After a moment came the barber's bass rumble again: "That'd be rulable if he'd been in the chair, or even in the shop waitin', but—"
"LOOK HOW HE LEFT ME!"
This gave Sube another idea. "When my father drove me out of the house," he said modestly, "I did my best to satisfy him. I ran as fast as I could to the nearest barber shop—that's Bill Grayson's. Maybe it ain't exactly the nearest, but it's the quickest because I don't have to turn any corners—you know I always come to your shop if I can. Well, I got to Bill Grayson's just before six o'clock. I got in the chair and Bill started on me with the clippers; but the minute the whistles blew, he fired me right out of the chair and wouldn't finish the job! Why! Jus' look here!" he cried dramatically, snatching off his cap. "Look how he left me! I don't dare go home like this!"
The barber and his wife were astounded.
"Bill Grayson done that to you!" exclaimed Mr. McInness.
"Yes, sir, he did," replied Sube virtuously.
Mrs. McInness turned quickly to her husband. "There!" she challenged. "He was in the chair at six o'clock and his hair was partly cut! You said that would be rulable yourself!"
"But he wasn't in my chair, or even in my shop! There's somethin' doggone' funny about this. Just as like as not Bill Grayson has fixed a frame-up on me to get me in bad with the union. I ain't goin' to take no chances—"
"Joe McInness!" his wife bristled defiantly, "you may belong to the union, but I don't!—Give me the key to that shop! I'm going to finish clipping that boy's hair!"