again.

"Don't stop to ask fool questions of a busy society man," says I; "but
jump into your uniform, get in your coop there, and prepare to put the
timelock on your conversation works. In about a minute there'll be a
delegation of old hens in here lookin' for a mysterious young gent with
incendiary hair who has disappeared. Your cue is to look innocent and
not know anything about it. See? If there's any explainin' to be done,
let Bobby do it."

"Oh, I say!" groans Bobby, jumpin' up, and by the time I've struck the
bottom stair on my way out he's grabbed his overcoat and is beatin' it
down to find his carriage.

How Miss Vee squared it with Aunty is a puzzle I never expect to find
out the answer to; but I'll risk her. She's a pink queen, she is, and
after that one waltz with her I can look cold-eyed at a row of Tessie
girls stretchin' from here to the Battery!

CHAPTER XII

LANDING ON A SIDE STREET

It was a little matter between me and Mother Sykes that starts me off to
hunt a new boardin' place. Lovely old girl, Mother Sykes is, one of the
kind that calls everybody "Deary" and collects in advance every Saturday
night. She's got one of them inquisitive landlady noses that looks like
it was made for pryin' up trunk covers and pokin' into bureau drawers.

That don't bother me any, though. It's only when I misses my swell
outfit, the one Benny had built for me to wear at his weddin', that I
gets sore. Course, she'd only borrowed it for Pa Sykes to wear on a
Sunday afternoon call, him bein' a little runt of a gent, with watery
eyes and a red nose, that never does anything on his own hook. And if he
hadn't denied it so brassy I shouldn't have called him down so hard,
right in the front hall with half the roomers listenin'.

"Dreamed it, eh, did I?" says I. "Well, listen here, Sykesy! Next time I
has an optical illusion of you paradin' out in any of my uniform,
there'll be doin's before the Sergeant!"

Then Mother Sykes rushes up from the kitchen and saves the fam'ly honor
by throwin' an indignation fit. I don't know how long it lasted; but she
was gettin' purple clear up under her false front when I slid out the
door and left her at it. Next day I noticed the sign hung up; but I
didn't know which sky parlor was vacant until I strolls in at
five-fifteen Friday night and finds my things out in the hall and a new
lodger in my room.

"Oh, well," says I, "what's a sudden move now and then to a free lance
l