came out here. Yesterday I fell
in a bear trap which Tacks had dug and carefully concealed with
brush and leaves. It took me four hours to get out because I'm
rather stout, but the exercise surely did me good."

Can you beat him?

A week later the second anniversary of our wedding would roll
around, and although Clara J. was a trifle hard to win over, I
finally coaxed her to let me have Bunch out to spend a few hours
with us on that occasion.

At the appointed hour Bunch arrived and Clara J. greeted him with
every word of that telegram darting forth darkly from her eyes.

"Mrs. John," said Bunch, "I'm simply delighted to know you. I've
often heard your husband speak well of you."

She had to smile in spite of herself.

"Mrs. John," Bunch went on, with splendid assurance; "you should be
proud of this matinee idol husband of yours, for, to tell you the
truth, he's all the goods--he certainly is."

Clara J. looked somewhat embarrassed, and as for me, I was away out
to sea in an open boat. I hadn't the faintest idea what Bunch was
driving at.

"You surely have a wonderful influence over him," the lad with the
blarney continued. "A week or so ago I threw some bait at him just
to test him and he didn't even nibble. You know, in the old days
John and I often trotted in double harness to the track--bad place
for young men--sure!"

Bunch surveyed the property with a quick glance and said, "Yes, I
sent John a telegram. 'The two queens will be out this afternoon,'
I wired, meaning two horses that simply couldn't lose. 'They are
good girls, so treat them white,' I told him, meaning that he
should put up his roll on them and win a hatfull; but, Mrs. John, I
never touched him. He simply ignored my telegram and sat around in
the hammock all day, reading a novel, I suppose. I apologize to
you, Mrs. John, for trying to drag him away from the path of
rectitude, but, believe me, I didn't know when I sent the message
that he had promised you to give the ponies the long farewell!"

Clara J. laughed with happiness, all her doubts dispersed, and
said, "Oh, don't mention it, Mr. Bunch! I'm simply delighted to
welcome you to our new home. You have never been out here before,
have you?"

Bunch glanced at me, then through the open front door in the
direction of the scene of his downfall, and said, hesitatingly,
"Never before, thank you, kindly!"

Good old Bunch. He had squared me with my wife and the world--oh,
well