"Dear Jack，" she said， "I knew you would be here on time.""I wonder what she means by that，" he was saying to himself； "but it's all right， it's all right."A big wind puffed out of the west， picked up the paper from the sidewalk， opened it out and sent it flying and whirling down a side street.Up that street was driving a skittish bay to a spider-wheel buggy， the young man who had written to the heart-to-heart editor for a recipe that he might win her for whom he sighed.
The wind， with a prankish flurry， flapped the flying newspaper against the face of the skittish bay.There was a lengthened streak of bay mingled with the red of running gear that stretched itself out for four blocks.
Then a water-hydrant played its part in the cosmogony， the buggy became matchwood as foreordained， and the driver rested very quietly where he had been flung on the asphalt in front of a certain brownstone mansion.
They came out and had him inside very promptly.And there was one who made herself a pillow for his head， and cared for no curious eyes， bending over and saying， "Oh， it was you； it was you all the time， Bobby！ Couldn't you see it？ And if you die， why， so must I， and -- "But in all this wind we must hurry to keep in touch with our paper.
Policeman O'Brine arrested it as a character dangerous to traffic.Straightening its dishevelled leaves with his big， slow fingers， he stood a few feet from the family entrance of the Shandon Bells Caf？ One headline he spelled out ponderously： "The Papers to the Front in a Move to Help the Police."But， whisht！ The voice of Danny， the head bartender， through the crack of the door： "Here's a nip for ye， Mike， ould man."Behind the widespread， amicable columns of the press Policeman O'Brine receives swiftly his nip of the real stuff.He moves away， stalwart， refreshed， fortified， to his duties.Might not the editor man view with pride the early， the spiritual， the literal fruit that had blessed his labours.
Policeman O'Brine folded the paper and poked it playfully under the arm of a small boy that was passing.
That boy was named Johnny， and he took the paper home with him.His sister was named Gladys， and she had written to the beauty editor of the paper asking for the practicable touchstone of beauty.That was weeks ago， and she had ceased to look for an answer.
Gladys was a pale girl， with dull eyes and a discontented expression.She was dressing to go up to the avenue to get some braid.Beneath her skirt she pinned two leaves of the paper Johnny had brought.When she walked the rustling sound was an exact imitation of the real thing.
On the street she met the Brown girl from the flat below and stopped to talk.The Brown girl turned green.
Only silk at $5 a yard could make the sound that she heard when Gladys moved.The Brown girl， consumed by jealousy， said something spiteful and went her way， with pinched lips.
Gladys proceeded toward the avenue.Her eyes now sparkled like jagerfonteins.A rosy bloom visited her cheeks； a triumphant， subtle， vivifying， smile transfigured her face.She was beautiful.Could the beauty editor have seen her then！ There was something in her answer in the paper， I believe， about cultivating kind feelings toward others in order to make plain features attractive.
The labour leader against whom the paper's solemn and weighty editorial injunction was laid was the father of Gladys and Johnny.He picked up the remains of the journal from which Gladys had ravished a cosmetic of silken sounds.The editorial did not come under his eye， but instead it was greeted by one of those ingenious and specious puzzle problems that enthrall alike the simpleton and the sage.
The labour leader tore off half of the page， provided himself with table， pencil and paper and glued himself to his puzzle.
Three hours later， after waiting vainly for him at the appointed place， other more conservative leaders declared and ruled in favour of arbitration， and the strike with its attendant dangers was averted.Subsequent editions of the paper referred， in coloured inks， to the clarion tone of its successful denunciation of the labour leader's intended designs.
The remaining leaves of the active journal also went loyally to the proving of its potency.
When Johnny returned from school he sought a secluded spot and removed the missing columns from the inside of his clothing， where they had been artfully distributed so as to successfully defend such areas as are generally attacked during scholastic castigations.Johnny attended a private school and had had trouble with his teacher.As has been said， there was an excellent editorial against corporal punishment in that morning's issue， and no doubt it had its effect.
After this can any one doubt the power of the press？
TOMMY'S BURGLAR
AT TEN o'clock P.M.Felicia， the maid， left by the basement door with the policeman to get a raspberry phosphate around the corner.She detested the police-man and objected earnestly to the arrangement.She pointed out， not unreasonably， that she might have been allowed to fall asleep over one of St.George Rathbone's novels on the third floor， but she was overruled.Rasp-berries and cops were not created for nothing.
The burglar got into the house without much difficulty；because we must have action and not too much descrip-tion in a 2，000-word story.
In the dining room he opened the slide of his dark lantern.With a brace and centrebit he began to bore into the lock of the silver-closet.
Suddenly a click was heard.The room was flooded with electric light.The dark velvet porti鑢es parted to admit a fair-haired boy of eight in pink pajamas， bearing a bottle of olive oil in his hand.
"Are you a burglar？" he asked， in a sweet， childish voice.
"Listen to that，" exclaimed the man， in a hoarse voice.
"Am I a burglar？ Wot do you suppose I have a three-days' growth of bristly bread on my face for， and a cap with flaps？ Give me the oil， quick， and let me grease the bit， so I won't wake up your mamma， who is lying down with a headache， and left you in charge of Felicia.
