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Show r ID1LE HSLr AMD " 1 i By ETHEL HUE5TON WNU Service. Copyright TX:7 by 'J'hc Bobbs Men ill Co- lo t ho transaction. Ytm go mid get 11 for mi'." lit; was deeply trmililctl. "1 1 onu'l do tluit. Not ti ilny I ain't. Maybe to morrow. But I got lo go right u I now mill tlx Mrs. Willoughhv's roof leaky roof 'frnld of ruin. Looks like ruin, tlilnk?" "You fixed tluit mot yesterday," liny said furiously. "No. miss, I didn't gel nronnd to It.' I to sighed smlly. "Seems like I Just run t got around to i ho tilings I got lo do. There's Mrs. Willoughby's roof, nnd Miss Nixon's porch. Seems like I runt begin to yet around to things iiny more. And I'd like lo yt-t h little work done on my bout If 1 could llnd time." h? tlnlshod pntlieliciilly. "Well then.' she sulci kindly, uniihle lo he very severe with one so liinih like, "just come along wlih me to get my money hack from Mrs. Andover. mid then .vi.it enn hurry right along and get ever so imin.v things done. It's early." lie sighed out put on his cap with disarming meekness, and they set out together. "That's her cottage down there," he said, pointing olT to the left. "It u'n't far. You go rl.'lit down through that little gate, and see Mis Andover. Be linn with her. miss, you he real firm. You hold out for your rights." And with incredible celerity, before Cay could catch and hold him. he hud shambled away out of sight around the cottage, and there was uothlng loi her to do hut go on alone Her In lig nation rose again as she cut down the pretty, greenoordered cinder path to Mrs. Amkcer's door, but she was met with great friendliness by that uffahle n "d ellicient woman, who took both her hands in -ordial greting. "My dear, bow sweet or you to he so neighborly. How charming! You are a real acquisition to our summer colony." ".Mrs. Andover, excuse me, hut that cottage you rented me is not for rent. very tired The window corner tempt cd her. "I'll lie down, If you don't mind." she Willi, "It will keep me ("it of your way. I may go to sleep." She Klielehed herself out on the pouch, luxuriously, and closed her eyes The lids were dark, darkly veined. The lips, In relaxiillon. drooped wllh weariness. For two hours A unliil ml ry slipped softly about the house, gathering lo gel her her modest belongings, packing pack-ing baskets, hags mid handles. And for two hours (in-y slept without stirring, stir-ring, moaning faintly now and then. At one o'clock. Aniilnlmliy prepared dinner for two. wllh a great pot of sirong hot ten, and set the little gata-leg gata-leg laliL. Then, with n light touch, she wakened (lay. "Come and eat. dearie," she said gently. "You can rest heller on a full Ktomach." Hay smiled nt her, yawning, stretching stretch-ing luxuriously. "You lire u darling," she said "I wasn't a bit hungry, and now I am." Slip stood un shaking herself. untnlmlry watched her shrewdly. "You didn't begin lo rest any ton soon," she said slglilllcant ly. "No. Almost loo late. In fact. So far, I am too tired to enjoy resting, hut after a while, ii week, or n month how 1 shall revel In It." She curled the tips of her shoes. ' hoylshly. .ahout I he legs of 111 chair nt the tiihle. and although she wn not hungry, the ten she sipped with relish. And as they ate, Auntalmlry descanted at great length on the out j rugeousness of fifty dollars u month for that rork-plle. told her to look out for the draughty window on the ocean side, and enlarged on the condition of the kitchen woodwork. She recommended l.umly l.nne for lohsters. and promised to send hlin up for orders And at Auntalmlry's suggestion sug-gestion Hay made out n grocery list to Initiate her own light housekeeping, housekeep-ing, and gave It to that same small nhllglng person to leave at the I'ler grocery store. While they were still at the table, flus. the tnxl boy, came up for Auntalmlry's Aunt-almlry's things, and trudged off down the hill, heavily laden and Auntalmlry. Auntal-mlry. hastily catching up an nrmtul of coats and dresses, tripped after him Cay waved them away and turned hack, yawning. Into the pretty cottage, cot-tage, turned again, gratefully, to the wide couch In the shadowy corner, stretched herself out upon It find closed her eyes Th" afternoon waned. A hoy from the I'ler grocery store brought her basket of groceries, and left It on the kitchen table without disturbing her. Pusk crept out of the forest and darkened the windows. Once Gay stirred, rest fully, sensed presence In her sleep, seemed to feel the gaze of human eves upon her In the silence. Resentfully she forced the heavy lids to raise. In the shadowy, lying light she seemed to see a small figure crouching near her. and a small face, yellow and wrinkled like parchment, with pinched features and slanting almond-shaped eyes fastened hypnotically hypnot-ically upon her eyes. Beneath one eye a small crescent-bowed scar shone In the yellow parchment. It was the scarred and wrinkled face of a little old Chinaman Even In her sleep, Gay knew It could not be. and smiled faintly at her foolish fancy. "It Is a dream." she thought mistily. mist-ily. "Oream on." She closed her eyes again. The little yellow face receded Into the dusk, the small figure faded noisely Into the shadows, and there wiu not the slightest sound from the small, swift moving feet as he stepped over the sill of the window on the forest for-est side, and padded away among the frees. Hours after, when Gay wakened from her sleep, the house was still and dark. The greatness of her relaxation re-laxation pleased her. "I shall go on like this for weeks," she thought blissfully, "smelling sweet . scents of sea and woods, hearing strange noises of ghostly breaths and phantom footsteps, feeling the touch of fairy fingers Oh. good heavens. I wonder where the matches' are!" (TO tB CONTINUED.) STORY FROM THE START On the vorne of ihtvous col lapse, due to overwork, tiny Pe-Inne, Pe-Inne, successful New York nl'tlst, seeks rest nt Idle tsliuul. She rents a cottnuo, the "t.one Pine," from an Island character, the "Captain," ami his sister, Alice Andover. "Admin 1st rat or." CHAPTER II o Returning to tlie isliiml on the enrlv ' morning steamer, l'i:i.v was t lie onh pnssenyer to leave t lie hunt nt K.ver preen' pier, where she found no line of cars, no group of unhurried drivers to receive her. While with her two hands she carried tier heavy tiagi-through tiagi-through the orchard anil ii the lout; grass-green slope to the I. one I'lne. Gay's heart sung a soft Utile song ot contentment. "I shall sleep," she thought, "(Hi. Idle, Idle little island, how I shall sleep !" As she stood at last ticnemh the craggly pine, fumhling in her hag fot the keys, it was the pride of pusses sion which thi'ohhed In her pulses This was her summer heritage, the re ward of ten years of constant lahor: It was hers. n K'ven with her hand on the knob. Gay readized that it was not she who o;icr.fcd the door if the cottage; that it opened to her, instead, from within. And as she stepped buck, startled, she was confronted suddenly by a woman, not lira. Andover. not one of the three quiet figures from the Captain's kitch en. hut one she had never seen before. "Oh, 1 beg your pardon." she cried. "1 didn't know there was anybody here." The woman did not speak for a mo meiit, but stood peering up, nearsightedly, near-sightedly, into Gay's face a small woman, short and slight, and a sofi flush gave her face a pleasant girlish lonk. although as Gay learned later, she was very old, older even than Alice Andover. But for all her small-ness small-ness and her pinkness. ihere was some tiling impressively determined, some thing indomitable ahout her that was striking. "Are you the Captain's wife?" Gay asked, as the woman stared at her. smiling faintly, puzzled. "No, I'm not." she disclaimed quick ly. half laughing. "I'm Just Auntal-mirj. Auntal-mirj. Come in." She still stared, closely. "1 This light is bad." she added apologetically. "And my besi glasses are broken. I can't seem to place you 'Tuin't Mary Grover. is it?" "1 am Gay Delane the new tenant." The soft little figure became rigid "The new tenant." she repeated. "Oh, they didn't tell you!" "Tell me! Of course they didn't tell me. They were afraid to tell me. The towards!" But she said this in the most amiable and cheerful tone imag inutile. "1 wish Alice Andover'd tell me. I'd like to hear ner. 1 told her. v with my own lips, that I wanted to stay here myself, this summer." "Oh. 1 beg your pardon. She must have forgotten ft. I'll run right up and tell them " When Gay stooped to lift bet ,bags, Auntulmiry insisted -that ' she leave them. "You'll be right back." she said confidently. "They'll send me word Alice Andover never misses a chance to send somebody word. Just leave I he bags; you'll be right back." Gay trudged rather crossly up the pleasant lane to the Captain's door The disarray of her plans annoyed her. and her tired nerves resented the postponement post-ponement ol rest. She found the Can- coltage, well built, charmingly Incut ed. .Mrs. Andover said, rather petulantly, petu-lantly, Mint II was the ulcer of the two cottages, and the only reason Aiiiitalinli'.v preferred (he I. one I'lne was simple and pure perversity. The l.one I'lne was too big for her. Il was more Inaccessible away up on the bluffs, it was further from the shops ami from her friends, hut she pre feiTcd It "for her Christmas party." And then Alice Andover's voice sank to a whisper. "If she says any 'thing about a Christmas party, you' tell her John nnd I say she can't have n Christinas party this year Tell her II Is too expensive In the first place, and It wears her nil out In the second place, and It's lusl nonsense nn.vhiw Tell her John and I say so." lint when Gay suggested that ot course, she, herself. Mrs. Andover was going 'own wllh her to give these explanations lo Auntalmlry. (he nil minis! rntnr was regret fill, hut tirm "1 can't." she said. "1 wish I could, hut I can't. I I am expecting guests to dinner." She looked at her watch. "Good heavens. It Is after eleven, nnd the potatoes not so much ns peeled. You see how it Is. 1 wish ! could, hut I can't. You tell her She'll understand. Just tell her you have rented the cottage, and paid the rent, nnd tell her we Insist John and I both Insist that she give up the l.one I'ine Immediately. Tell her If she doesn't we'll we'll burn the Apple Ap-ple Tree to the ground, nnd sell the .one I'ltre over her head." So Gay Delane. alone, unaided by the lamblike Captain, unsupported by the ellicient administrator, broke th3 news to the Indomitable little old woman on the hill As she repeated very modestly, almost dlllidentlv the dire threats of Alice Andover, Aufilal miry broke Into laughter so hearty It seemed impossible It could have emanated ema-nated from so small a source. "My dear." she gasped, wiping her. eyes, "1 wish they would. I'd like to see it. Why. I'd have the law on them." She fell Into helpless laughter again "I'm a sort of a common law wife, my dear. If you keep me long enough, you can't get shut ot me. Such talk. Alice Andover Indeed 1 Why didn't they come nnd tell me nil these high doings?" "The Captain had to fix Miss Ms on's porch, an .Mrs. Andover is peeling peel-ing potatoes for a company dinner, and " "The Captain's been fixing that porch for four years, and never set foot on It yet. And as for Alice An (lover, my dear, she never peeled a potato In her life She's aristocratic. Peeling potatoes. My dear. Alice An dover wouldn't know a potato with tlie skin on If she saw it." "But Mrs. Miss " "Auntalmlry, dearie, ust call me Auntalmlry. I'm not proud." "Auntulmiry." Gay said appealing ly, "see how I am fixed. I have paid fifty dollars rent " "Plfty dollars For this shack? My denr, they robbed you. They never got more than forty for It In tlie world. Last year, they only got tbir ty-five. Poor child, poor dear, they robbed you." "And see They have my fifty dollars, dol-lars, you have my house. 1 have nothing." noth-ing." "My dear, I'll go. I'll go right away. We'll show- them they can't get away ndth Hiis sort of thing with us. It won't take me long to pack up. I haven't got much." While Auntulmiry bustled ahout. putting her things together. (Jay, hav ing removed her cap and gloves, set her bags in a corner out of the wa and went to the wide conch. She was m M "I Don't Think You Can Do That," He iaid Cautiously. Auntalmlry Is keeping It herself this simimer, So if you will kindly refund re-fund " Mrs. Andover's affability froze upon her face. "My dear, do you mean to fell me that that creature had the brazen. efTrontery, the unmitigated audacity. the the to stay there after John told her I had rented than cnttnge ?" "John didn't tel' her. She didn't know it The cottage was not ready tain in the kitchen in his favorite chair by the window, fondling the largest cat, while the dog sulked eal ously beneath th table. "Captain." Gay began curtly, "where Is Mrs. Ajidover? The l.one Pine is not for rent. That woman Auntal miry is going to stay there herself." "You don't say so," he ejaculated "Well, think ol that now. What are you going to do ahout It?" "What am I going to do ubout It?' she repealed, indignantly "Nothing What have I pot to do nhout It? I will Just take back my money " "1 don't think you can do that," tie said cautiously. "I don't think so." Well, I think so. Meriting a col tage that Isn't for rent ! Whoever heard of such a thing? Of course I can take It back." He shook his silvered head doubt fully. "You have rented the cottage.' he said. "It is yours. If an outsider comes in on you why, you'll have to rake measures to get her out." (Jay stared at him. "But she was there lirst 1 I am the Interloper." . "Then 1 don't thinti Alice will refund re-fund the rent. I don't think so." "Oh, if she Is like that I" Gay said scornfully. "She loesn't look so dis-. dis-. honest." "Dishonest! My sister, Mis' Alice Andover? Dear, dear, what gave you such a notion as that? She's honest as the day but she's a very good administrator, ad-ministrator, very good Indeed." "If she is like that," Gay said, "you will get the money bacu for me. You are her brother. Yon were a witness for me as you promised " ".lohn didn't John John Wallace Wal-lace Pidn't you henr me tell him lo tell her to " "Oh. yes. yon told him. And that was the end of It. And as she Is the original tenant. I have had all my trouble and worry for nothing '' And then, with reluctance, with In nate delicacy, sparing Auntalmlry In every way possible, Mrs. Andover explained ex-plained the situation. The llttl? old woman in rhe cottage was not a ten ant. She Just lived there. She paid no rent, she had no money, and the cottage stood Idle all winter without her. Much better for the house to he o -cupied. much better for Auntal miry who neede.o homing "Oh. please." interrupted Gay. "let her stay then. Ion't turn the poor thing out on my account " And then Mrs. Andover grew really withering in her retaliation. Turn her o'jt ! What kind of people peo-ple do yon think we are? Do we look like rhe sort to turn anybody out? We just want her to move down inro her own house, the Apple Tree." "Ob. then she Isn't so poor if she has a house of her own." iut Auntalmlry did not own rhe Apple Tree. Auntalmlry did not owu anything. Mrs. Andover said It was the Estate, the Estate which owned the land, the Estate which had bulit the little Apple Tree exclusively Tor Auntalmlry, for her very own. furnished fur-nished it for her, maintained It for her. The Apple Tree was a dear little |