FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138  
139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   >>  
urch, like a cow playin' leap-frog, and over she comes, still pointed our way. "Hey, Major!" I calls out above the roar. "Can they see where they're goin' in there? Hadn't we better give 'em room?" "Don't move, please," says he. "Just as you say," says I; "only I ain't strong for bein' rolled into pie-crust." "There's no danger," says he. "I merely wish you to see how---- There! Look!" And say, within twenty feet of us the blamed thing rears up on its haunches, its ugly nose high as a house above us, and, while I'm still holdin' my breath, it pivots on its tail and lumbers back, leavin' a path that looks like it had been paved with Belgian blocks. Course, that's only part of the performance. We watched it wallow into deep ditches and out, splash through a brook, and mow down trees more'n a foot thick. And all the time the crew were pokin' out wicked-lookin' guns, big and little, that swung round and hunted us out like so many murderous eyes. "Cute little beast, ain't it?" says I. "You got it trained so it'll almost do a waltz. If I was to pick my position, though, I think I'd rather be on the inside lookin' out." "Very well," says the Major. "You shall have a ride in it." "Excuse me," says I. "I was only foolin'. Honest, Major, I ain't yearnin'." "Telegram for you," breaks in Barnes, the secretary. "Oh!" says I, a bit gaspy, as I rips open the envelop. It's the one I'd been espectin'. All it says is: "Come at once. VEE." But I knew what that meant. "Sorry, Major," says I, "but I'll have to pass up the rest of the show. I--I'm called back." "Ah! To headquarters?" says he. "No," says I. "Home." He shakes his head and frowns. "That is a word which no officer is supposed to have in his vocabulary," says he. "It's in mine, all right," says I. "But then, I'm not much of an army officer, anyway. I'm mostly a camouflaged private sec. Besides, this ain't any ordinary call. It's a domestic S. O. S. that I've been sort of lookin' for." "I understand," says he. "The--the first?" I nods. Then I asks: "What's the quickest way across to Long Island?" "There isn't any quick way," says he, "unless you have wings. You can't even catch the branch line local that connects with the New York express now. There'll be one down at 8:36 to-morrow morning, though." "Wha-a-at!" says I, gawpin' at him. "How about gettin' a machine and shootin' down to the junction?" "My car is the only one here,"
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138  
139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   >>  



Top keywords:
lookin
 

officer

 

secretary

 

frowns

 

Barnes

 
shakes
 
supposed
 

Honest

 
vocabulary
 

yearnin


Telegram

 

breaks

 
called
 

envelop

 
espectin
 

headquarters

 
connects
 
express
 

branch

 

morrow


shootin

 

machine

 

junction

 

gettin

 

morning

 

gawpin

 

private

 

Besides

 

foolin

 

ordinary


camouflaged

 
domestic
 

quickest

 

Island

 

understand

 
twenty
 

danger

 
strong
 

rolled

 
blamed

holdin
 

breath

 
pivots
 
haunches
 

pointed

 

playin

 
lumbers
 

leavin

 
trained
 

murderous