Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 121: what you’re looking at

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

SOFT MONEY. ‘““Hlow are you getting on?” the latter inquired. ‘“ Fine! I had no trouble playing; he was just getting up a game. Really, old man, I think you are wrong about him. Nobody with seventy-five thousand dollars’ worth of stolen jewelry on his person could be so care-free and contented as he seems. He is playing a peach of a game, and I ‘assure you he is not dealing off the bot- tom, or trying any tricks?” * “ How would you know? You are in the game. I tell you I saw him cheat the other day.” “We're taking an awful chance in trying to hold him up. I’ve got cold feet. It’s worrying me so I am losing money.” ‘I can stand it. You stick in the game, and join him again after dinner.”’ “Did you see Miss Thomas?” “Why,” explained Rod in some embar- rassment, ‘‘I met her accidentally in the library and talked to her a while. Then her mother swooped down on us and dragged her away. I assure you I didn’t try to find her.” ‘“Tt’s a darn shame to tie me up in here while you are out making good with my girl.” ‘““ How do you get that way?” demanded Rod in exasperation. “She isn’t your girl.” “Well, I love her.” ~ “arn it, so do I.” He caught himself in amazement when the words slipped out. Howard’s declaration had drawn his. It had not occurred to him to analyze his feelings for Gertrude, but now he knew that he had spoken the truth; he did love the girl, had loved her from the moment he had seen her turning away from him as the ship passed the Statue of Liberty. ‘That was why he had‘suffered so keenly during his incarceration; why he had spent so much of his days and nights thinking about her. Even when he was proclaiming his detestation of her abominable conduct he actually had been yearning for her, al- though he did not know it. Howard had turned mean. ‘You love her! Fat chance you’ve got, with your big hands and feet and the way you wear your clothes. Catch a Wellesley 431 College girl falling for a hick from Otamie, Oklahoma!”’ Rod winced because he feared what the boy had said was true, and he recognized that it was drawn forth by the more or less honorable emotion of jealousy. “Td make the girl a better husband than you would,” he retorted, “ but 1 suppose your airs and graces would be preferred by any woman to what I’ve got to offer.” “Your money won’t do you any good © here,” Howard continued, following up his advantage. ‘“‘ She’s got oodles of it, and she is in society. Why, she’d laugh herself sick at the idea of you falling in love with her.” “Hey, Campbell, come back here,” called Higginson. The hand had been com- pleted. “I won’t charge those remarks against you because you are Jealous,” said Rod slowly. ‘ But they were rotten, just the same.” ‘Sorry, old man,” Howard declared, pat- ting him on the arm. “I’m jealous, all right. Forget what I said. You are a better man than I am.” His quick change of mood was not ac- tuated by self-interest this time, but by one of those decent reactions which made him so likable. However, the poison had been adminis- tered. Rod sat in an agony of self-abase- ment. How absurd he had been to try to cultivate the liking of such a girl as Ger- trude. She was worlds above him in every way. He was not handsome, quick-witted and debonair like Campbell. She had been very sorry for him, and that was all there was to it. He lounged about in the smoke room, getting into desultory conversation with several smokers until dinner time. Rod had become accustomed to the continual drink- ing, and not infrequent drunkenness, of the Durania’s smoke room. Men and women were continually coming in for drinks, sit- ting about half an hour, going out and giv- ing place to others. The stewards were al- ways flitting about serving white wine and red liquor. Convinced as he was of the rightness of prohibition, the excessive drinking on the | ship only strengthened his opinion. He did oO cComicbooks:co