Show an atam dished story by HAROLD CARTER copyright 1915 by W 0 chapman if 11 john ay ayre re were to leave me arl said d fitton co 1 I don t know what hat I 1 should do co was henry ruton the famous publisher ile he had started in tho business five years before with a capital of a thousand dollars and his record since then had bad been one of con tenuous success many publishers stated elated that they desired only literary merit la in their productions duct ions and not big names but henry fitton meant it ho he had bad brought halt half a doyen new authors to the front ile ho nas as alays represented on the list of best sellers dut but john ayre ayr aas the cause of his bis success ayra vaa mas his bis head bead reader and appeared pear d omniscient ayre had never lot let a masterpiece slip through his bis fingers ile he had an intuitive instinct wh which ach told him whenever a novel submitted tn to tho the firm waa mas going to sue c eed aare A re seemed able to plumb the depths of the human heart in manuscripts be repts but not in life aare As re said eald fitton co one dayo day I 1 wish you were a mixer I 1 id d take you into the firm but you aren arent t you are only a mixer in theory I 1 wish you were the sort eort of follow fellow who could put a little personality into your work make good impressions and build up the business I 1 guels im only cut out to be a reader answered john ayre you re a darned good one anyhow said aaton co and that was as true ayro had picked that little schoolgirl manuscript from arkansas which every ry publisher but I had bad rejected ile he had spotted its human qualities he had bad punctuated and revised it and it had bad sold into three hundred thousand coplea copies ile he had taken that illiterate cowboy tale with its marvelous realism and changed chanced the title rewriting most of g this ayre the book except the descriptions ile he had bad changed tho the hero into a heroine and her blondo blonde hair and it a fancy name 1 ahat I hat book had sold to the ex tent ol 01 0 to hundred and fifty thou thoa sand ayro ft as a mystery HeNas he vi as anian a man of thirty five had given him n job out of pity four years biafore the man an looked halt half insane lie ile seemed to have been through some iii mental stress which had changed his nature fitton had bad suspected him of drinking dut but A are re never touched liquor and inside of a year be as head bead reader about a N eek titter after Ull remarks aro A re brought him bim a manuscript it mas as written aith ith the pen a thing bould have condemned it in nine offices out of ten it vas inas in a hand baud and it was tied with ith pink ribbon a thing aich would liar leavo e killed its cli chances ances in III nineteen offices out of tiN twenty erity for usually one can tell tho the apo of mind that produces letlon from tho the appearance of the eton stor NIli hf tta ats this ayre ayra inquired the publisher A good story mr antton an the reader from a oung woman oman in washington I 1 am lorn coni hellod to tell aou ou that it Is likely to lo be tho success of the season NN fly by coin compelled polled 1 ayre aaret because I 1 nant to ask you riot not to accept a pt it sir a ir answered ansu ered ayre and saw that he be nas tr trembling emblin 9 aro are left the manuse tipton on fitt pattona 0 12 0 desk and walked unsteadily anay aay atton looked after him in some aston ashment ish ment then being himself no mean judge of the alue balue of a book he turned to the books book s perusal ile iia NN waa as fascinated by it it was indeed a etory in a million but hen tie he reached the end he ait san as he sup posed why hy ayro ayre had objected to its acceptance it was as indefinite he took the manuscript to his bis reader 1 I see nhat m hat you mean ayre he said we iab a splendid story bit bil 1 it orne come to an end the couple quarrel and the tirl girl turns him dosu beirs aft afterward erard she realizes that she bas ban always jwj loved loire dUr the mia aa she to la too i i proud to go to him but she bhe writes a letter which remains unanswered so she puts her love into a book out but the story ends with ith the publication of 0 the book it a story but it a life answered ayre ril ill send it back said bald fitton wondering de ring at ayres ayrea strange manner 1111 v rite the girl that its a good book but we e can caa t accept it in view of the conclusion however before the letter and manuscript had been mailed fitton re c calved ived a visit from the author in per son A very pretty young woman of about tn twenty enty five camo into his office she attracted his interest immediately Y less leaa on account of 0 her beauty than from the character la in her face I 1 I 1 called about my manuscript she said a little timidly ali ah yeal yes sit down miss raymond answered the publisher I 1 the fact is I 1 have a letter in the stenographers hands bands at present ad dressed to you your book is wonderful lut cut it la is inconclusive I 1 life Is in inconclusive answered the girl and for a moment it seemed odd to fitton that ayre had used almost the same expression you bring your couple upon the scene excellently said bald we were greatly impressed the setting is superb in fact miss raymond your novel has the staging of a great success but it end W what hat end there la is is we dou don t refuse to consider tragedy but at least tile the ending must be made clear now in your book the heroine simply con fides her sorrows borrows to a book trusting that the lover will III see it and realize her feelings which shyness prevented her from expressing it aou ou could charile change the end ahe girl smiled wearily 1 I will think it over mr niton I 1 she che answered I 1 hope you will replied the publisher because our reader mr john ayre thinks highly of it but here he Is coming into my office now alsa Rayni raymond ond I 1 want you and mr mir arreto have a good talk ile he ceased tor for the girl had suddenly straightened herself and was mas looking at ayre with the strangest expression upon her face the publisher had only once seen such a look and that was at the same time for its answer was on the face of his head I 1 leader eader ile he looked at them in astonishment and then he understood and because he was human as aa well as a publisher he went nent discreetly out and left them in his bis office together when ten minutes later he be ven aured back he knocked cautiously before entering ile he heard beard a hasty movement within john ayre and allas raymond were standing opposite each other beside the desk and the look on the face of each one made the publishers publisher s heart very happy for he loved john in spite of lite his odd ways nays mr fitton I 1 have persuaded aliss raymond to change her ending said eald john yes answered the girl slowly for you see I 1 know the sequel now fitton s hand descended hard on johns shoulder john he said ald it if the sequel proves a success I 1 in going to take you into partnership I 1 believe you will aill develop the qualities of a mixer after all |