es by him and lets the old sport help her into the taxi; and a
second later we're left standin' there at the edge of the curb with
another taxi rollin' up in front of us. I notices that Ira's holdin'
something in his hand that he's starin' at foolish. It's the satin box
with the seventeen-fifty ring in it.

"Well," says I, as we steps back, "returns all in, ain't they?"

"Not by a long shot!" says Ira. "Dinged if I don't know someone
that'll be glad to take a ring from me, and that's Maggie!"

"Whew!" says I. "Well, that's some quick shift. Then you ain't goin'
to linger round with a busted heart?"

"Not much!" says Ira. "Guess I've played fool about long enough. I'm
goin' home."

"That's gen'rally a safe bet too," says I. "But how about buildin'
that boat for Mr. Robert?"

"I'll build it," says he; "that is, soon as I can fix it up with
Maggie."

"Then it's a cinch," says I; "for you look to me, Ira, like one of the
kind that can come back strong."

So, you see, I had somethin' definite to report next mornin'.

"He will, eh? Bully!" says Mr. Robert. "But why couldn't he have said
as much to me yesterday? What was the trouble?"

"Case of moth chasin'," says I, "from the kerosene circuit to the white
lights. But, say, I didn't know before that Broadway had so many
recruitin' stations. They ought to put Boothbay Harbor on the map for
this."

CHAPTER IV

TORCHY BUGS THE SYSTEM

Guess I ain't mentioned Mortimer before. Didn't seem hardly worth
while. You know--there are parties like that, too triflin' to do any
beefin' about. But, honest, for awhile there first off this young
shrimp that was just makin' his debut as one of Miller's subslaves in
the bondroom did get on my nerves more or less. He's a slim,
fine-haired, fair-lookin' young gent, with quick, nervous ways and a
habit of holdin' his chin well up. No boob, you understand. He was a
live one, all right.

And it wa'n't his havin' his monogram embroidered on his shirt sleeves
or his wearin' a walkin' stick down to work that got me sore. But you
don't look for the raw rebuff from one of these twelve-dollar file
jugglers. That's what he slips me, though, and me only tryin' to put
across the cheery greetin'!

"Well, Percy," says I, seein' him wanderin' around lonesome durin'
lunch hour, "is it you for the Folies today, or are you takin' a chance
on one of them new automatic grub factories with me?"

"Beg pardon?" says he, g