Presently, the teletype attendant, young Billy Stevens, came dashing into the room.
“Oh, hello, Miss Parker,” he said with a bashful grin.
“Hello, Billy,” Penny answered cordially. She studied the keyboard of the sending teletype machine, running her fingers over the letters. “I wish I could work this thing,” she said.
“There’s nothing to it if you can run a typewriter,” answered Billy. “Just a minute, I’ll throw it off the line on to the test position. Then you can try it.”
At first Penny’s copy was badly garbled, but under Billy’s enthusiastic coaching she was soon doing accurate work.
“Say, this is fun!” she declared. “I’m coming in again one of these days and practice. Thanks a lot, Billy!”
As Penny went back into the editorial room she saw the Morcrum boy leaving her father’s office. His head was downcast and his face was flushed to the ears. Obviously, he had not had a comfortable time with Mr. Parker.
The moment the boy had vanished, Penny hurried into her father’s office to learn the outcome of the interview.
“No luck,” reported Mr. Parker, reaching for his hat and overcoat.
“He wouldn’t change his story?”