Torchy

ou can walk or ride on a transfer, and folks'll take it as a cinch that your bubble's back in the garage bein' fitted with a new set of hundred

lt or one of the Goulds! But she floats into the Corrugated Trust offices more or less reg'lar every day, just the same, and does her little stunt on the typewriter at so much per. Honest, when I sees

n she pikes right by and heads fo

urs; but for a genuine, mercerized near silk we stand ready to back Mildred against the field. She'd have an expert gu

the old man calls me in and hands me a letter that's been put on his desk for him

ut who M. M. is, and bring her in here. Anybody that ca

en Piddie tells me them lett

out a call-down to you. Don't you go to gettin' scared stiff, thou

; but she ain't that kind-not on your nameplate! She just peels off the sleeve protectors, sets her side combs in firm, gives her face a dab or so with the

but I know they're the button-up-the-back style, and that they stick to her as if they'd been put on by a paper-hanger. I guess you'd call Mildred a 1911 model. Anyway

out of one corner of his mouth, and a letter in one fist. While I'm gone he's run across another, worse than the first, by the ma

up. "I'd like to have you run your eye over that, and then t

always spell it th

he old man. "Do yo

see beat the way the boss lost his crushed raspb'rry face tint and bleached ou

and as sweet as pie, "that's mine. But you've made so many h

ut we have a way here, you know, of spel

says she.

lified it by leaving out the I. Of course, we don't expect you to learn all these things at once;

ys she, "Mil

er-Miss Morgan," and before I could get to th

there grinnin'. "Torchy," says he, "are

I ever sa

s he. "Send in one

al ripe on

the typewriter do a double shuffle, though, and there couldn't anybody around the place sling out words faster'n she could take 'em down on her pad,

' in any old time durin' the forenoon, lookin' as han'some as a florist's window and act

"business begins here at

d, and Piddie don't get o

and that she ought to be fired. The old man put it up to Mr. Robert, and Mr. Robert shoves it back at him

e, colorin' up

ite about it that Miss Morgan has time to head him off with a strike for

lk to her, Mr. E

boss. "Tell her she's rais

d didn't seem to be pinin' for any such honors, and after they got well acquainted with the fact that she wouldn't stand for lunch invites, or bids to the theater, and didn't want to be walked home with by a perfect gent, they

sure enough swell whose folks had gone broke, and that she's picked out a typewriter job a

ht along. Kind of set us up some, too, havin' a real ex-ice cutter like her right on the floor with us. All the other key pounders, that had been givin' her the stary eye at first, flops

very time she comes near he bows and scrapes and begins to shoot off the "Aw, I'm suah's" and t

u act like you thought thi

lady when I see one, and tha

't on the stage, Piddie, in one of the

ies I says to him, "Mr. Piddie," says I, "the Lady Mildred pr

n't called anything but Lady Mildred from that on. First thing I knew I'd said it to her face; bu

ays Piddie. "P

ver gets real chummy with anyone; but keeps us jollied along about so much. It was dead easy. All she had to do was to throw a smile our way, and we was tickled for a wee

e sees so many stunners like her every night, knockin' around at dinner parties and such, that he gets tired lookin'

of Mr. Robert's! I wouldn't mind havin' one of that kind taggin' around after me. But if I was pickin' a shover I'd pass Louie by. He wears his nose too high in the air and is t

ot back by five o'clock, you may tell Lo

hing,"

ou tip huntin' ex-waiter! It's back to the garage for yours! And say! After you've run your old coal cart into

n I has time to chew it over I can think up some beauts. But this night I was goin' to tell you about I didn't have any warnin' at all. Mr. Rob

in about half an hour,"

t'," says I, sliding

enjoyin' it any too much, for all his furs. I was just turnin' up my collar for a dash across the sidewalk and back, when out comes Lady Mildred in

, grabbin' the rain tent and hoi

d to ask any fool questions; but prances right out to

. Robert in half an hour, Louie," says I,

and has the same ideas about killin' time. But that's as far as the twin description goes. Benny looks and acts about as much like Mr. Robert as a cream puff looks like a ham sandwich. All Benny ever does is put on more fat and grow more cushions on the back of his neck. He's about five foot three, b

ereth Bob?" Makes my mouth pucker up like I'd been suckin' a lemon, just to hear hi

side of him. She didn't give any sign of backin' out, and i

" says I, "

Benny, makin' a move to bo

ding, Louie! Get a move on! If you don't fetch

blocks and didn't see anything of Benny jumpin' out of the window; so I reckons that he's too scared to make the break. I had

apoplexy, maybe it'll

him. I has a chill. First off I thought I'd go up and write out my resignation; but then I remembers h

next, and by that time the thing was gettin' on my nerves. Then Benny bobs up, as usual. I has my eye peeled from the minute he opens the do

e matter, tho

n!" s

Bob in?"

to," says I; "but don't look for any open

Course, I was sure the riot act was due inside of an hour. But never a word. Nor Mildre

bout it, when Piddie tells me one mornin' that Mildred's up and quit

and as you seem to know about everything that's

e use stringin' out the agony

. All I've been able to get out of him is that a short

says I. "It wa

bert. "Now we're

hit the tr

ys he, "wh

I, "the La

hrough his front teeth. "Not the

l be cartin' her home in the rain as blockin' traffic on some side street. So I just loads her in and gives Louie the word. She never knew but what you had sense enough to do it yourself. Course

e laid out there ain't any use to try any broad jumps. He wants to know a

in the top bunch too, I guess; anyone can see that. But so long as sh

ore or less interested. You see, she a

st?"

om Benny hims

rked up the nerve to make suc

ld make out, Benny hadn'

"he's picked a w

bert, "is something

on with her mother from Kansas City, or Omaha, or somewhere out there; put in six or eight months in a swell dressmaker's shop; learned how to make herself the kin

, wa'n't he?" say

chy," says he, "it a

needed the push, a

ow, all of 'em. They're beginnin' to find out that Mildred's quit

in, lugs me out to his tailor's to have me taped for a whole outfit of glad rags,