turned me down?”
Jim Caldwell avoided me, but
“You told me that sure, you lying old
whenever I saw him I thought of what he had hound. But Peyton Gaines told me the truth, coming to him, and I felt better.
which was that Marie was fixing to marry you Saturday morning was a regular day
on the quiet and not let me know about it.”
for getting married. The sun shone brightly,
“Peyton Gaines told you that!” Jim
and the people came put to see Peyton Gaines said, his voice rising to a semi-howl. “Peyton marry Marie Newlands—everybody except Gaines told—”
Jim. I looked all around for him, but he was
“Sure he did. That’s how I know.”
out of sight.
“Well,” said Jim, “Peyton came to me
Just before Peyton started for the and told me the same thing about you. And to church I handed him the legal papers, entitling get even with you, I fixed it so he could marry him to my half of Kilgour & Co. He put the Marie. Maybe you don’t know it, but I ain’t papers in his pocket and thanked me. So did your partner. I sold my interest to Peyton. In Marie. Then they started for the minister, and fact, I handed it to him, so’s Marie would I lagged behind, wondering what had become marry him from under your nose.”
of Jim. I certainly wanted him to be around I looked at Jim for a minute, and then a where he could see the ceremony.
slow, bright light began to steal across my The marriage was pulled off on useless brain.
schedule, and a minute later Marie, smiling
“You sold Gaines your half of Kilgour
brightly, got into the automobile with her new
& Co.?” I demanded in a hoarse whisper.
husband and it started down the street. I stood
“I did,” said Jim. “I gave it to him,
on the church steps and hurled some rice at almost for nothing.”
them, and when I turned around I observed my
“So did I,” I shouted. “Between them,
former partner.
Marie and Peyton now own our store. We’re Instead of being downcast, he was ruined.”
looking at me with a triumphant grin. I didn’t We moved over together for mutual
get that at all.
protection under the catastrophe which we
“Well, you Janus-faced old hypocrite,”
now began to understand. For some time we I said, walking up to him. “She didn’t marry looked at each other in a dumb way; then we you, did she?”
turned and looked at the merry throng down
“Marry me,” said Jim, exploding into
the street, with the bridal automobile leading mirth. “Why should she marry me? You mean the gay parade. All was cheerful as a wedding she didn’t marry you. ”
bell, except us.
He seemed so cheerful that it worried
“I even hired that motor-car,” I said
me.
regretfully.
“I never expected her to marry me,
“I hired the band,” said Jim. “Thirty
because she turned me down. But after I found dollars. Looks to me, Shorty, like we been run out that she had arranged to marry you and through some sort of a machine with cogs in that you had lied to me, I decided to get even it.”
with you if I busted a leg. And I’m even.
We walked down the church steps
Kilgour & Co.
11
together and passed Kilgour & Co., which was goods business which we started.
closed in honor of the day’s main event.
When they came back from the
“So-long, store,” I said, saluting. “You honeymoon, Marie took charge of the ladies’
were a good old store while you lasted.”
department and Peyton Gaines began handling
“We don’t own nothing now, do we?”
the men’s side as though he’d done it forever.
Jim asked as we stopped in front of Ike They are happy, and their work is being Dorman’s.
rewarded. The other day they took down the
“We don’t!” I said. “Look down the
sign which read Kilgour & Co., and put up the street.”
new me, saying, in gold letters, Peyton Jim looked and observed Pop Gaines.
Treadwell coming along in the ranch car. He
“And Peyton does, too,” Jim said
drove up and stopped.
thoughtfully, as we went into Ike’s place.
“Say,” he said, “are you two fat-heads
“After all, Shorty, we’re only plain ranch coming back to work on my ranch, or do I hands and that’s where we belong.”
give those two jobs to the guys that came in
“I’m just as well satisfied,” I said to on the freight this morning?”
Jim. “Marie’s a smart girl. She was too smart
“Fat-heads is right,” I said humbly.
to be working for us, as events proved. Maybe
“We’ll be back to our jobs in the morning, we ought to have hired somebody with about Pop. And you won’t have no more trouble half our brains.”
with Jim and me. We’re reformed.”
“There ain’t anybody with half our
That’s what happened. We are now
brains,” Jim remarked cheerfully. “Half our back among the alfalfa and the prize heifers.
brains is decimals.”
Every now and then we go into Tulena and Then we went into Ike’s and shook
look at the growing haberdashery and dry horses.
Kilgour & Co Page 3