Boy's Cinema (1930-31)

8 "Don't you think we'd better stay out here in the store ?" suggested Tommy, following close beside Egbert with the jar concealed between them. "No need at all," she answered. •'There's a customer's bell—we'll hear it ring." Sho pushed open the shop parlour door and disappeared, but almost immediately she ran out again, startled by a crash. They had smashed the glass jar on the edge of the counter to free their hands. "What happened, boys?" she asked anxiously. 'Only just a little matter we had to get off our hands," replied Egbert glibly. "Come on. Tommy." They passed from the shop into a pleasant room, plainly but comfortably furnished. "Well, this is our little home," she said. "And over here"—opening a door on the right—" is what used to be the spare room; now it's going to be youi'S." They peeped in at a double-bedded room, bright, clean and singularly attractive to two who had spent days and nights in a box-car of a goods train. "I'll run along and prepare a meal," she said. "I hope you've got good appetites. I have a nice leg of lamb." ■Tommy looked at Egbert. Egbert looked at Tommy, and they both sighed. The shop doorbell rang and Tommy made to answer its summons, but Mrs. Talley waved him back. "No, no, you get ready for dinner," she safd. "I'll go this time." It was a tall, angular and middle- aged woman who had entered the store, wearing tailor-mades and looking every inch a spinster. " Good-afternoon, IMiss Loring," said Mrs. Talley. "How d'you do, Mrs. Talley," said the spinster primly. " You've written that you would like to enter the Middleton Home for the Aged." "Well, yes," hesitated Mrs. Talley. "But I'm not quite sure now." "H'm I We require a short notice, yon know. You understand, Mrs. Talley, that the Middleton Homo is not a charitable institution, don't you ? There are certain light tasks to per- form which make the guests self- supporting, and then there's a small entrance fee. Two hundred dollars." "Y-yes; I've saved that amount." "Good!" said Miss Loring with obvious satisfaction and took a folded paper from the handbag she carried. "Hero is an application form. Fill that in and send it to the home. We'd like five days' notice. Good-day, Mrs. Talley." The visitor departed, leaving her victim with the application form and her thoughts. The sound of sobbing reached Tommy's alert ears and he ran out to her, struggling into his jacket as ho went. "What's the matter, mother?" he asked, and went down on his knees beside the chair into whicli she had dropped. "Oh, honey, I'm sure every- thing's going to be all right. Come on now, you nuistn't cry like that." "I vyon't," she sa^d, looking tearfully at him, and leaning against his shoulder. "I ought to bo ashamed, wh(Mi you've been sq kind to me." "Things are never as bad as they Beem," he declared, hugging her. "You know what they say about those clouds with tho silver linings? Well, it's tine. I've seen it happen." Tommy had washed first. Egbert, December lOtli, 1931. BOY'S CINEMA who had remained behind to follow his example, now came sauntering into the shop, putting on his coat and booming cheerfully: "Well, well, well." "Ss-s-hl" hissed Tommy. "She's been crying again." Egbert drew nearer, a forefinger raised reprovingly. "Now, mother," he said, "what did I tell you ? Didn't I say that from now on we were going to do all the worrying around here?" "I'll be all right in a minute," whis- pered Mrs. Talley. "Listen," whispered Egbert to Tommy, "we ought to do something to cheer her up." "Yes," said Tommy, and rose to his feet with alacrity. "Let's do the act for her we did at Oakville." "Good idea!" nodded Egbert. "Now come on, mother, just park the body over here." He helped the little old lady up and marched her to the parlour at the back of the shop where he deposited her in another chair. " Now, you're the audience, mother, see ? And this is the stage. There are the footlights. Now the curtain is just going up. Look! Look!" Mrs. Talley looked with tears trick- ling down her cheeks and a woebegone expression in her eyes. Egbert went to one wall. Tommy to the other. Then they turned about and met right opposite the chair in which she was seated, and for her exclusive benefit they did their double turn. They told funny stories, they sang a comic song, they indulged in typical back-chat, and they performed an eccentric dance of the simultaneous variety, and gradually their audience of one forgot her sorrows and began to smile. The smile broadened. She laughed outright, and before the enter- tainment was over tears were stream- ing down her cheeks again because she had laughed till she cried. 'Well, mother," said Egbert, after they had bowed, made a pretence of going off a stage, and returned to her as ordinary mdividuals, "are we a success or not ?" "I think you're two very dear boys," she told them. "And we're going to make a success of the drug-store, too," asserted Tom. "Yes; but Mr. Watters said he couldn't give me any more credit," she reminded them. "What are we going to do for drugs?" "Drugs?" echoed Egbert. "What on earth does a drug-store want with drugs? What a modern drug-store needs is cold soda, hot lunch, cameras, books " "Picture-postcards, magazines, brushes and combs, mirrors, and stationery," put in Tommy. "But wouldn't that take quite a lot of money?" "Yeah," said Egbert, momentarily daunted. "I never thought of that." "I—er—I've got two hundred dollars." "VVhy, that'll do it!" he cried. "A jobbing house would take that as evi- dence of good faith, and we can get ninety days on the balance." "Egbert," protested Tommy, "we cati't do that. We can't take her two hundred dollars—it's too big a gamble." "Shush, son!" boomed Egbert. "Mother, there'll be no drugs in this joint. This is going to be a drug-store. We'll change the name—we'll call it the Sun.shine Drug Store. We'll adver- tifio—we'll put in a microphone." Tommy became infected with his exuberance. "That's the idea!" he cried. "We'll Every Tuesday give 'em an horn- of our own enter- tainment!" "Mother," said Egbert, kneeling before the little old lady, "it's a cinch!"- The Sunshine Drug Store. WITHIN a very few days the drug- store began to present quite a different appearance to passers- by. On the plate-glass window, and on the fascia above, the new name, "Sun- shine Drug Store," appeared in large gilt letters, and the dusty and decayed- looking display in the shop-window was swept away to make room for more attractive goods arranged with skill. Egbert and Tommy were quick workers as well as quick thinkers. Decorators entered the premises to erect new show-cases, extend the bar, and paint and varnish. Arrangements were made with various wholesale firms to supply all manner of wares, and the local broadcasting station was induced to sell a certain amount of " the air — twice daily on a credit basis. A fortnight after the arrival of the tvvo comedians in the town—on Monday, December 15th, to be precise—Harry Watters was sitting at a desk in the piivate office of the Lockville Trust & Loan Company, scowling at a loud- speaker. Beside him sat a lean-faced nian, caressing a clipped brown mous- tache and listening with occasional chuckles to the broadcast cross-talk of Egbert and Tommy. When the enter- tainment was over, the voice of Egbert thus addressed his unseen audience: "And this, ladies and gentlemen, con- cludes the noonday broadcast from the Sunshine Drug Store. We will again present the Sunshine Hour at four o'clock this afternoon—and don't forget, folks, we serve a better meal than any other drug-store in the city. This is Dr. Egbert G. Higginbotham signing off with the voice that it kind to your ears." The lean-faced man—his name was Clarke^uncrossed his long legs and grinned irritatingly at Watters. "Looks like those two fellows are going to put it over," he remarked. "Maybe," growled Watters, and rose to shut off the radio set. "Now, listen, Clarke—I can't furnish you with any more alcohol this month." "That's up to you," said Clarke, with obvious disappointment, " but if you want to make dough in this bootleg business you got to remember ' alky' is king." "Not so loud," warned Watters. "I can't take the chance. We've practically used up tho wholesale allotment, and if I can't supply the drug-stores the Government's going to get on to me." "All right, but it's a shame to lose all the jack we might pick up—and I'm telling you, this town's got an awful thirst." " Well, we've sold a thousand gallons this month, hayen't we?" countered Watters. "Now, listen, Clarke—about this Sunshine Drug Store. It's a good location, and I want it." "Shoot the details." "This is the inside of the story. The Texia Oil Company is going to put up a ten-story building across the street. Never mind where I got the tip, but naturally my company want that lot— and 1 personally hold the assignment of the lease." "Pretty soft," commented Clarke. "What fi'you want me to do?" "Suppose we take a little walk, and I'll tell you all about it?" "Okay!" grmncd Clarke. "Anything tii turn an honest dollar—you know me.' They put on their hats and coats and went out together^