The Rose in the Ring

inaldi said when David told him of Braddock's sudden change of front. It was a se

aid David gloomily. "But

the business after you get safely over into Indiana or Illinois. That'll stave 'im off.

ristine. He was thinking of her wonderfully sympathetic eyes, of the live touch of her hand on his arm, of the soft music in her voice, of the delicious words

ve him when he passed her in the dressing-tent! The world seemed to have grown brighter for him all of a sudden. Fo

st a high board fence. David recalled this figure at once: a squat, hunchback lad who was to be seen at times behind the counter of the "snack stand." More than o

s teeth like a vicious dog. The most appalling flow of profanity came shrieking through his white lips. David was shocked. Ne

llowing the act with a name so vile that the other le

ht-hander on the jaw of the enraged bully, sending him to the ground

, four in number, stood undecided. Then, wi

fect. Two of his assailants reeled away under the savage impact of his blows. A stone, hurled by one of the young ruffians, struck him on the shoulder; another reached his face with a cutting blow of the fist. He fe

onflict. A whirlwind figure dashed out of an alley

cowering cripple, the fierc

out the newcomer, slash

lads. So you'd jump on

mas gift for yo

n expected boot-toe; the fifth was being soundly polished off by the exhilarated David. In less time than it takes to tell it, five terrified hoodlums were "streaking it" in as many directions, their chi

all, angry rescuer, whining petulantly: "Why didn't you come soo

f he was doing business all right when I came up. Hello! They got to you, did they? Bleeding like a pig, you are

heek. The tall young man came over an

ay, you're the new clown, ain't you? I saw you last night. Put it t

vid with keen gray eyes, narrowed by the odd intentness of his gaze. David had the feelin

ath. "They were teasing him, and then one of the brutes struck him. I like f

't have to interfere, but you did. Plucky thing to do. They say you come from Virginia. Well, you've proved it. Thank you for doing

ground, his black eyebrows almost mee

d 'em if you hadn't com

t's no way to act. Mr.-er-this you

hump yesterday. He laughed a

k. "Laughed at you?" he cried. "I neve

emanded the unfortunate boy, made ov

laughed," said David, p

u did," d

f profound embarrassmen

r him, though he could

id. "And I am happy to have come to you

ntly but firmly. The hunchbac

t," he sa

be along here directly. Let's get back to the lot.

most mysterious way, a

en a deep flush spread o

e you are with m

ething to mind. "I didn't mean anything like that," he hastened to explain. "As f

battle and toss them over the high board fence. Three of their late enemies

ontemptuous remark as he started off br

s shining. David announced that he would p

honor, I believe, to land one of us in jail. The darned rubes talk about it for weeks afterwards, telling how they nailed a desperate character. Everybody connected w

xed David with airy comments on the methods employed by rustic police in their efforts to preserve the

eyes. He seemed to be taking in everything as they ambled through the alley. When they approached the intersectin

s are still at the cor

left without look

ned to t

f a cop ever stops you and begins asking questions, just you tell him you're a performer. You can always prove it, whether you are one or n

out of the corner of his eye at the long, s

bars for the past two weeks. Not the horizontal bars, mind you. Banks and

u m

oth the nonchalant philosopher. It was sharpl

ck, his chin elevated, his long legs stepping out freely, confidently. His stiff black hat was cocked airily over his right ear. He was rather flashily dressed, but he had the ease of manner that enabled him to carry his cloth

s. His dark hair grew rather low on his wide forehead; it always looked straight and damp. The nose was long and pointed. When he whistled-which was almost incessantly-the tip of it appeared to prot

est of the summer?" asked David hesitati

He wants too much in the divvy. There's plenty of shows nowadays that don't ask anything off of u

r life he ain't going to leave the s

easily. David instinctively knew t

knack of "spotting" a p

lity in him was p

wall," he said to David. "I g

smell," said

d the tall youth with a shout of joy. He shook hands with all of them, from the hostler to the

boy!" was the un

d their hands gayly at him; some of them wafted kisses-which he gallantly returned. Old Joey N

to see you again, Dicky

better than the chuck

pinched in th

speak to some one. When he looked

?" he asked

by this time," said

s he,

pickpocket-in the United States. He's the king of all the glue-fingers, that boy is. My eye, 'ow he can do wot he does, I

e with him?" cried Da

dest lawyer in ten states. Wot he don't know about the law nobody else does. Experience is a wonderful teacher. He comes by 'is name rightly, he does,-Artful Dick. I've larfed myself sick many a time listening to 'ow he lifted things. Once he actually took a feller's pocket-book out of 'is inside westcut pocket, removed the bills, signed a little receipt for 'em, and then returned the leather to the gent's westcut. Later on he 'eard the chap was going to use the money to pay off a morgidge and tha

e never knowed 'im to do a mean or dishonorable thing," said Joey with perfect complacency. And yet Joey Noakes

s that kind,"

d provide for Ernie all 'is life. It seems that he's responsible for the deformity. When Ernie was five years old, Dick, who 'ad a wery disagreeable temper in them days, kicked the little cuss downstairs. The kid was laid up for months and he came out of it all twisted up-just as you see 'im now. Well, Dick never got mad at anybody after that. He wery properly swore he'd take care of Ernie and try to make up for wot he'd done to 'im. He said he'd beg or steal or kill if he 'ad to, to provide for 'im. He's never 'ad to beg or kill, I'm tha

unbeli

ll 'im afore he got out, he was that enraged at 'im for being so inconsiderate as to get caught. They say Ernie has several thousand dollars in a bank in New York,

at is to become of him?" crie

as he calls it. He says he's going to be 'anged some

morbid

mily, so to speak. His father was 'anged for murder when Dick w

d David, in a lowered tone. A

gentle wife who prayed for 'im every night and tried to get 'im to give up the life on account of the children. One night he got drunk and shot a perfectly 'elpless old

k brothers were engaged in earnest conversation, low-toned and serious,

Ernie," said tall Dick, almost pla

s teeth. "You got more than twenty dollars out of

od, Ernie, I

fifty dollars

got to, then. I nipped

do you a dirty trick li

the misshapen lad. "If it hadn't been for

Ain't you ever going to give me a rest on that? Ain

if I was straight she'd look at me, too. She wouldn't look the other way every time I come around. Oh, you don't know how it feels! She'd go out walkin

tterness dwelt in t

her." With the inconsistency of the selfishly irrational he added: "I've got plenty of money. I could give h

of him, and yet a heart of stone would have been touched by the mi

her anyhow, Ernie. Mayb

s voice and in its place came shrill blasphemy. After he had cursed Dick and David Jenison to his heart's co

ing you got from the fe

till g

to give to Ruby Noakes, eh? That's it, is it? Cheating me

oing to do anything of the sort. Why-why, I cou

t, am I? I'm not as good as she is, am I? Well, say, lemme tell you

d speaking very slowly, "you sometimes

! Then they'd

g to put his arm around his brother, on

scoffed the other. "Say

n him to carry the smallest part of his gains on

ng to give it to

d Dick quietly, dropping the ring into his brother's hand. It

ne will take it fr

y it, Braddock would

n't offer to kick me last night when I told him she'd been out walking with that guy

st the stand in the dir

istine and the guy you mean talking over there by the

stared for a full minute without blinking.

straight and handsome lik

he knew that the tears wer

about it, Ern

bbed twice, and then burst forth in a shrill tirade of abuse. Quivering with ungov

stion, not only of his lung power but in the matter of epithets, the tall martyr took his hands ou

ginning to gather at t

olling among 'em,

gerly, his mood ch

k," he said, hi