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Show POLLY WANTS A BACKER : : : .: By Dorothy De Jagers 1- ; birds oa th msntel and tbe parchment ehade filled our decorator with sudden pity for poor Angelica Kaufman's ornamental . endeavors. Honey continued, however, In musing dis-astlsfsctinn dis-astlsfsctinn at the door. Suddenly ah straightened. "Of rourae! Of course! A live parrot in a reed floor care. Why didn't I think of thia before?" And on the following Sunday Greshsm arrived. Honey, unusually decoratire in a bronsa frock aha bad finished at S :21 that morning, net in the parlor of the boarding house a nice-looking chap, dark and smootb-shsven, smootb-shsven, with a startling atreak of white threaded through blue-black hair. In him, you or I would hare aeen a well-groomed, a well-poised, energetie Individual a lire-wire, lire-wire, capable of taking a buiineas on Ita last legs, not caring if these legs were I'hyf or cabriole, and putting It on (ts feet again ; equally unconcerned whether these latter were ball-and-claw or not. We would hava liked him. Bo did Honey. On tha way op to their rooms, for hata to go to the apartment, apart-ment, she gars the sister an ecstatic hag. "Jans I Why didn't you tell ma ha bad that Whistler feather?" The bank secretary stared bark question-Ingly. question-Ingly. Then groping associations permitted : "Oh, you mean that whits streak In his bsir? He's hsd it all hia life. Curious, Isn't It?" "Curious!" Honey rejected the adjective. "I think it's simply wonderful. It gives ths right note to his fsce." Arrived at ths apartment Ores ham waa bound In bla praise. Honev flowed. "But don't to. i . certain lack?" Greaham surveyed the court windows disapprovingly, dis-approvingly, "lea, fresh air," was his decision. de-cision. "I suppose " ss hs pushed back ths taffeta hsngings to ventilate ths room "Jane's told you I'm one of thoss oxygen fiends. " "No, what I meant was " Honey recaptured re-captured her subject, "thst ths decorative scheme simply cries out for a live parrot In a reed rage, you know." Hera Jane offered a warning. "Oh I" but Ignoring it, tha man groaned. "A live parrot 1" Firmly he ahook hia head. "No, please. I'm sorry, but I've alwaya hated the things. Ones when I had typhoid " "Tea, I know," Honey anticipated Impatiently, Im-patiently, "but that waa a squawky, disagreeable dis-agreeable sort. There are parrots and parrots, par-rots, you know I" "Do you know, Don," was Jans's Immediate Im-mediate comment, "I'm wondering if, sfter all, you were delirious when yon cursed that parrot so expressively during that typhoid spell?" and Greshsm had ths grsee to blush. Honey, however, said nothing. Crushed and ailent she sat crushed under the conviction that Whistler feathers may be rooted In the moat birdlike intelligences. Poor llttle Honey T How could it serve to speak of the principles of balance or the harmony of appointments In a situation where balance meant ths figures in a bankbook and id- -TTONORIA KEMT, "Honey," for abort. AT. bad been born aa retribution into a Penosylranla family whose Idea of interior decoration waa having a sore throat painted , with Iodine. She begin to function aa chastening Influence about . the time cosy corners started cushioning themselves into the angles of otherwise self-respecting rooms. During this period Honey's tendencies. Bow sharpened by a coarse In spplied arts and rrsfts, tried to slip a few Sheraton atandarda Into her ewn household, but It seemed futile. For ber mother, little mem-, ber of the mnp-and-bmom sisterhood, looked upon furniture merely ss oak and birch battlefields where dust wss dsily doomed to defeat; and her three unitarian brothers viewed beds In relation to snores, snd round tables ss unlmportsnt accessories to square meals. It waa Bill, the eldest, a rubber-tire rubber-tire salesmen by day and a vaudeville patron pa-tron by night, whs ssld : "Now look here. Honey, our humble home may be furnished In early Pullman and late North German Lloyd, but It'a comfortable. 80 why not confine your Interior desecration to your own boudoir?" Which shs did. But at the end of fortnight, when the upholstered horrors there hsd been pslnted and eretonned Into "'-Trianon effects, her artistic conscience again drove ber downstairs. Hers, during the family's absence, shs did some dsring things to the Grand Rapids antlquea, and succeeded In dragging a green Morris chair to the attic. But the value of every amelioration, amelio-ration, however, waa canceled by the ferment fer-ment It evoked. Once only was there Co- shs objected to the treatment of ths wslls. Mrs, Kemp snd Bill concurred, voicing a etiarp protest to Horace, the youngest, about scribbling numbers on ths psnel by ths phone. can see by this, een't you, bow l-L Honey's styls wss cramped? Stronger and stronger grew her conviction that the decorator, like ths prophet, must earner his honors from fields sfar. Naturally she anticipated an-ticipated remonstrance, but the confession f New York smbltions raised but negligible discouragement. Bill, indeed, grew curiously curi-ously mellow, and presented aa a parting gift an elaborate desk set, featuring an im-. im-. practicable pen with a sweeping blue quill. 1st, on tbs morning of departure he pleaded a beadsrhs aa an excuse for not going to ths train. It waa with moving tenderness, however, how-ever, that he clasped sister la hia manly arms. Bo what matters It if, as they drove off, sister hsd a glimpse through sn attic window of these same arma clasped tenderly around a green Morris chair, drsfgiug it from oblivion? And now while oar decorator Is en ronts to ths big city, let us consider ber mors Intimately -Sh was, la 4h first place,-a- highly decorative unit herself; small, animated, ani-mated, agile, with akin tinted Ilka peach-bloom peach-bloom porcelain of ths Khang-Hl period and crtnkledy bronsa hair. In New York shs found a boarding house kept by a gentlewoman with a rich mAhog- any Inheritance, and It was a console-table la tha hall that decided its eligibility. Whan, a week later, aa lH-nourlshed stomach Bade disparaging comparisons between boarding-house far and home rations, Honey's eye, refreshing Itself In the tints of the Staffordshire ea ths sideboard, silenced it sternly. She had decided ts apprentice herself to some reputable Arm until that day when Honorta Kemp, consulting decorator, ahoald gfld an upper Fifth avenue window; bat even with tricky eyebrows and a finely grained aversion to Morris chairs, this wss not so simple. For two months shs met only diaeoorsgement 1 but at length the gods meaning the household gods, of course smiled, and she became associated with Telle, Inc. Here ah learned many things. FEIOM thia point, ear heroin advanced rapidly to ths stags where she could spring "rococo" and "motif" with an airy grace thst covered the A. E. F. accent. And by these two terms shall ys know the true artist. Tells, however, Ignored ths slg-nificsnce, slg-nificsnce, keeping her still on shsdes, eush-loss eush-loss snd ether minor aaessseiiss t the Howie - -. Beautiful. At first genius- !)ttt 1ls!(' In this restricted realm. But after a while shs grew reetlvs began be-gan craving some wider field for her fancy, some field wherein a grouping of varied ksrmonles might justify mention of tout ensemble, for this is another term succulent to ths decorator's tongue. And It waa to Jane Greaham, a woman at ths bosrding bouse, thst this discontent vented Itself often est. Jsns wss secretary to the president presi-dent of a sank, and as unlike Honey as nesslble. support, asrss, dletltisa sad bathing st . tends nt of a a abhorred parrot worked It 1 wsy Into her consciousness, but before shs could react outwardly Qrsshaaa bad bright- . ' ened, and a nets of bopefnlasss qalvered labia la-bia query: "They srs short-lives', yoa 1-. say?" ' BROWN ELL roes to take ths wrapped cage Irons the maid, and. In passing, gsvs ths other aa awkward pat of reassurance. reassur-ance. "Don't yon worry about that, young man. Average age of parrot la seventy. Some hsvs lived to be ninety. With food care, this little beggar ought to be wltk , yea for lift- years, anyway." A gesture of futility expressed Itself la Gresham's reach for bla bat. Then droop- Ingly hs followed Honey Into ths ball. Hers the usual terminating amenities were observed, but In tha act of opening aa outer door, Brownell baited bla salesman- ' ager. "Greaham," be said, "been think- . Ing about some of your schemes. Good Idess A In 'em. Hedges, ths general msneger. Is leaving next month, you know. Wouldn't .-. be surprised It you stepped la bis shoes." .,- Greshsm stared. After a moment he . succeeded In assembling a few broken sen- fences of gratification; but unity and roll ro-ll cranes felled to establish themselves aatU " , . they had reached tha atdewalk. "General saleamanager," he mused. "Thst means fifteen thousand a year, little ' decorator person." ,c Now, sceordinc to all tbs laws of causa and effect. Honey should hare beta transported trans-ported to the beadiest heights, having es- lahllihsd Hml"H r - """r -in " ,. , York with nsw prosperity and a decorative parrot; yet It waa a sharp sense of failure .,. that held her ailent through the trip to -New York. For a consideration ( bet . rompanlon'a rosy future served only to re- r. mind ber that never once bad be elicited any desire to Include ber la It. . , . PROBABLY be hsted ber, hated ber sub-terfugs sub-terfugs about Brownell and ber parrot persistencies. A sudden resentment against . ths feathered pet In the seat turned to them roused fierce sod reckless parrotcJdai Impulsea In bar. "I wonder," ah arastd grimly, "what weald hsppem If yea fed , em chlckweed and parsley?" Yet the artistic consetoasnesa Is a per- . slstent thing. Polly, unwrapped and eta- tloned between the windows, pre red It. For . so sdequstely did sbs fulfill ber rnamentai - obligation as to fori' a thrill of satisfaction satisfac-tion front Honey's depths oi despair. "Oh, Don," she crowed, "won't bs. he . ' ' it iicrfer? In tseil rcrd esse?". .. Greaham took of bla bat and cam to , her with a disturbing gravity. "Honey," ... , said he. Ignoring the parrot, "Honey, ... wouldn't yoa wouldn't you liks to do a .'.' some oOoui ; o'wa ours, I mean?". Honey gars a little gasp. Then her sye flamed. Orloa-brlght, under quisled, brows. "I'd love to." ah said simply, , and Greshsm took her la bis arms. "I'v been caring tor sgss" the wbl - per lost Itself la crinkles of brans hair "but I wssn't In a position to ask ysa until -I knsw Just whsre I stood." Nsw that things are settled oh, dear little decorator person " He took ber face In one hand, and then. Just aa he was about to collect hia Just deserts, there came from the cage a loud "Harumph!"' Hurtled, the lovers drew apart.' Greaham Grea-ham took a minatory step toward the pet a step fraught with parsley and chlckweed promises, but Honey blocked his path with a chair. Then gently, pushing him Into It, she drew up a reed stool. "Of courss, dearest," wss ber contribution, after several sev-eral moments dedlcstsd to Rome -snd-Juliet business, "I always want to go oa with my decoration. I mean. Just study snd keep up. Good taste, yoa know " "Harumph!" ram from the motif la between be-tween the windows. Both Ignored It crush-Ingly crush-Ingly this tlms, and after a pause Honey went on curiously : "By the way, Don, 1 just what does the Acme Manufacturing ' Company make, anyway?" "Ob, lots of things," Greshsm told her, "but our biggest line Is toothpicks." - "Toothpicks?" Bounded eyes repudleted ' ' the testimony svr- preltf.y ijtorssst 'ear. "' . 'Toothpicks !' Homrbow I feel it ss Insult ts your la-telligence la-telligence 10 report the writhing reset 10 s of ths artistic nature confronted wltk this srch enemy of good taate. It waa unthinkable unthink-able like attaining one's castles la Spain ' and finding them furnished with cuspidors. Dully ths decorator aat for long moment si st Isst an excited working of the eyebrow ' . . proclaimed the birth of an art-noaveau refinement. re-finement. "Oh. darling, listen!" she en-Joined, en-Joined, and confided her scheme. Gresham's first response was a laugb which he contrived to cover with a cough. "Oh. little girl, thst's Impossible I" a begged off. "But you've got to manage It !" with ad the firmness which bad established Pally among the Lares and I'enates. Then fol- They wers on a glassed-in veranda, wholly aurrounded by parrot parrot larg and small, caged and nncaged, vivid and subdued "crab I'v ever known. I'v been scenting sctivs antagonism for weeks, and last night I decided, unless conditions chsngs shortly, to pack up my prophylactic and return to Chicago. The position there, of courss. Is less Important, but ths office la staffed with human beings, at least." "But don't yoa think you ought to give Mr. Brownell a better trial?" She caught hia arm Impulsively. "Won't you wait three months, anyway, and are If things don't chsnge?" Greshsm looked down Into the lifted ap-pesl ap-pesl of her face, and ahould hare found therein many Inducements to keep the young man out of the West. Aa expresses expres-ses sigh escaped hire aa bs took off his hat; but Honey hesrd It not. For just tbsn an impious gust of air atlrrlng the Whistler feather brimmed ber with a aenss of ths Injustice of convention that granta to July sephyra liberties denied to Impulsive Impul-sive deeoratore. "Perhaps you're Tight," she heard Greshsm agree at length, and found her band tucked under his arm as they rose to go. Yet even thia concession failed to lift .' her spirit. All ths-neM. -jsrent around aa cut up as the msruuetry table 4n which shs worked. It wss sbout noon thst Mrs. Oreille came to view the shads Honey hsd designed. 80 voluble, so eloquent elo-quent wss the enthu'lsim evoked ss to lead Honey Into a description of Creabam'a Interior, with a brief report of the parrot pursuit. Obviously wss Mrs. Orvllls intrigued. polntment Implied merely business engagements? engage-ments? r1 WAS then that Greaham spoke In a tone that sued pardon for hia regrettsble obsession. "Personally," hs ssid, "I think -ths plscs Is perfect Just as It Is." Yet even this felled to soothe the wounded decorstlv sensibilities; It wss Jane Instead who offered: "With or without Polly, It'a lovely. And now, good people," aha rose with sgility, "I have an interior declaration It'a time to eat. Where do we go?" Ths Clsremont wss ultimately chosen as ths most effective antidote against Michigan boulevard complacencies; and here, at a table that framed glorious aweepa of ths river below, Greshsm proved so gracious ss to make up for bis ornithological obstinacies. Indeed, each course seemed to flavor mors richly his highly spiced relish of ths occasion, snd by ths tlms ths sslsd came Honey could no longer resist ths advantags of tbs mood. Adroitly she turned the conversation con-versation from carrots to parrots. It serves no purpose to Inventory her arguments, but' this must be said : If Polly wanted a backer, be found a peerleaa one in the decorator. Only instead of stressing the pet ss a motif this time, sbs emphasized ita importance to Jiet,jlrilna, AmtjMon at Vails, J so. Rs- -ton the flow it her eloquence the most firmly woven prejudice would have been aa Inadequate as a guest towel on a Saturday night. The man'a surrender was inevitable; snd ths "All right" with which hs pushed bsck his coffee, waa utterly resigned. NOW, the parrot quotstlona In blrdstoree proved to bs so dlxiylng as to routs Honey's pursuit of Polly vis ths sdrertisfng columns. Hence esch Saturday afternoon from the Inarticulate tongue. The president presi-dent of the Acme Manufacturing Company grew surprisingly boyish, unbellevsbly chstty. Throughout, Greehom's smssement became Incresslngly evident, snd bis "By Jove 1 How Interesting !" st the conclusion was surely a tribute to the polyejilsblc eloquence rsthrr than to Polly herself, BROWNELL, nevertheless. expanded under the approval and turned amlilngly to Honey'a murmur: "Mrs. Orvllls'a friend said you sometimes sold one. Mr. Greshsm" Gres-hsm" Indicating the subdued green bird "would love to buy this one.' The poor sslesuianiiger stood muted by the code which forbids a gentleman's calling call-ing a lady a liar; but Into this silence bis superior broke with: "Gsd. Creehsm! Why didn't you tell me parrots wers your hobby?" Then he turned to bis collection col-lection with a musing. "Ilsrumph! Don't usually part with my pets. Wouldu't, only to somebody who loved ths littls beggara. as I do. Alsiut this one wait till 1 see. . Went to speak to my daughter." . Afts hs. Isft.- lissslisss .sssssd aaainst the porch railing dWonsola'tely. This tin-" utanence of acquisition seemed' to have sharpened his parrot prejudice Into active expression. The distaste In his face wss tinged with something spprnachiiig fright. "Honeyt" be begged frenxirdly, "do you think it'a fair to thia household pet to drag It from a boms where it'a getting the best of csre, snd " "Oh, silly, they require very little cere." "Well, unless you hsve a stand-In with the 8. P. '. A. you've got to feed the things now and then ; and suppose it geta sick on me?" "Oh, all they need is a cracker occasionally," occasion-ally," was Honey's airy Sfsursnce; "snd they're frightfully healthy, I understand." The owner's return prohibited further discussion. "Bird's yours, Grehin," hs snnounceil mugnsnlmously, with the msn-ner msn-ner nf Cornells psrtlng with one of her jewels. A twenty minutes' ride brought them to ths right number, and Honey wss oat snd. up ths steps of an old-fashioned brick bouse before Gresham had even slighted. It waa a maid who answered her ring snd showed them Into aa old-fashioned parlor. "Isn't It atlcky In here?" hs complslned. "I wish somebody 'd Invent a system of ventilation to keep a room sixty degrees summer and winter " He started as a dry "Harumph" sounded In ths hsll. Almost Al-most Immediately there entered a chilling old gentleman with sn apathetic eye framed in steel-rlmmed glssses the president of the Acme Msnufscturing Compsny. Greshsm gssped. "Why, Mr. Brownell, I had no Idea " Sternly he turned to Honey, but that young woman launched Into a hurried Identification of herself, ber sponsor snd her rrsnd. WHEN she hsd finished, their host directed di-rected them to dropsical chslrs. "You say Gresham wants a parrot?" His speech was labored, jerky, and periodical pauses gave the -effect of being Interspaced by, dskbes. Then, turning to study hia sales-... nianagcr-ctirlously, be went on: "Didn't know you were keen about parrots." Ths latter gave a hollow laugh, which Honey hastened to cover with : "Mrs. Or-vitle's Or-vitle's friend tells me you have some marvelous mar-velous bird. Mayn't we see them?" There wss s brief silence. Then the president of the Acme Msnufscturing Compsny Com-psny rose slowly snd . led tbem Into the hsll, where Honey mnnsged to whisper contritely con-tritely : "Don, please don't nilsnnderatsnd. 1 knew who he wss from the first, but I thought ou too might get together, if you could know bi'n outside the office. I " It wss Gresbsm's turn st sn inscrutnbls look. The effect wss. thsnks to stat'onsry eyebrows, luors succesful then Honey'a, yec the grim commissure of bis llie might hsvs been construed ss tbe conviction thst sn Interior decorator la capable of anything. By this tiuie they were on a glassed-la veranda wholly surrounded by parrots .srrots Isrze snd small, caged and uncaged, un-caged, vivid ard eulsliied. It was to a plump product of tbe tropics, feathered In harmonious greens, thst Honey sued Instinctively. In-stinctively. "What a perfectly cunning one! Just the right shadings! Where did you ever find so msn ?' This to Hrownell. "All oier I lie world," he announced rather promlly. and the - additional queries this elicited drew -from liini uttliustely s ptrrot autoblMgraptiy. V: ' It seemed as a boy he hsd run off to sea. and It ass In North Africa that he first took Poll) to his bosom. . This hapiiened to be a Munt-talled specimen which developed de-veloped attributes so antldotul against seasickness sea-sickness and bomesif-knese aa to endeur tbe whole feathered tribe to the runaway, fcvery port thereafter, accordingly, yielded him at least two of Ita aperies. At one time, he said, hia collection bad included kakapoa or owl -parrots from New Zealand, hat-parrots or- lorikeets from India, macaws ma-caws from Paraguay and parrakeeta from Australia. There followed then a few highly colored adventures In which Polly and her backer bad figured ; and gradually reminiscence lit the tires of youth In tbe apslbtic eye loosened, too, the slisckles - "Let me see!" she murmured. "I've s friend who knows a psrrot fsm-ler with doxens of every vsriety. He might let you hsve one. Anywsy, phone me tomorrow to-morrow snd I'll hsvs his nsine snd address.' ad-dress.' THE parrot fancier. It seemed, had his being and bla Polllea out In a tang Island suburb; and it waa on the train that Gresham traitorously suggested turning the sojourn Into s bsck -to -nsturs movement, with perhaps s picnic lunch assembled from some village store. With her noblest st-tempt st-tempt st sn lnscrutabls look Honey silenced hitu, snd conversation languished until they alighted at a formal little depot. The day was charming, the July sun tempered by a vsporish trestment of eo halt-blue halt-blue sky snd rose-madder sky. To the right stretched veiled woods done In lovely Jsde greens snd bister browns, with cleared '-space here and there lending restfulnesa to tbe composition. Greshsm's eve, wistfully wist-fully lost In these persuasive vistas, turned tys companion's glance In the same direction; direc-tion; appreciatively she marked how a frilled cloud in one corner of fata veil contributed con-tributed just the right note to the deco-ra'ive deco-ra'ive scheme. Truant impulses stirred In her. but resolutely she wheeled, with s movement indicsting, perhsis, that shs wss a dscorstor first and nature lover afterward. after-ward. It was then Graham sfs.ke dully. "There's a garage," he said. "We'd better taxi out." He stsrted off for ths swinging - sign snd in three mioutes wss bsck in a isr. Honey's brief directions to the chsuf-feur chsuf-feur seemed I pruvs intelligible, snd off they rolled. shs couriered ber client through all the parrot parishea lying between Brooklyn and the Bronx. It wss ens Sunday during this period thst shs snd Jsns hsd contrived a dinner over at the apartment, after which the letter's plea of a headache apeeded Honey and Gresham to the park. Here, on a bench by the lake, the man'a troubled countenance suggested something on bis mini other tbsn ths Whistler feather. "Yoa look awfully worried," Honey ventured ven-tured st length. Greshsm smiled abstractedly. "I am a littls upset," bs sdmitted. "It's a business matter, snd I won't bote you with it." "But I won't be bored," Honey assured hira with a convincing angling of eyebrow. "Please tell me." S hs did. It wss with admirable restraint that be drew tbs picture of tbe president of his firm, tbs Acne Msnufscturing Company, t yet ths old gentleman stood out clearly as ons of those persons of dsmn few words the kind, evidently, that interrupts your best story in the middle with : "Come on now, Charlie, get to the point." Personally we bate the cars, snd Greshsm established similar lesnings. Though bs hsd struggled srtfully to set up an entente coruiale to win from his superior's conservatism at lesst tolersnce, if not approval, for hia sslrs-boosting sslrs-boosting innoviitlone ths president's non-committsl non-committsl shell proved impenetrsble. " 'buffering Sou'wester !' " Huney sniffed st its inadequacy. "He must be a silly old -thing." "Not silly exactly," Gresham's sense of fairness qualified, "but the most inarticulate Jans studied ber Interestedly. "I won-o'er won-o'er " Shs musingly picked up a letter from a desk near by. "Do yoa honestly think. Honey, yoar promotion could bs managed man-aged In that way by working out some of your ideas?" "I know It !" with conviction. Thoughtfully Jsns peeled off sn edge of the envelope. A long silence broks with : "I have a letter here from my brother Don in Chicago, saying he's been msde saleamanager salea-manager of ths New York office. He wants ' me to find him a email apartment. I won der " another pause. "Maybe you could do that." "Oh!" In the surprise wish which we treat miracles waa distributed notes of cstssy. "Only" Evidently a bsnk secretaryship secretary-ship includes soms knowledge of the desdly things Interior decoration can do to a bank bslsnce "he'll went something simple, just inexpensive effects." Ths apartment decided upon waa In the Forties consisting of living room, bedroom snd bath. When st Isst the spsrtmrnt wss finished. fin-ished. It stood a charming justification for every crime Interior decorating has hung en helpless roof-trees. For it was uniquely lovely. To be sure, the psrrot on the mshogany mirror over the book shelves, and the Polly in tbe tapestry fire-screen, might have . bothered Mr. Audubon considerably ia identifying the species ; but their collective ' exfecliveness la supplementing the porcelsin t lowed sll those wheedling sn I flees by which v. woman eetsbltshes ber Incurable Evehood. There were accenta of tenderness tyranny with the dismsl threst of tears. It wss, however, a hand of gull combed caressingly caress-ingly through ths Whistler feather thst eventually did tbe work. "WEU'' " 1 ,r,, Ureehaoi ' ' signed, nonrommlttslly. "I agree," and the note of dubiety In the promts lost itself In the click of the latch as Jans entered. . . " ' , To a trilled bulletin of the engagement the sister sismpsd her approval with a ' businesslike k:ss on Honey'a mouth. "And y guess whst?" Ths Utter hardly wsited for the termination of the salute. "Doa has promised to enlarge the Acme toothpick tooth-pick snd let ma design a motif for It." ;' "11!" grinned Jsne. ' ' "Ahem!" blushed Greaham. And then, from la between the window burst a cry of poignant despair: "Suffcria sou'wester!" and aa tbey looked, a rutted head hid itself beneath a green wing. Then Greaham laughed. It waa a foolish fool-ish little laugh, but there was just tb right note Is It that gave the effect of iaa- . . perturbable bliss. And after alls read 11, effect Is whst you want- A sum w-as then mentioned casually, after w-hicb Gresiiaia dragged from his pts-ket two bills with a gesture that ought to be used In Illustrating that old adage nbout a fool and his money. Then while the iurchar was being wrapped Honey had Insisted upon taking It Brownell conducted con-ducted them bsck Into the fsded parlor. "Of course, you understsnd sbout food, 1 suppose?' wsfc bis first remark to Gresham t'tih, yes, cra.'kere," was the dull answer. Brownell laughed, out of tribute for this ostensible s tuple of salesmanageruil wit. "Ilest f'ssl is a mixture of hemp, sunflower sun-flower seed, unbailed rV-a ssd cracked earn. Little fellow likes bananas, apples, oranges and berries, too. Home authorities advise baretniits and almonds. Baked peanuts excellent. ex-cellent. Keep bird In good condition, you know." 1'nder the weight of these dietetic demands de-mands ttresbam dropped in his chair; but relentlessly straightened at the dramatic warning; "Remember, though, Gresham, chlckweed and parsley never!" Honey gave a gasp as the fresh-air fs-nstlc fs-nstlc ran s dazed hand through bis Whistler festher. For the first time tbe full Ignominy Igno-miny of a .business man doomed ss sole 1 |