Allen Chapman

“ I know what I’m talking about,” said Purnell. “I’ve only a few days left.”
“I want to do right,” said Frank slowly.
“Then help a poor, broken wretch to die in peace,” pleaded Purnell.
“I’ll be back soon,” said Frank simply, deeply affected himself.
Frank acted on an impulse he could hardly control. He ran to the Haven home and roused up Darry and Bob. There was animated explanation and discussion.
Half-an-hour later, secret and stealthy as midnight marauders, the trio of friends wheeled the Haven Brothers’ delivery hand cart down the alley behind Main Street Block. ”

“ I shall go out and visit small towns and sell from door to door, or even from the wagon, till I hear from that missing money, or get on my feet again.”
“You’re a good one,” pronounced Darry with an admiring sparkle in his eye, slapping Frank heartily on the shoulder. “You’re a stubborn one, too, so I won’t intrude offers of assistance only to be turned down.”
“All the time,” resumed Frank, “I shall be looking out for a trace of Markham. See here, Darry, I can’t get that Dale Wacker off my mind. Who are his companions? Where does he hang out? How am I going to set a watch on him?” ”

“ We are sure that Purnell was his tool and partner. [4] Anyhow, we cannot hold Dorsett to make any restitution. I hope some day, though, to run across this Purnell. If I ever do, I’ll not lose sight of him till I know the truth of the wicked plot that made us paupers. He, and he only, holds the key to the situation.”
“Mr. Dorsett is a bad man,” said the widow. “His actions show he is not just. Else, why does he care to put obstacles in your way when you seek work? I wish we could leave Greenville, Frank. That man terrifies me. He may get you into some trouble. ”

“ Ismond sank to a chair, quite pale and agitated over the disturbing incident of the moment.
“Frank,” she said in a fluttering tone, “that man alarms me. It makes me uneasy to think he is lurking about us all the time. I am unhappy to think we are subject to his caprices, where once he owned the property.”
“We own it yet, by rights,” declared Frank. “Some day I may prove it to Dorsett. But do not worry, mother. You must have guessed from my interest in what Mr. Gregson said to-night, that I believe there is something for me in this mail order idea. ”

“ When I have made enough money, I would like to run a ranch myself. But I want to own it. I want to make a business investment—not fun and frolic—out of it.”
“All right, I’ll be on hand in the morning,” promised Nelson.
“I have been saving a surprise for you, Frank,” said his mother, as he rejoined her about nine o’clock. “What do you think? Your friend, Mr. Gregson, insisted on leaving you twenty-five dollars.”
“Oh, that won’t do at all!” cried Frank instantly. ”

“ A little farther on Frank came in sight of the high board fence he had so curiously observed on his way to Riverton.
The wind was his way, and as he approached the queer barrier he was somewhat astonished at a great babel of canine barking and howls that greeted his ears.
“Sounds like a kennel,” he reflected, “but’s a big one. Why, if there isn’t the little fellow with the package of meat.”
Frank wonderingly regarded a tattered, forlorn figure at a distance seeming to be glued right up face forward against the fence.
[27]
The boy had piled two or three big boulders on top of one another. ”

“ The marshal looked quite grave as he came down the walk and beckoned Frank out of the office.
“That man’s name is Halsey,” he said “and he comes from Westboro. Newton, he makes some pretty serious charges against you. Says he has been badly swindled.”
“Not by me,” declared Frank. “There must be some mistake.”
“He says not. He claims he sent some money to you and got a worthless article in return.”
“Let me see the man at once,” urged Frank. “His charge is utterly unfounded. I am not in business to defraud people, but to make regular customers of them.” ”

“ Frank shook his head, and paced up and down the floor of the best room of the cozy little cottage that was their present home.
“It’s no use, mother,” he said finally. “The lost fortune is a dream, a bubble. We may just as well get down to that. Mr. Beach, the lawyer, gives us hopes, but they are not based on much. At the same time, he takes his fees. We can’t stand that any longer. I told him so, yesterday. I don’t believe there is the least show in the world for our claim. ”

“ Frank grew to have a decided respect for Markham’s little puzzle. He had struck the right crowd to sell it to, this time. At the end of an hour fully fifty persons could be seen on the well-lighted verandas and in the hotel rotunda, working over the clever puzzle. An occasional utterance of satisfaction would greet the solution of the puzzle. ”

“ My head is just bursting with all the ideas that interesting balloonist has put into it. Why, mother, if I can only get a start, if I can get hold of a few novelties and do a little advertising—”
“Oh, Frank, it takes money to do all that!”
“And brains. Mostly brains and industry, Mr. Gregson says. Mother, now or soon, here, at Greenville or somewhere else, I am determined to give the mail order idea a trial.”
“Mail order, Frank?”
“Capital! excellent!” cried Frank with enthusiasm. “Why, mother, you have suggested the very catchy name. I will use to advertise by—‘Mail Order Frank’!” ”

“ Frank watched Dorsett dismount from the gig and tie his horse. He realized that he would be up into the insurance man’s office in a few minutes.
“I must do something, and quickly,” thought Frank. “The second that man sees me he will suspect my mission here. He is a person of substance, and will carry weight. I shall be left if he gets into action first.”
Frank reflected rapidly. The old clerk, as he had already found out, was unapproachable. Frank was seized with a wild impulse to leap over the wire railing and rush past the clerk to the door of Mr. Pryor’s private office. ”

“ As he spoke he thrust a long scantling down into the cistern.
“Reach for my hand—grab it. You’ll be drowned,” continued Frank.
“Don’t bother—I’m all safe,” came up Markham’s hollow tones. “There’s only about three feet of water here.”
“How did you ever come to slip in?” asked Frank.
“Say,” spoke Markham, not replying to the direct inquiry, “while I’m in here I may as well see if everything is sound and straight with the cistern.”
Frank saw him flare a match. Some curious thoughts were running through Frank’s mind as to the strange actions of his companion and helper. ”

“ THE BALLOONIST’S RESCUE
There was a sharp bang as the bicycle struck the tree stump. Frank righted himself readily and ran to the machine where it had fallen.
“Pshaw!” he exclaimed, “tire punctured and the wheel a pretty bad wreck generally.”
This was true. A jagged sliver had ripped a hole in both the outer and inner tubes of the front wheel. The hard bang against the tree stump had twisted several spokes out of place and set a rim wobbling.
Frank had started in such a hurry from Riverton that morning that he had not thought of taking his mending kit along. ”

“ The marshal led the way, and they were soon mounting the stairs of Main Street Block. They proceeded quietly, so as to give no warning or create any curiosity with other occupants of the building.
“There is the door,” said Frank in a guarded tone, as they reached the landing of the third story.
The marshal advanced and gave a firm resounding knock on its panels. They could detect a stir within. Then the wicket shot back.
“Who are you—what do you want? Thunder! it’s the marshal.” ”

“ Around him were his busy employes nailing up great boxes of merchandise ordered from all parts of the country.
The sound of the hammers seemed still echoing in his ears as he was aroused by the voice of his mother from her own room.
“Frank! Frank!” she called.
“Yes, mother,” he answered, springing out of bed.
“Some one is knocking at the front door.”
“Knocking?” repeated Frank, hurrying into his clothes. “That’s no knocking, it sounds more like hammering.”
Christmas was barking furiously. The hammering had ceased by the time Frank had got down [55] the stairs and to the front door. ”

“ They wouldn’t sell under a gross—three dollars and sixty cents, I think the price was. I didn’t have that much, so my scheme fell down.”
Markham now took a printed circular from his pocket, as if to verify his statement. Frank glanced over it with increasing interest. It advertised a city firm supplying street peddlers with all kinds of goods.
“Yes,” said Frank, “I noticed a man selling these same articles on a street corner. It’s a pretty catchy novelty with boys and young men.”
“It is, for a fact,” declared Markham. “Look here: did you ever see ‘Teddy’s Teeth?’ That’s an old novelty—look.” ”

“ When Bart and the others had gone, Frank and Markham looked about their business quarters with a proud air of satisfaction and comfort.
“I tell you, Frank, those fellows are royal good friends of yours,” spoke Markham.
“Yes,” said Frank with real emotion, “they have indeed given me the lift they promised me. We are of poor business material, indeed, if we cannot make this fine beginning lead to a grand success. Now then, for a genuine start in the morning. If you will act as typewriter till we can [149] afford to hire one, I will fold a batch of our first circulars.” ”

“ It was just five o’clock when the wagons drew up in front of the store front building on Cedar Street, in Greenville.
A man whom Mr. Buckner had hired was sweeping out the place. With his aid and that of another helper, the big packing cases were stowed in the main floor room as Frank wanted them.
Frank had just paid off the two outsiders, when the man he had leased the wagons from drove up in a light vehicle. He was all smiles. He looked over the horses and turned to Frank.
“Mistah Newton, sah,” he observed, “the mussiful man am kind to his beast. ”

“ The marshal briefly recited his suspicions and the case of Halsey. The inspector as tersely told of a telegram the post-office department had received, exposing the operations of the United States Mail Order House. Frank at once decided that Stet was its author.
“No dilatory fraud order case here,” observed the inspector briskly. “It’s got to be a raid, I see. Here, let me have a try. In there!” called out the official in a loud tone of voice, pounding on the door panels, “open in the name of the law, or we shall be obliged to use force.” ”

“ A crowd of idle men took fire on the puzzle proposition, as two men examining the wire devices got rating one another as to their respective ability to get the ring off first. A dozen puzzles were purchased in as many minutes.
Frank went the rounds of the verandas, meeting with very fair success. The people there had plenty of money to spare, time hung rather heavy on their hands, and they welcomed his arrival as a diversion. ”

“ Mother is poor. We can’t pay any two dollars to get Fido out. But I come here every day and bring all the meat I can gather up, and feed the poor things. The trouble is, though, there is so many of them in there, and they are so hungry, and poor Fido is so small, he hardly ever gets a nibble. There’s a grand, big dog in there looks out for him when he can, and divides a bone with him, but the rough dogs get most of the food.”
“Have you tried to get this Stoggs to let you have Fido back?” inquired Frank. ”

“ The fact is, Markham, I am going to move to Pleasantville. I have some rare, royal friends there. Two of them, Darry and Bob Haven, are in the printing business. They own and publish a weekly newspaper. They can help me immensely. Then there is a mightier reason, too, for locating at Pleasantville.”
“What’s that, Frank?” asked the interested Markham.
“A man named Dawes runs a novelty factory there—makes all kinds of little hardware specialties. It is just the place to manufacture my apple corer, if it is a success. ”

“ Frank recited his experience with the salvage from start to finish. He wound up with the words: “You can see, sir, very plainly that I have hopes of getting those lists. I have a little money, and I will be glad to buy them.”
Mr. Morton studied Frank in a pleased, interested way.
“Young man,” he said, “you have acted very honorably in coming to me the way you have. As to that mail order literature, cart it away. I don’t want it. I might sell the lists, if I had the time—I haven’t—so they are yours. And, look here, these bills—I’ll give you half of what you collect on them.” ”

“ If I was started in the mail order business, I wouldn’t hesitate to illustrate and advertise it in my catalogue.”
“Well,” said Markham, “that pleases me, for I can show in a small way my appreciation of all your kindness to me. Frank, I give it to you. If it’s worth patenting, all right. I know it’s original. It’s yours, freely.”
“On royalty—yes,” answered Frank. “I’ll have some nicely finished models made when we get to Pleasantville. We’re getting to be great business men, aren’t we, Markham, talking about [128] patents and royalties? ”

“ Since then Nelson had spent nearly all the pocket money he could earn writing to people in Idaho, from the Governor down. Nobody seemed to want an inexperienced, home-bred boy to round their stock, however. Still, Nelson kept on hoping and trying.
“I’ll risk your letter coming before your contract with me is finished, Nelson,” said Frank kindly. “About this cowboy business, though—take my advice and that of your good, kind father: don’t waste your best young years just for the sake [73] of novelty and adventure. No ambitious boy can afford it.” ”

“ Bespattered and hatless, the fellow reached the depot [157] just in time to grab the platform rail of the last car on a departing train.
“Oh, got out of town, did he?” asked Markham quite eagerly.
“Yes, it seems so—faster than he had calculated on,” responded Frank.
“Won’t be likely to come back again after that reception, eh?” said Markham.
“I should think not. He’ll be afraid of something worse.”
Markham brightened up. He acted like a different person at once. He laughed, told some funny stories, was his natural self once more, and Frank was very glad of it.
“Poor fellow,” he mused. ”