“We-e-ll,” came slowly from Mr. Alexander’s lips, “you ought to know what’s right, Mrs. Courtney; but I must say, my Missus ain’t so much a guardian and protector of her child like-as-how you seem to say. Little Dodo’s got me to advise her, and to see that she don’t make mistakes in choosin’ the wrong husband—but the Missus would have her gal marry any dumb-bell, as long as he had a title er money. Ain’t it so, friends? I appeal to you: how about the Urope tower, when Dodo and me had to elope to get out of marryin’ that Osgood dude, eh?”
Mrs. Courtney had heard of this unique elopement of Dodo with her Dad, and she could not help smiling at the remembrance. Still she felt that certain respects were due Mrs. Alexander, in spite of that lady’s foolishness and ignorant chase for society honors, and she said so now.
Mr. Dalken upheld her verdict, and then he turned to Jack.
“Well, seeing how eager you were to keep on acting as my valet, we will make use of you as one. It is part of your duty to me. I will write a letter of explanation to Mrs. Alexander, and tell her of your engagement to serve me during this trip—that you were to escort the girls and their chaperon to different places on this Southwest tour, thus affording me all the leisure I would require to attend to my business appointments. I will confess that you have other resources to live upon than the salary I pay you; then I will admit that the salary is merely nominal, since you were eager to take this journey with us. If that doesn’t fetch the lady to her senses, then I shall have to try and discover other means. Now, you all keep quiet while I write. Then we will order Jack to deliver the letter at Mrs. Alexander’s door in person.”
Since Mr. Dalken was Big Chief of the party, there could be no objections to his plan, and soon he was seated at a writing-table. He wrote quickly for some time, then read aloud what he had written. He blotted the sheet, and folded it carefully, then placed it in an envelope and wrote the name and room number on the outside. Then he handed this note to Jack with orders to deliver it at once.
“We shall await your return, Jack,” said Mrs. Courtney, settling herself in a comfortable position to wait.
Jack looked slightly inclined to rebel against his orders, but Mr. Dalken had turned away towards the fire-place, and the young ex-valet sauntered out of the room. The girls watched with a grin of sympathy upon their faces, but not a word was spoken by any one present. Mr. Alexander, as though defying his wife’s strict commands, pulled the old black pipe from his pocket and loaded it with Cut Plug. Then he struck a match on his trousers leg, and lit the tobacco. In another minute he was smoking away like a clogged chimney.
Jack was absent more than the specified ten minutes allowed by his friends, but when he did come back he was laughing to himself.
“Oh! do tell us all about it!” exclaimed the girls, eagerly.
“No, siree! I had to take that bitter dose without the sugar you girls might have given me, and now I have no intentions of sharing the sweets that I earned. But you may find out all about it, some day. Suffice it for me to say: the awful scandal which threatened the sweet accord of the Alexander couple has been avoided by my diplomacy. Henceforth Mr. Alexander and his daughter Dodo will be made supremely happy by having Mrs. Alexander dote upon them, as all turtle-doves should.” Jack laughed.