Show One Wonderful Week by byc byC C S Forester Service Copyright ht by Dobbs Merrill Co THE STORY Harold Norman twenty twenty twenty ty four bank clerk lives his great aunt Matilda When the war came cam ho he entered a traIn traIn- trainIng train train-Ine In Ing school chool for At da da s OJ death Harold HarDld Is I left penni pennI- pennIless penniless penniless less lIe II gets work In a bank CHAPTER Continued I-Continued I Continued 4 Tint That was six years rears ago find and now nt at the age of or twenty five his salary had climbed slowly Iy for forging past the simultaneous fall resultant upon the lie fall In the cost of living to the splendid splendid splendid did figure of two hundred and twenty pounds a year Harold had emer emerged fd from his ordeal a great deal ol older er with a smaller opinion of himself than ever obsessed with a shuddering fear of unemployment and with Ith one fixed grim purpose In his mind That was as never to find himself ln ag Esen en during the first few months of his new employment with his ward wardrobe wardrobe wardrobe robe to expand and only three pounds a week eel to live on Harold had bad saved money Nowadays s he Used lived Ih ed rather bet better ter but he still saved sl mone money He al allowed allowed allowed lowed himself to go to the theater but ne never neer er more often than once a fort fortnight fortnight night lie He occasionally lly bought books bools but only out of the four shillings a 11 week which remained as a surplus In his weekly budget after he had al allowed lowed 10 d for or his weekly bill his its clothes his fares and the ten shillings he In invariably Invariably variably saved sa Harold owned now more than a hundred pounds In W W r Savings certificates safe In the strom room of the National County bankA bank banI bankA A chance encounter with a school schoolmate schoolmate schoolmate I mate Norton orton orton In a tea te shop four years ago 10 led up to the Inevitable What Ire re vou dOID now had ended In I Id Herold Harolds s joining the Morley Park rI Parklawn I awn n Tennis club At the time It had h seemed to Harold to be the most economical solution of the problem Dt of how bo boto to spend the long sum summer men mer evenings e and Saturdays and Sundays s in winter Inter for the whole su subscription winter Inter and summer was w only five pounds a year But constant tennis playing had borne fruit in a passion to excel In the game I Ia a a passion p never neer ne er It seemed to be gratified Harold was fated never to he a good tennis player Had not orton I orton just beaten him G GO 0 0 G- G GIn G 2 in the first round of the open singles So o walked from the lie gate gite ot of Fell View to the door of ot rell Mew Siew lew He Lie was as dressed In a neat suit of soft blue Beige with a block stripe he wore sore a n neat t gray felt hat and neat black shoes and socks and tie In his Ills hand was his tennis had hac has containing neatly packed his tennis racket pipe Flayed dayed shoes slices In In a cloth bag so as ns not to soil soli the other con contents contents contents tents white shirt trousers and socks s On his upper lip was a scrubby dark darl mustache which he wore although he did not admit It It to assure himself that he was gro grown gron n up despite mom mem orles ones of great aunts and anel casual ward ard officials He tie let himself into Fell View with his latchkey hung his lint hat on Its 0 own n special peg and md climbed upstairs to the second foor front which was v the top floor front anti and entered his room On the other bed beds bedwas bedwas was s spra sprawled led the pudding iced faced fel fellow fellow low so Harold called him mentally ha hating Ing long ago given gl up the effort of tr trying Ing to remember the names nimes of his roommates tes with hl his hands behind hl his head he and a cigarette in his mouth and und a toe protruding from his sod sock Hullo said whose hose real name was as 0 Owen en Hullo said Harold He fie proceeded across e the room and begin began tenderly to unpack his tennis ba bah bag Trousers and shirt neatly folded were ere put into inte Int the second drawer dra r socks Into the lie small rl right ht hind hand drawer dr then his tennis racket in its mad In Intosh case tenderly Into Its press Tennis rackets cost money and bo so alwa always s clamored for attention watched him with Ith hardly wiled veiled repulsion Good lord lummel lumme I said Pudding face ace And And did he lie have a u nice game gume of tennis this evenin evening Not ot so bad nd answered ered Harold gaz z gazing ing into the mirror an and readjusting re his parting Glad of ot that said Ce ice t like hike to hear that hut mummy s little darling hadn't enjoyed himself himself nd nd ind then lien he comes straight home like a good little boy nn an puts his things I iway wa tidily Harold did not deign to reply In intend tend te he lie took tool out his brushes andt and sat t low 10 n to clean his hoe shoes In readiness or the morning subsided finished his hib shoe cleaning le Ie 1001 ed at hi lets his watch Only nine nine- nine Ills His regular bedtime was nut not notI I II ten n He lie could not face tace nn an I hi t i hour and nd a n quarter of or Pud iud ling I lees lee's society he be did not feel fed he lie wanted to go KO down to the uncomfortable able drawing room with a book boob But ut there thue was still sUII one refuge open to him himlie himlie lie gathered together his pajamas and dressing gown sown and towel vel and To went ent away downstairs to the bathroom Baths cost only a penny at Fell rell View Slew lew which was as one of the rea re reasons sons ons why hy Harold had stayed there for forthe or fh the e years continuously lIe He put his penny In the slot lighted the geyser and while hUe the water was running Into the bath tb be he undressed primly Then he climbed Into the bath and wallowed In comfort scrambling up to turn turnoff turnoff turnoff off the water when It began to run cold o the fading out of the gas cas as In fa Inthe fathe the geyser keyser He Ile was alone and corn com perhaps alone and therefore comfortable would be ns as accurate think thank God had bone kone to tobe tobed tobed be bed and was noisily asleep on his back when hen Harold returned to his hll room Ho lie tiptoed about the room hl his clothes on his chair and hanging up Ills dressing gown then he switched s off oft the light and climbed Into bed Perhaps the reason why he was asleep In a few minutes was wa because he found nothing remarkable In his day as he looked back on It Break Break- Breakfast Breakfast renk- renk fast at eight leave the house at twee twenty tweety twenty ty minutes to nine The Dally News In a crowded train Three and one one- one half half tours ours solitary work ork on his lone lone- tone hand hand Job with the deposit ledgers An eleven penny lunch In a tea shop Three hours further work worl Not rot Not quite so concentrated nor so Interesting A Acro cro crowded ded train home Dinner Four lost sets at tennis A spotty faced aced roommate who na nagged ged worse orse than a wife A bath nut But Harold larold was 8 distressed about none ot of these things They were ere the way ay of the world or It if not not then there were ere things which were decidedly worse orse Harold larold w was w ts not unhappy or orIf orIf orIf If he were he did not know now it It He rolled over on to his other side just justas justas as sleep overtook him him and for once his hair was tousled and his face fuce had lost its sharp old maid lines Then it was that a watchful Destiny set her machinery m In full s swing sIng Ing sum summoning summoning moning forward motor cars and revo and Balkan nallan schemers and financial magnates and gunmen and secretaries of ot state and weeping heroines drunken fathers all for forthe forthe forthe the prospective bedazzlement of liar Har Harold I old Norman orman He lIe had h never ne kissed Is I ed a n girl In to his life his wildest excitement for six years ye had been n a Shaw first night his greatest test happi happl happiness happiness ness had tI 1 en the unique occasion when the Branch Dranch books s balanced be- be before before be before fore six o 0 clock one New 1 tears s es e ee e Destiny decided It was as time for a change And who shall say y that Destiny s judgment was at fault CHAPTER II Thursday The ne next net t evening Harold ate his six Ix o'clock dinner as usual at roll Pell View As Usual he left the dining room at sip sl thirty packed ed hi his tennis bag and walked placidly round to the Morley Park ParI 1 Tennis lennis club dub He Oe strolled light heartedly Into the p took ofT off his hat in deference to the two or three white frocked damsels sitting there and passed p through to the mens mena dressing room There was w a match arranged for this e evening Morley Park ParI being at home to a nel neighboring club but matches matdies did not Interfere with Harold He Ie changed Into his spotless funnels flannels hanging his day clothes on the hool hooks and then racket r under arm cool comfortable comfort and ancl with anticipations of an nn eve eve- evenings s moderate ite exercise e he strolled out to the veranda ver whither Norton Horton h 11 preceded him rive he rh e of the team Norton Norton two men and two girls were standing together discussing the lie prospect Harold cat at at down In n a deck chair to weft wait to be awl a 1 ed to join n 11 four Nortons Norton's voice suddenly became audible By ny George theres there's old e ene's nes ne's just the sort of obliging chap we went want nt Hell nell go I T m sure surp Norton came toward him with all the assurance nce of a Singles SIngle Ch confident In his five feet ten and In Inthe inthe the beaming smile which had won a ay away away way y for him into more hearts than Norton orton could now count Marjorie Marjoric Clarence t turned up yet old she man man she s playing third couple for us tonight and tonight and we were ere wondering If It you would mind going round and bucking her up It Its s two r to se seven seen en and we ought to be starting She only uses lives Ih es In crescent Will you old man mell be Horton orton TO BE nE CO 1 |