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Show jfgS By .BOOTH TARKINQTOfTI l.M.ri(.v:" Thus tlie HcnjrnKt Mr. fleaaley, waving a handkerchief thrice around hia head and tlnieo cheering. And the child, la that crlcket't voice of his, replied: , "Rr-r-r'a-vo 1" ! This was the form of snlutatfon familiarly fa-miliarly lu use between them., Ilea-ley Ilea-ley followed It by Inquiring, "Who'f with ns today?" , "I'm Mister Swift," chirped the Httl fellow. "Mis-tcr Swift, If you please, , Couslu David Bensley." lleusley executed a formal bow, "There la a gentleman here who'd llko to meet you." And he presented me with some grave phrases comnenda-tory comnenda-tory of my general character, addressing address-ing the child as "Mister Swift" whereupon Mister Swift gave me a ghostly litle hand and professed himself him-self glad to meet nie. "And besides ne," he added, to Beasley, "there's Bill Ilammersley and Mr. Corley LInbrldge." A faint perplexity manifested Itself upon Beasley's face at this, a shadow which cleared at once when I asked If I might not be pennltted to meet these V. 5 Miss Apporthwaite was at home the following Saturday. I found her In the lllirnry with "I.es Miserable"" on her knee when I cnine down from my room a little before lunch time; and she looked up and gave me a smile that made me feel sorry for any one she lmcl censed to smile upon. "I wanted to tell you," I said, with a little awkwardness hut plenty of truth, "Vre found out that I'm au awful aw-ful fool." "But that's something," she returned encouragingly "at least the beginning of wisdom." "I mean about Mr. Bensley the mystery I was absurd enough to find in 'Slmptedoria. I want to tell you" "Oh, I know," she said; and although al-though she laughed with nn effect of carelessness, thut look which I had thought "far away" -returned to her eyes as she spoke. There was a certain cer-tain Inscrutability about Miss Apper- Ile Joined cachlnnatlons with me heartily, and with a twinkling qulzzl-calness qulzzl-calness that somehow gave me the Idea that he might be thinking (rather apologetically) to himself: "Yes, sir, that old Beasley man Is certainly a mighty funny critter!" When I went away, n few moments Inter, and left him still Intermittently chuckling, the Impression remained with me that he had tome stK'li deprecatory depre-catory and surreptitious thought' Two or three days after that, ns I started down-town from Mrs. Apper-thwalte's, Apper-thwalte's, Ileasley came out of his gate, bound In the same direction. lie gave me n look of gny recognition ond offered his hand, saying, "Weill Up In this neighborhood 1" as If that were a matter of considerable astonishment. I mentioned that 1 was a neighbor, nd we wnlked on together. I don't think he spoke again, except for a "Well, sir!" or two of genial surprise at something I said, and, now and then, "You don't tell me!" which he personages, remarking that I had heard from Dowden of Kill Hammers-ley, Hammers-ley, though until now n stranger to the fame of Mr. Corley LInbrldge. Bensley performed the ceremony with Intentloual elegance, while the hoy's great eyes swept glowingly from his cousin's face to mine and back ngln. I bowed and shook hands with the n'r, once to my left and once to my right ' "And Slmpledorln V cried ' Mister Swift "You'll enjoy Slmpledorln." "Above all things," I said. "Can be shake hnnds? . Some dogs can." "Watch Mm 1" Mister Swift lifted a commanding finger. "Slmpledorla, shake hnnds!" I knelt beside the wagon and shook nn Imaginary big paw. -At this Mister Swift again shook hands with me and allowed mo to perceive, In his luml- t nous regard, a solemn commendation and approval. In this wise was my Initiation Into the beautiful old house and the cor- thwnlte sometimes, It should be added, as If she did not like to be too easily read. "I've heard all about It. Mr. Beasley's been appointed trustee or something for poor Hamilton Swift's son. a pitiful litle Invalid boy who Invents In-vents all sorts of characters. The old darky from over there told our cook about Bill Hatnmersley and Slmpledorln. Slmple-dorln. So, you see, I understand." "I'm glad you do," I said. A little hardness one might even have thought It bitterness became apparent In, her expression. "And Tin glad there's Romebody In Hint house, at last, with a little Imagination!" "From everything I have heard," I dlnlity of Its Inmates completed; ana , I became a familiar of David Bcasley and his ward, with the privilege to go and come as I pleased; there was always al-ways gay and friendly welcome. I always al-ways came for th( cigar after lunch, (sometime for lunch Itself; sometimes S dined there In -stead of dowd town J and now and then when It happened that nn errand or assignment took me that way In tho afternoon. I would run In and "visit" awhile with Hamilton Swift, Junior, nnd his circle of friends. Thero were days, of course, when his nttacks were upon Jilm, and only Bensley and the doctor nnd old Boh j wJS flMfil saw him ; I do not know what the boy r mental condition was at such 'times; but when he was better, and could be wheeled about the house and again receive re-ceive callers, he displayed an almost dismaying nctlvlty of mind It, was ac- tive enough, certainly, to-' keep far' ahead of my own. And he wus masterful: mas-terful: still, Bensley nnd Dowden niu I were never directly chidden for In-I In-I subordination, though made to wince ' painfully by thu look of troubled surprise sur-prise that met us when we were not quick enough to catch his meaning. The order of the day with him always al-ways began with the "Hoo-ray" and "Br-r-ra-vo" of greeting; ufler which we were to Inquire, "Who's with us today?" to-day?" Whereupon he would make known the character In which he elected elect-ed to be received for the occasion. If he announced himself as , "Mister returned, summoning suiiicient now-ness, now-ness, "It would be difficult to sny which has more Mr. Beasley or the child." Her glance fell from mine nt this, but not quickly enough to conceal a sudden, half-startled look of trouble (I can think of no other way to express ex-press It) thnt leaped Into It; and she rose, for the Inneh-bel! was ilnglna. "I'm Just finishing the death of .Tenn Vnljenn, you know, In 'Les M!ser-ables,' M!ser-ables,' " she snld. ns we moved to the door. "I'm always afraid I'll cry over that I try not to, because It makes my eys'S red." And, In truth, there was a vntvtie rumor of tears about her eyes not as If. she had shed them, but more ns If she were going to though I hud not noticed It when I came In. . That afternoon, when I reached the Despatch olllce, I was commissioned to olitaln certain polltl-cnl polltl-cnl Information from the Honorable David Bensley, an assignment I accepted ac-cepted with eagerness, notwithstanding notwithstand-ing the coinmiserntlon It brought me from one or two of my fellows in the reporter's room. "You won't get anything any-thing out of him !" they said. And they were true prophets. I found hlra looking over some discontents disco-ntents In his olllce; a reflective, nn-lighted nn-lighted ctgnr In the corner of his mouth; his chnlr tilled back and his feet on a window-sill. , He nodded, upon my statement of the affair that brought me, and without shifting his position, gave me a look of slow bsit wholly friendly scrutiny over his shoulder, and bade me sit down. I began at once t put the questions 1 wt"i told to osk bihi Interrogations (he seemed to believe) satisfactorily answered by slowly and nunlnntlvcly stroking the left side of his chin with two long fingers c.t his right hand, the while he smiled In genial eontoinpla-lluii eontoinpla-lluii of u lan'Kil rouf beyond the window. win-dow. Now nnd then ho would give me a mild find drawling word or two, not brilliantly Illuminative. It may be remarked. re-marked. "Well (ihout thnt " be began be-gan once, and then came Immediately to n full stop. Dowden, Beasley and I All Slid Down the Banisters on One of th Hamilton Ham-ilton Swift, Junior, Days. ' hnd a most eloquent way of exclaiming; exclaim-ing; but he listened visibly to my own talk, and laughed at everything that I meant for funny. I never knew anybody who gave one a greater responsiveness; he seemed to be with you every Instant ; and how he made you feel It was the true mystery mys-tery of Bensley, this silent man who never talked, except (as my cousin Paid) to children. It happened that I thus met him, ns we were both starting down town, and walked on with blm, several duys In succession; In a word, It became a hnblt. Then, one afternoon, as . I tinned to leave him at the Despatch olllce, he asked me If I would drop In, ut his house the next day for a cigar before I started. I did; und he asked me If I would come again the day after thnt So this became a hnblt to'1, A fortnight elapsed before I met Hamilton Swift. Junior; for be, poor little father of dream-children, could be no spectator of track events upon I he lawn, but lay In his bed upstairs. However, he grew better ut last, and Swift," everything was to be very grown-np and decorous indeed. For-ninlltles For-ninlltles and distances were observed; and ,Mr. Corley LInbrldge (nn elderly personage of great dignity and distinction distinc-tion us a niountiiiii-rllmber) was much ofiener Included In the conversation than Bill HammersUy. If, however, he declared himself to be "Hamilton Swift. Junior," which wns his happiest mood, Bill Ilnminersley nnd Slmpledorla Slmple-dorla were In the nso ndant, and there ' were games nnd contests. (Dowden, Bensley nnd I nil slid down . the bun-Islers bun-Islers on one of the Hamilton Swift Junior, days, at which really picturesque pictur-esque spectacle the boy almisst cried with laughter and old Bb nnd hl wife, who came running from the klMien, did cry.) He had n third appellation ap-pellation for himself "Just little Hamilton;" Ham-ilton;" but this wus only when the creaky voice could hardly eUlrp ut all and the weazened face was 'drawn to one side with suffering. When he told us he was "Just little Hamilton" we were very quiet. Cncc, far ten days, his Invisibles all went away on a visit: HamlPton Swift, Junior, had become Interested In bears. While this lasted, all of Bens-ley's Bens-ley's trousers were, ns Dowden Nald, "a sight." For thnt matter, Dowden himself was quite hoarse in court from growling so much. The bears were dismissed abruptly: Bill Hnm-nursley Hnm-nursley nnd Mr. Corley LInbrldge and Slmpledorln came trooping hack, and with them they brought that wonderful family, the Hunehliorss. (TO BE I'ONTlNUKD.l "Yes?" I snld. hopefully, my pencil poised, I "About that I guess-" "Yes. Mr. PcnsleyT" I enconrrrircd him, for he swined to have dried up permanently. "Well, sir -I gni8H Hadn't you better see some onu clst about that?" This with the air of n man who Would be but too fluent and copious Upon sny sublect In the world except the oni pnrtliMinr point. I never met nu.vbody else w ho looked Bo plenimtly coininuniratlve nnd Managed Man-aged to say so little. In fact, h" didn't say anything nt nil; (mil I uuesed thnt this faculty was not without li value In b!s ;!lt!i;if career, disnfrous s It IihiI proved to his privnJe brpi'l-M brpi'l-M ss. His luiliit of silence, iu-.-(.(iver. vj,s nor cnlti". nieil : sou cinbl ye tli.it "f n secret of It" vjs ihnt h,; vn-. j horn quiet. I Uy nolo-book r.'iie.ined iSo!e!ess j I nnd fina f,, at kimi' oil, I -.' i ; j J hi.H, mci o'-'i: I !! I,; ;i iin-;;, r:.',!i- j I I lllilfchn. t-l: f t ";'.t - !ii:i' If : '' I x my presentation took plnce. H'e bad Just finished our clears In Beasley's nlry, old-fashioned "slttlng-ronm," "slttlng-ronm," and were rising to go, when there came th" faint creaking of stunM wheels fionj the brill. Ileasley turnitl to me with the apologetic and monosyllabic mono-syllabic chuckle that wns distinctly his alone. "I've got a little clmp here " Up said: then went to the door. "Rob!"; Th old darky niiiunred In tho doorway door-way pushing a Utile wagon like a re-cllulns-t hair n wheels, ti ltd In It sat Hamilton Swift. Junior. My tirst Impression of blm was that be wns all eyes ;. I couldn't look at anything any-thing else for n time, nnd wns hardly 1 (luscious of the rest of that wen-rciie wen-rciie 1, peaked little face and the imder-Med imder-Med wisp t a body with Ps pullietie adjuncts of metal and lent her. I think they wire tlie brightest eye-; I ever s;;'.v a: keen mid ln!"!li,.rctit a a w iclred olil woman's, wltlial ns trrjst-i.i trrjst-i.i aiid (l-i- nf! the :,'; 1 f .: bi-tter 1 m.p. ' |