Indianapolis Times, Volume 48, Number 19, Indianapolis, Marion County, 2 April 1936 — Page 29

APRIL 2, 1936.

Today's Short Story — THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK By Alma and Paul Ellerbe

But Toots wouldn’t admit there ' ly tL t / was anything on her mind. She just wanted to drive up to Tryon-

‘XT TELL,” Toots said, looking over VV her husband’s shoulder one bright winter day through the door of his little office into the garage that adjoined it, “what’s their hard luck story? They're nice-looking youngsters. I rather believe this time you’ll get your money back.” “Burned out bearings,” Rusty O’Connor said. “Fellow up the road didn't tighten up the crank case when he changed the oil, and it leaked out. Wouldn’t cost much to fix it. It’s plain enough that that’s just an excuse and they borrowed the 40 bucks for something else.” Toots’ glance weighed them carefully. “They’ve had one whale of a quarrel and they’re separating, if you ask me,” she said. Rusty’s scrubby, good-humored face looked grave. “I was just wondering if that wasn t it myself.” “Pity, isn't it?” “Yeah.” They were repacking the content:; of three suitcases, with the evident intention of leaving one behind. They did it in silence. Their faces had a sort of statuesque expressionlessness, under which Rusfy thought he detected in each the same fear. 000 “'T'HEY can’t quite believe it,” he X said. “Each of ’em’s hoping the other will come across and say they are sorry.” “And neither of them Is going to,” Toots said thoughtfully. “No. It's like they Lad lockjaw or something.” “We know, don’t we?” Rusty nodded. “But never again, huh?” “Never again.” Toots said. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this, Mr. O’Connor," the boy said. “I’ll bring you the 40 and get the car inside of three weeks. The truth is I haven’t got a Job right now, but I'm sure—” “Job pickings nowadays,” Rusty said, “are kind of slim”; and from the look that twitched at the girl’s face felt sure that was one of the things they had quarreled about. He reached into his pocket and drew out a bill. “Listen, you take another 10, see? You'll maybe be needing it.” a it a TOOTS had a sudden hunch the girl was going to cry, and, “All right,” she thought, “let her. Maybe that would thaw them out and bring them together.” “Come in,” she said, “and powder your nose” —for there was an entrance from the back of the office into the house where the O'Connors lived—“and then we’ll run you up to the station.” For they had said they were going on by train. “Get your car in three weeks if you can,” Rusty said, "and take longer if you have to. It's not ir. my way. I’ve plenty of room just now. It'll be safe, &hd everything in it, no matter how long you take ” He almost said, as he explained to Toots driving back to the garage: “Don’t take the south train; wait for the next one north and go after her and fix it up”; but he couldn’t, quite; the boy was intelligent looking—the sort that would know his own mind—and Rusty didn’t know what lay behind all this. 000 "T’VE half a mind to go back, X though, and say it now.” he said to Toots; but just then they heard the train blowing for the station, and “It isn’t likely it would have done any good,” Toots said. “It was pretty plain he didn’t want to leave her—that they were in love. Sticking out all over ’em, in fact.” “I wonder what busted ’em up,” Rusty said. “It’s my guess he’ll tell us all about it when he comes to get the car," Toots said. “I don’t think he could talk to his own mother today, he’s too cut up.” But he didn’t choose to get the car. Not in three weeks, or four. At the end of the fifth week he mailed in the key to the car door, asking Rusty to keep it and send him some socks he’d forgotten, and enclosed also $5 on the SSO. and said he was drifting from place to place looking for work. Rusty spt back the $5 along with the socks, and they didn’t hear anything for another month. Then one morning at the breakfast table Toota found an item in the “News” from Tryonville’' column of the local paper, and stared at it so long that Rusty knew she was making Up her yninr[ ftfcMHlt

WHAT,” Toots said, coming briskly out of it, ‘‘is the name of that nice kid that split off from his little cute wife and wrote back for his socks the other day— Stanley?” “Yeah—Jonas P. Why?” “He’s got a job in a radio shop up in Tryonville. He rates five or six lines and there’s nothing about his wife. I want to drive up there and see him.” “I want to ask him where the girl is. I can’t forget her.” “Toots,” Rusty said, “whenever your eyes shine like that you’re either mad, going to cry, or up to something. What’s on your mind?” But Toots wouldn’t admit there was anything on her mind. She just wanted to drive up to Tryonville and see Jonas P. Stanley and ask him about his wife, that was all; and she wanted to go today. The son of the House of O’Connor, being chubby, amiable and some two feet long, took kindly to the breeches-buoy contrivance that Rusty sometimes swung for his benefit from the roof of the family car. Business was slack, and Smitty, Rusty’s helper, was pretty nearly as good now as Rusty. Rusty could go if he wanted to. Rusty practically always ended by wanting to do anything Toots wanted him to. That afternoon they went. And sure enough there was Jonas P. Stanley behind the counter in Everybody’s Radio and Fix It Shop. He blushed when he saw them, but before he saw them he looked very much at home and adjusted—though pale and thin and a little haggard. He was repairing a radio, and you could see with half an eye that that sort of thing was natural to him. a tt a he said, I’m ashamed to look you two in the eye! But I’ve only had this job a week, and already they’re talking about taking me in as a partner—even without any money to invest—and in another week I’d have been down to see you, and—” “Sure you would,” Rusty said, “We weren’t bothering about that.” "Listen,” Toots said, “where’s your wife?” “With her people, I suppose. She went to Lem when she left me. You—you ir.ve’nt heard from her, have you?” “No. Haven’t you?” “Not so much as a postcard. And I’ve written twice.” “Is she going to join you here?” Suddenly the boy went quite pale —seemed to be facing it squarely for the first time. “I don’t think she’s ever going to join me.” “Why not?” “Aw, Toots,” Rusty said. “You know you ” “Yes, I know. It’s none of my business. You’ll have to excuse me.” “She doesn’t care a hoot about me,” the boy said slowly. “She never has cared a hoot about me. She only married me because —well, because she thougnt I was going to climb into her class and be a lawyer. Her people have had a good many advantages that mine haven’t. And I did try to be. Studied in her uncle's office. But, heck, I didn’t give a hang about it, or him! He's a damn snob. I couldn’t help it. I just didn’t. What I’m interested in is radio. And not the parlor end of it, either, but fixing the darned things with my own hands. That’s what I like, to work with my hands. And she was ashamed of it—and me. We talked ” * u “XTOU talked too much,” Toots X said. “You both of you said a lot of things you didn’t mean. You got each other all wrong. She’s as crazy about you as you are about her. and always has been.” “How—How do you know?” the boy said, staring?” "Aw, Toots—” Rusty was beginning when Mrs. Toots O'Connor produced from her handbag a small, black, leather-covered book, opened it carefully to a marked’ passage, plumped it down on the counter before the eyes of Jonas P. Stanley and said: “Read that.” Jonas P. read it, while it was Rusty’s turn to stare. The boy was all lit up, as if someone had snapped on a light inside of him. “And that,” Toots said, when he had finished the first passage, an* turned to another. “Mrs. O’Connor,” the boy said, when he had read it, looking up with eyes that were frankly wet, “I—lll never be able to thank “Where is she? Where do her people live?” “Dixbury. But ” “Were going there,” Toots said; and they did. It was only after Toots had them all in the car bowling along at 45 miles an hour that Rusty learned that the little black book was the diary of young Mrs. Silas P., which Toots had abstracted from the car and shamelessly read, and tfrpn acted upon. * THE KN7X

OUR BOARDING HOUSE

3UUUS' 130 V, FFOM SOUTH AFRICA—HE HAD THE > MICE ANA 1 HOOFLE— \ Hf MitSFORTUME TO BE HELD QUIET ,UVCeW <S!MCE Okl 1 Ws UP AMD STU\PPED TO THE <§ A PLAID J "PER CUFF, -2-j HIDE. HAF-'RLSMPH OUBT |,OR A pj§| 1 PUT DOT £7 CHARSE HIS MEEDS TO MV CHECK. )#/ CAST SUIT. } ACCOUMT UMTIL MEXT X SEE DETRE's)

FRECKLES AND HIS FRIENDS—

ARE MX) GOINS HE BROKE I WTO MT WHERE DID RIGHT" HERE OW THIS RJWW'/'A BCT/ GETS p,rr iw F TO PRESS CHARGES ) X * STORE AMD TOOK SOME- CRUSH AW ACORN }HESW HE COURIER! ITS PREfOS- WW? | A |, fortAWUS MEDnwir / AGA/WST "THE XMosr "THIWG "THAT DIDMT IW TOUR FI MGERS, ) LEFT THAT TEROUS! IF HE LEFT V a \ COOK BOV, \f CERTAINLY LBELOWG TO HIM...THATS BUT IF IT GROWS, [RRY-CEWT n THERE,THE OFFICER ' V

WASHINGTON TUBBS II

LINE 'EM UP FACING THE WALL) OH MO? WHO'S A FOOL, NOW ? VhE SPECTATORS ARE DUMBTAK.E THEIR GUNS, PODNER. y WE GOT'EM, EASY? WE GOT “ FOUNDED. v. " * PUNKV M&aBW ‘Nr TH' WHOLE —’K/ WELL, THEY* / DERN GANG' 'WHY, THERE X I’LL BE.'WHICH [ *7 AIN'T BIN Aj SO ONE'S

ALLEY OOP

HEv7guZ- DON'T DO THAT. 1 DONT GO OUT YOU GIT ME ONE OF "THOSE 1 THERE THROWfN' ROCKS AT THAT DINOSAUR/ HH BIG SPOTTED CATHE'LL TEAR YOU TO PIECES/ REMEMBER SKINS AN' I'LL S NJ WHAT HAPPENED T'ME/ WAIT SHOW YA / AWRIGHT- 1 X KNOW HOW I CAN GET OUTA - /THIS IS YOUR 1

BOOTS AND HER BUDDIES

THE TARZAN TWINS

As the two elephants battled, Tarzan saw that Tantor could not withstand the furious assaults of mad Gudah. Meanwhile, Gudah, during temporary lulls in the mortal combat, cast malicious glances at Tarzan, as if resolved to kill him when he had finished Tantor.

Always Choose SULK DeLuxe Stockings, 69c Pr. I , 1 f \ ' for QUALITY—foi' BEAUTY-for ECONOMY! DOWNSTAIRS AT AYRES

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

Regardless of his own safety, Tarzan could not stand idly by see his friend Tantor slain: Yet, by physical strength he could not determine the issue any more than some ar.cient cave-man would have affected the outcome of a conflict between two monstrous dinosaurs.

With Major Hoople

OUT OUR WAY

H- . ff IlllOlUi 1 (\ /W Eu v Tmr\ we LOOKS \ / you uwemt looked \ 1 / MEANS I \ AWJ2IOUT AT HIM ! WATCH HIM I I CANT LAVE \ PA, BUT STEP DOWN THIS ALLEY* I NEW \ 1 GUESS TUIS HORSE IS OUR J CLOTHES, I DONT FORTUNE-I’LL ADMIT rS \ ANYTHING/ J THIS i GET NO I HAD TO PAY SOME . \ SUMMER I \ BIKE, NOW / BOOT ON TH TRADE. / BOBM THIRTY YEARS TOO SOOM ,

j Viang (&00D GOSH.' if they're Vtuen-turnO (77iorVP~D?>j*T — ARRESTEP, JAKE, WE’LL/(oUT THE U6HTS, TC 1 ✓ OUUUIfe/y -l BY HEA SERVICE, me. T.

WOW, WATCH ME GIVE THAT LIZACD A WELL, 1 HOPE,FOR ¥%)7 *>? *TH' SLIP -I'LL WALK OUTA HEGE irfM yOUG SAKE, V 'GET W / J BGHTUKIDEG HIS^IOSE / AW'TH*IHM WITH IT.~ \ \ J "-. 2 T M BEG, a 8. PAT. Off.

Poor Tantor’s courage could not compensate for mad Gudah’s superior strength and skill in battle. Barely was he able to fend off those vicious thrusts of Gudah’s tusks. It was inevitable that sooner or later one of those thrusts would find its mark in Tantor’s body.

—By Edgar Rice Burroughs

Then Tarzan decided upon a desperate move. With his apes he would swoop down upon the demon elephant, distract his attention, and thus allow Tantor to drive home his own tusks. If that maneuver failed, nothing could halt their own destruction and Gudah’s triumph.

-COMIC PAGE

—By Williams

—By Blossec

—By Crane

—By Hamlin

—By Martin