t care,” Vicky went on, ‘“* Norman Steele has no right to bring any- body here whom he hasn’t asked me about. If I don’t like Mr. Somers I shall ask some of you nice, amiable men to get me a long plank, and we’ll put it out of a window and make him walk it. Shall we?” We ail agreed to do this, or to tar and feather and ride on a rail any gentleman who might in any way be so unfortunate as to fall one iota short of Vicky Van’s re- quirements. ‘And now,” said Vicky, “if you'll all please go down-stairs, except Mrs. Reeves and Mr. Garrison and my own sweet self, I'll be orfly obliged to you.” The sweeping gesture with which she THE ARGOSY. sought to dismiss us was a wave of her white arms and a smile of her red lips. I, for one, found it impossible to obey. I started with the rest, and then after the gay crowd was part-way down-stairs I turned back. “Please mayn’t I join your little class, if V’ll be very good?” I begged. “I don’t want Bert Garrison to be left alone at the mercy of two such sirens.” Miss Van Allen hesitated. Her pink- tipped forefinger rested a moment on her curved lip. “Yes,” she said, nodding her head. “Yes, stay, Mr. Calhoun. You may be a help. Are you any good at getting theater- boxes after they’re all sold?” “ That’s my profession,” I returned. “I learned it from a correspondence school. Where’s the theater? Lead me to it!” “It’s the Metropolis,” she replied. “I want to have two boxes for a party there to-morrow night, and this awful, dreadful, bad Mr. Garrison says they’re all sold and I can’t get any! What can you do about it?” “Oh, Ill fix it. Ill go to the people who bought the boxes you want, and Ill fix up such a yarn that they’ll beg me to take the boxes off their hands.” “Oh, will you, really?’ The dazzling smile she gave me would have repaid even ‘a more herculean task. Of course, I hadn’t meant it; but when she thought I did, I couldn’t go back on my word. “Tl do my best, Miss Van Allen,” I said seriously; “ and if I can’t possibly turn the trick, I’ll—well, I’ll buy the Metropoli- tan Opera House and put on a show of my own.” “No,” she laughed, “ you needn’t do that. But if you try and fail—why, we'll just have a little party here, a sort of con- solation party and—oh, let’s have some pri- vate theatricals! Wouldn’t that be fun?” “More fun than the original program?” I asked quickly, hoping to be let off my promise. ‘No, sir!” she cried. ‘ Decidedly not! I want especially to have that theater-party and supper afterward at the Britz. Now you do all you can, won’t you?” oO comicbool< CO