“Oh, it’s quite comfortable, I believe,” Howard turned over a page of the paper and fell to reading an article on the high price of sugar and the prospect of a fall.
“You ought to see their dump out in Cally. It’s some mansion, believe me! There wasn’t anything else in that part of the State to compare with it for miles around. And cahs! They had cahs to burn! The old man was just lousy with gold, you know; struck a rich mine years ago. His wife had a pile, too. Her father was all kinds of a millionaire and left every bit to her; and Al and his sister’ll get everything. Seen anything of her? She ought to be a winner pretty soon. She was a peach when she was little. She’s some speedy kid! We used to play together, you know, and our folks sorta fixed it up we were just made for each other and all that sorta thing, you know––but I don’t know––I’m not going to be bound by any such nonsense, of course, unless I like. One doesn’t want one’s wife to be such an awfully good shot, fer instance, you know–––!”
A great anger surged up in Howard’s soul, and his jaw set with a fierce line that those who knew him well had learned to understand meant self-control under deep provocation. He would have liked nothing better than to surprise the insolent young snob with a well-directed blow in his pretty face that would have sent him sprawling in the aisle. His hands fairly twitched to give him the lesson that he needed, but he only replied with a slight inscrutable smile in one corner of his mouth:
“It might be inconvenient for some people.” There an aloofness in his tone that did not encourage 298 further remarks, but the young stranger was evidently not thin-skinned, or else he loved to hear himself babbling.
“I’m coming on heah, you know, to look this college ovah–––!” he drawled. “If it suits me, I may come heah next yeah. Got fired from three institutions out West for larking, and father thought I better go East awhile. Any fun doing out this way?”
“I suppose those that go to college looking for it can find it,” answered Howard noncommittally.
“Well––that’s what I’m looking for. That’s about all anybody goes to college for anyway, that and making a lot of friends. Believe me, it would be a beastly bore if it wasn’t for that. Al Cloud used to be a lively one. I’ll wager he’s into everything. See much of the college people down in town––do you?” He eyed his companion patronizingly. “S’pose you get in on some of the spoahts now and then?”
“Oh, occasionally,” said Howard with a twinkle in his eye. He was captain of the football team and forward in basket-ball, but it didn’t seem to be necessary to mention it.
“Any fellows with any pep in them out here? I suppose there must be or Al wouldn’t stay unless he’s changed. He used to keep things pretty lively. That’s one reason why I told dad I’d come out here. I like a place with plenty of ginger. It gets my goat to be among a lot of grinds and sissies! This is a co-ed college, isn’t it? That suits me all right if the girls have any pep and aren’t too straitlaced. Any place around here where you can go off and take a girl for a good dinner and a dash of life? I couldn’t stand for any good-little-boy stuff. Know any place around 299 here where you can get a drink of the real thing now and then, some place near enough to go joy-riding to, you know? I shall bring my cah of course–––! One can get away with a lot more stuff if they have their own cah, you know––especially where there’s girls. You can’t pull off any devilment if you have to depend on hired cahs. You might get caught. I suppose they have some pretty spicy times down at the frat rooms, don’t they? I understood the frats were mostly located down in the town.”
Howard suddenly folded his paper, looking squarely in the limpid eyes of his seatmate for the first time, with a cold, searching, subduing gaze.