Show the honorable uncle lanc lancy y by ETHEL HUESTON 0 amill co forties sorties CHAPTER I 1 1 I aunt olympia the Sena senator toes wile wife mrs delaporte Slop shire properly but rarely pronounced Sl upshur went to iowa for the funeral even in their sorrow borrow the awe airee ree girls tragically orphaned in auie double bereavement took plain tive pleasure in that it was wa no mote more than she sh should 0 uld have done being their mothers own and only sister still she was a senators wife and young as they were and little as they had seen ot of her the girls had learned that senators wives even more than officeholders holders themselves make unlimited use of the safe alibi of bills pending this was an important session too it ber ing election year aunt olympea flew out from washington this added definite importance to her coming although aunt olympia was a senators wife not by any imaginative flight could political significance be attached to her attendance at the funeral the senator had no constituents to be vacated Maca ted there iowa was not his tate ate brother a deacon in the church that had been their fathers drove over to meet her at the airport in iowa city their own car would never run again it lay in the garage of bill blakely one of their members a twisted and charred mass of metal from the collision with a drunken dri driver verat at the corner of north square and main on prayer meeting night it had happened the three girls helen twenty one adele nineteen and limpy named for aunt olympia Olymp la three years younger felt tearful sorrow even shame that they had not gone to prayer meeting with their I 1 I 1 parents on that fateful night when they went to prayer meeting if even one of them went their father always stopped at karls kandy kitchen tor for an ice cream sundae on the way home reward of merit he called it baksheesh the girls said it was having gleefully adopted the word from the lecture of a returned missionary trying to raise funds for the further evangelization battit heathen near easterners con If iSiOn that terrible wednesday night if even one of them had gone the half hour spent over the sundaes sundnes at the kandy kitchen would have delayed their parents arrival at the corner of north square and main and there would have been no collision with the big car careening madly along the icy streets with poor bob saunders drunk at the wheel but that night only their father and mother had gone and now they lay together in a double casket in the allan funeral parlor awaiting burial on the morrow both had been instantly killed in the crash poor bob had been tossed through the door and flung across thirty feet of ice and snow and had incurred only a broken wrist and a bruised brow the girls watching from the win biow of the parsonage saw deacon i drive carefully up to their curb bringing aunt olympia from the airport they did not as in normal times run happily down the steps to greet her but waited decorously inside the door while the deacon assisted her up the icy ash strewn steps aunt who had turned violently red and at the sight of the sheaf of wheat and frozen lilies liles on the front door broke into open sobs in the presence of the three girls they looked pale and young and frightened in their slim black gowns adele both in mourning and out was the beauty of the family but helens quiet dignity and maternal gentleness genelen ess were appealing and the quivering eagerness of lampys youth half brave half terrified carried her straight to aunt olympias plym lampl pias s h heaving e ving bosom H aunt olympea had a series of emo eme ional expressions with which the girls later became amusedly familiar and to which in time they accorded the dignity of statistical numbers the first of these the one that swept over her at sight of the wheat and lilies liles on the parson age door a sudden quiver of what would have been a double chin had bad it not been for the vigorous hundred strokes waged upon it three times a day by the indefatigable de olympia Olymp la tills this trembling of the under chin was followed by a deep abush that descended swiftly from the roots of her hair out of sight right below the neckline of her dress accompanied by a hissing suction of the lips which she finally brought tinder control by catch catching irig the left corner of her mouth be een very strong wh white te teeth on re occasions of absolutely uncontrollable I 1 troll able emotion as now this expression spent itself in explosive sobs cobs aunt i olympia never surrendered long to emotion one after another she drew the girl sto her in a passionate embrace and began divesting herself of her ber furs with a bustling iho show w of energy aunt olympia take her eyes off LImpy limpy had fairly taken her breath away aunt clym pla a very clear idea of what she had expected limpy to be I 1 sometimes she had thought of her as i the child being spanked for her mischief and then remembering the tha years ha had id reminded herself that limpy was a young lady about like helen perhaps and here she found that limpy was neither thi the one nor the other but poised expectantly be tween the two with eyes turned alternately one way and the other how old are you limpy slie she demanded suddenly oh about seventeen said limpy sixteen by the family bible corrected adele seventeen minus a small traction fraction insisted limpy sixteen plus and not a very big plus either argued adele oh well sixteen plus Is 17 minus according to the mathematics I 1 flunked last year I 1 prefer minuses 11 callers came to the door almost constantly the women kissed the girls all round one raised tentative ups lips to aunt olympia but was deterred by a sudden tightening of the full flushed face punny funny thing she remarked later in her resounding whisper how kissing seems to go neck and neck with bereavements ilmy in my opinion a akies Is not a bit more sympathetic than a hearty handshake r and not half as hygienic dr ainslie Ains lle brother ainslie the girls called him the district superintendent in of their conference carrie came too and as if by prearranged agreement the neighbors trooped in from all over the house from kitchen and dining room and from up 11 V 12 how about the future stairs where they were interestedly unpacking aunt olympias bag and tidying up drawers and closets with that fond license bereavement so blessedly accords dr ainslie shook hands with everyone murmuring words ot of sympathy couched in biblical phra ogy agy as far as possible and then said shall we pray all dropped to their knees beside their chairs they had gone through many bereavements and knew what was e expected of them helen glan glanced rather uneasily toward aunt olympia and was relieved to see her kneeling with the rest though not w without some trouble in her smart gray skirt which had not been fitted for p rayer prayer dr ainslie went into a detailed exposition of the tragic event and dwelt it at ardent length on the rare virtues of the deceased parents and the pathetic estate of the three sweet girls until he had them all in tears aunt olympia cried too she help it but when he reached the final and prolonged amen she rose as hastily as she could in her tight skirt and left the room without a word please excuse me ill go with auntie said helen wiping her eyes she followed aunt olympia silently up the stairs the upper hallway wide and old fashioned spotlessly I 1 clean kindly neighbors had even freshly laundered the hill hall curtains showed four doors three standing invitingly open one closed aunt olympia took one look at the closed door and turned quickly away dabbing furiously at her eyes you are to have my room aunt olympia Olymp la at the end of the hall helen said gently 1 I moved in here with adele lampys room its so tiny theres hardly room even for one there was no need for her to say they could not not yet bear to put anybody not even aunt olympia in that room behind the closed door their room it had been their fathers and mothers mothers room they had always called it though shared by both on the day dakof the funeral aunt olympia was strangely quiet her voice when she did speak was soft almost tremulous her oddly keen pale blue eyes were gentle though she watched everything that went on about her she made no comment she objected to nothing she broadcast no scathing whispers for the most part she watched the girls all of them together and each of them separately limpy in particular she noticed their mannerisms their movements not even the intonation ton atlon ot of their voices escaped her she scrutinized their clothes and the cordial and sisterly understanding between them and did not overtook the very apparent affection shown them by everyone who came to their door whether on errand of business or sympathy the church was packed for the funeral it was their fathers own church the biggest church in town and both the minister and his wife had been warmly loved the suddenness the tragic of the manner of their passing the double bereavement even the double casket and the double interment in termen t first in the history of the town attracted the morbid interest even of strangers the district superintendent conducted the service they would have had the bishop but he was away with his secretary secreta ry making a tour of the holy land gathering material for a report on the state of the armenians Armen ians their own church choir sang even in their sadness the girls in somber black felt satisfaction that aunt olympia Olymp la the senators wife was with their them she also in respectable but more expensive black As they passed down the aisle they could hear among the stifled sobs of their friends among the tender murmurs those poor dear children sweet girls the darlings other words ahat that gave them a sad pleasure the senators wife their aunt flew out from washington 11 aunt olympia displayed a proper customary sorrow during the services frequently patting her eyes under her veil with a very fink perfumed handkerchief when limpy shivered suddenly and was seized with a spasm of nervous trembling aunt olympia put her arm around her and stroked the slim black clad knee with tender sympathy until the tremor had passed the parsonage was in quiet readiness for their sad return sa s1 sister s ter achard and mrs cox family friends had remained away from the funeral in order to attend to those th ose final domestic rites the extra chairs borrowed from neighboring houses for the mux influx of visitors had been returned to their owners pieces of furniture had been restored to their original position in the room A cheerful fire had been set blazing in the grate and a bowl of roses brightened the low table in the living room food had been prepared re and the table laid for their evening meal when they had finished their dinner and sat distraught and ill at ease the four of them before the fire helen had freshly stirred to life aunt olympia said with some abruptness how about the future have you got any ideas made any plans worked anything out in your minds about what you want to do from this on only vi slight quiver of 0 the curving under chin betrayed her passionate int interest erist in their answer theres Th ereg only one thing we can do said helen bravely the in burance will carry us nicely until the girls have finished school fa ther let me teach this year though I 1 finished college last yeat and have my state license because he be thought I 1 should get a good rest after my operation for appendicitis but I 1 get a good deal of substitute work here in town and next year ill take a school of my own and settle down to business adele will finish college of course limpy will finish high school next month whoever heard hard of finishing school in the middle ot of the winter said aunt olympia A poor way to run a school in my opinion dont blame the school said adele smiling ng rather blame young seventeen year old ini minuses who simply will not study math and flunk it consistently year after year dont you think it Is very incongruous auntie said limpy in her own defense that the highest in L I 1 Q s should be the lowest in geometry etry and algebra you caret cant help thinking theres something wrong ev either with the school or the teacher there just be anything wrong with the pupil said adele well naturally not look at my L I 1 QI anyhow limpy finishes high school next month said helen then college that was the way we had planned and well just carry on maybe we cangel a small house somewhere or a floor ot of housekeeping rooms and use our own furniture even if I 1 take a school away from here next year adele and limpy can go right ahead and I 1 will come home week ends well have to give up the parsonage right away of course aunt olympia drew a full breath and opened her lips but for once in her life someone spoke ahead of her it was adele helen she said 1 I dont want to go on through college I 1 dont want to teach sell school ool and we ought not to use up that insurance money as we go along we ought ht to keep it tor for tor for emergencies last week it never occurred to any of us that sudden and terrible things could happen to us upset our plans now we know they can happen we must save as much of that money as we can for lorjust just such unexpected crises I 1 want to take a business course helen I 1 always did want to it much either and wont take long id so much rather go into business than teach school aunt olympia started to speak and then wisely thought better of it this was the girls business not hers she closed her lips so tightly that only a pale blue line remained of their fullness 1 I dont want to go to college either said limpy suddenly you mow know father always admitted he was going to have trouble with me you can see I 1 very verv we well teach leach school when I 1 cant even graduate on time I 1 want to take my shire share of the insurance money and go to a big city and take some kind of an exciting course in something and what kind of an exciting course asked aunt olympia who had hung on lampys every word 1 I dont know exactly admitted limpy but the more exciting the better stage setting or dress designing or acting or play writing have you any talent tor for any of those things demanded aunt olympia 1 I dont think so said limpy honestly but everyone says they are very exciting and I 1 may discover some latent talent not yet suspected even by me anyhow I 1 wont go to college and I 1 wont teach school and you wont get a share of the insurance till youre eighteen lim py 11 helen said uneasily brother wilton will have charge of that you know well if he wont g give ive me the money for an exciting course in something ill take a business course persisted limpy you must go to college limpy said bald helen and adele must finish and then decide what wha t she wants she will be older then and will know better what she really wants TO BE CONTINUED dear voter serials like politicians depend upon public favor for their success we are convinced your ballot will be cast for tho honorable uncle lancy a rip roaring new story by ethel dhel hueston which begins today in this paper we are further convinced that vote it the fhe serial of the fhe year the honorable uncle laney lancy is the fhe story of the fhe amazing senator delaporte Slop his wife olympia Olymp la a politician born and made and their asir three orphaned nieces the fhe sage helen the beautiful adele and the ifie epand up and comin coming g ampy senator Slop shire is is running for election reelection re against Goyer governor nor wilke a in the fhe grass if there ever was one the governor has seyen seven of the most unspeakable little brats that ever lived he takes the fhe whole lit kit and boodle of them along with him and has them sit sif on the fhe rostrum roli trum with him waving lollypops lolly pops and shouting vote for foi papa it is up to fo aunt olympia to fo lick the fhe brats and |