Jasper County Democrat, Volume 13, Number 80, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 January 1911 — THE FORTUNE HUNTER [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

THE FORTUNE HUNTER

Novelized by LOUIS JOSEPH VANCE From the Play of the Same Name by WINCHELL SMITH Copyright. 1910. by Winchell Smith and Louis Joseph Vance

CH A [‘TER XV. NAT didn’t go to the Lockwood lawn fete and did excuse himself on the plea of being unable to leave the store. I’m afraid the young man had a faint, fond hope that Josie would be offended, but his excuse was accepted without remonstrance. But the party came off without fail, and that on a wonderful still, moonlit night, and everybody voted it a splendid success. The Citizen in its next issue recorded the event to the extent of a column and a half of reading matter, called it a social function and described the gowns of the leading ladies of society present in bewildering phrases. I read the proofs with an admiration strongly tinctured with awe and found it lacking in one particular only—no mention was made of Roland Barnette's first open faced suit. ‘ Roland had ordered it from a clothing house in Chicago, and it arrived just in time. Having heard all about it from Roland’s own lips (they dilated upon the matter to Watty, the tailor, just beneath my window), I sort of L hung round downtown Saturday evening in the hope of catching a glimpse of it and was not disappointed. I was loitering in Graham’s when Roland sauntered nonchalantly in at about a quarter to 8 and called* -for a pack of “Sweets.” Sam served him. and Duncan, happily for him disengaged at the moment, after one look at Roland retired precipitately behind the prescription counter—overcome, I judged from Roland’s triumphant smirk, by deepest chagrin. Well, thought I, might he have been; he could never, by whatever wildest endeavor, have approximated Roland’s splendor. The coat was bobtailed (at least so Watty described it within my hearing) and curiously double breasted, caught together at the waist with a single button, thus revealing a shining expanse of very stiff shirt bosom, which creaked for some reason. With this Roland wore a ribbed white silk waistcoat, very brilliant low cut patent leather shoes and white silk socks ■*L’he trousers were strikingly cut as to each leg after the physical configuration of the domestic pear, and the effect of the whole was measurably enhanced by an opera hat, one of those tall and striking contraptions that you can shut up by pressing gently but firmly upon the human midriff and looking unconscious, but which is apt to open with a resounding report if •you’re not careful. 1 am glad to be >ble to report that Roland failed to .mrnit the solecism of wearing a red •ing tie. His tie was a sober black ly knotted at the factory. hcan fell into a routine without /ast evidence of discontent. He j-irly to rise and early to work jriely left the store save at meal

hours and closing up time. He attended cburcb with admirable regularity, both morning and evening serv-

ices, on Sunday, the mid weekly prayer meeting and Friday evening choir practice, for in the course of time he had been' won over to join the choir and modestly discovered to our edification a baritone voice wholly untrained. but not unpleasing. Josie Lockwood sang contralto and Bess Gabriel what we were informed was soprano—only Radrille called it a treble. Tracey Tanner pumped the organ and puffed audibly in the pauses, a singular testimony to his devotion to Angie Tuthill. who “just sang’ with the others chiefly because she was Josie’s nearest friend. Nat bad settled down to a pretty steady correspondence with Kellogg, chiefly on business matters. 'Kellogg was investigating old Sam’s burner and seemed quite impressed with its possibilities. He bad quarreled with Roland’s friend Burnham on Duncan’s representations and ordered him out of the offices of L. J. Bartlett A Co., it seemed. Later be opened up negotiations with a corporation knowti as the Modern Gas company. I believe, a competitor of Consolidated Petroleum, and in due course representatives of both concerns came to Radville, examined the burner and retired, noncommittal. Then Bartlett sent a requisition for a model and supplied the funds for making it. thus demonstrating his confidence. .

As for old Sam. be had risen to the dignity of a frock coat and felt himself an aristocrat for the first time In his life. I don’t remember just bow soon it was. but it was shortly after the formation of the firm of Graham & Dun can that the young, man received his first invitation to dinner at the Ix>ckwoods’. He accepted, of course, whether he wanted to or boL for there could be no excuse for his refusing a Sunday bid, and the Lock woods made quite an event of it. The Soules were invited because they were Ara mint a Lockwood’s brother and sister-in-law. and the Godfreys came over from Westerly to grace the board as representatives of the Lock wood strain. At the conclusion of the meal, which endured throughout two interminable hours, the elder men folk withdrew to the garden and the la wn. Nat was left to Josie, who conducted him to the side porch, oat of sight of everybody, and planted herself in a baggy ham mock there. She was gay. even brilliant within her limitations, arch, naive, coquettish, shy, petulant, by turns, animated by a sense of con quest. She supplied the major part of the conversation, chatting volubly on the thousand subjects she didn’t understand, the dozen she did. In the most ingenuous manner imaginable she laid herself open to advances, not once, but a score of times, end when be failed to respond according to the code of Radville had the wit to mask her chagrin, did she feel any. Very prob: ably she laid bis lack of resjionsiveness at the door of bis shyness (a quality be was wholly without) and liked him the better for it

It was on this day that she extracted from him his promise to join the choir; He acceded through apathy alone. **l don’t care whether yon can stag or not,” she confessed, with a look. “But 1 do want somebody to walk home with me that I like.” “That’s a nice way of putting it,” Duncan considered without emphasis. “Roland Barnette’s always walked home with me. but I think he's just tiresome.” “Why?” inquired the young man. with some interest. She averted her head, plucking at the strands of the hammock. “Oh. you know,” she said diffidently. “Oh?’ Nat was enlightened. “Then I’m sorry for Roland.” “Whyr “I can't blame him. you know.” He couldn't help this. The time, the place, the girl, inspired—indeed, incited —one to banality. “Why?’ she persisted.

“Oh. you know.” He caught the intonation of her previous words , precisely. She had the grace to blush and bang her head, but he received a thrilling sidelong glance. < “Ah! Aren’t you awful to talk that way, Mr. Duncan?” •- “Yes." be admitted meekly; “Then you will join the choir?T “Oh. yes.” he agreed listlessly. Tm so glad.” He thanked her, but avoided her eye.

“We might ’s well begin tonight,” she suggested presently, with diffident, downcast eyes. “What—the choir?” He was startled. “Oh, 1 couldn’t without a rebaarsaL" “No. I didn’t mean that” “No?*

“I mean about Boland.” She was paying minute attention to the lace insertion of her skirt “ About Roland’’— “Yes; 1 mean— Yon know what I mean, Mr. Duncan?” “I assure you 1 do not Miss Lockwood.”

“About not walking home with him any more. 1 don’t want to. 1 wish you'd commence tonight instead of choir practice night. I’d much rather walk home with you:” “After evening service, you meani” She nodded. “It’ll be a great pleasure.” z “Really?” She gave him her eyes now. “Really.” he assured her “Ab. I don’t believe you mean that!” “But indeed 1 do.” Itwas nut.until nearly 5 o'clock that he was given a chance to escape. He had even then to refuse inflexibly an invitation to stay to supper. , Mint a Lock wood—an expansive. woman. generously convex—almost smothered him with appreciation of his thank?. She held his band in a large, moist palm and beamed upon him.

saying. “Now’t yob know the way, Mr. Duncan”— “Yea,” Blinky insisted, blinking roguishly, “drop in any time. Take pot luck. We’re plain people, Mr. Duncan. but alius glad to see our friends. Drop in any time.” Josie accompanied him to the front gate, where etiquette required him to linger for a.parting chat. “Goodby.” The girl gave him her band. “I’m real glad you came—at last.” “The pleasure has been all mine,” insisted the gallant bromide, fishing the trite phrase desperately from the gray vacuity of his thoughts. “You won’t forget?” "Forget what?” “About tonight" f “Do you imagine I could?” r . Josie returned to the family conclave, to interrupt a symposium on Duncan’s qualities. Duncan wrote to Kellogg in his room that night after church “I don’t want

to sound immodest, but it looks as If you were right, old man—apparently there’s nothing to it. “Probably I should have stayed on for supper, but 1 couldn’t: I should have choked. As it was. my soul was curdling Another ten minutes and 1 should have jumped down on the lawn and run round the house on all. fours, yapping and foaming at the mouth, ind have wound up by biting old Slinky. “The worst of it all is I know Pm ungrateful; I know they mean well. But why is it that people who mean well almost invariably grate upon your sensibilities like the screeching of a slate pencil? “But I mustn’t say mean things about my future relatives, I presume. That is the great trouble with your infernal scheme, Harry. It seems to be working like a charm, and now that I’ve got something to do I’m not so strong for it as I was. But I gave you my word. • * • Only mind this—if the rules prescribe a perpetual course of Sunday dinners en famille It’s going to break down and turn out a natural born flivver. There are limits to human endurance, and I’m human, whatever else I am not.” (To Be Continue®)

BAM HAD BISEN TO THE DIGNITY OF A FROCK OOAT.

"I WAST SOMEBODY TO WALK HOME WITH ME.”