most certainly do not,â said she.
âWeâll see,â said he, trying to save his scattering dignity.
âFather will see!â said she with finality.
He scowled, felt unmanned, felt that Weary was sneering at him as if he was a weak sister. He looked at his meaningless long trousers.
Weary said with great braggadocio he wasnât going to high school and his sister protested. Tall Jim Clayburn said he thought going to school was sensible and necessary if you wanted to get ahead. He said he thought that Sister Bertha had once told them the truth when she said you needed education and stick-to-it-iveness to get ahead in life. Lucy said Jim was so sensible, and she had a devilish look in her eyes. Dan commenced to agree with Jim, but his brother interrupted him:
âSay, did you see High Collars?â
âYeah, I saw him walkinâ with Dorothy and his wife,â Tubby said, glad to get back in the conversation.
âHe wouldnât let her come to the party. He told Mother that Dorothy needed her proper rest,â said Fran Lonigan.
âHeâs an old mean thing,â said Lucy.
âThe poor kid! Sheâs all right, and awfully sweet, but she canât ever do anything on account of her father. Sometimes she tells me about it, and cries,â exclaimed Fran Reilley.
âI wouldnât want an old man like him,â TB said.
They looked at TB, because his old man was nothing to brag about.
âAnyway, he didnât wear his silk hat tonight,â Dan said.
âI wonder if he uses perfume?â TB said.
âIâll bet he wears ladiesâ underwear,â contributed Bill Donoghue.
The guys haw-hawed, and the girls giggled modestly after stating that Billâs language was not exactly nice.
They talked on, and wondered what they would do. Bill goofed Tubby, because Connell looked like a smoke, and Bill said that now Tubby was graduated, he shouldnât find no trouble becoming a Pullman porter. TB said that every time he saw Tubby he thought it would rain because of dark clouds all around. Tubby hock-hocked in imitation of Muggsy, and the girls said Tubby was too frightful for words.
Jim Clayburn went to the baby grand, and Bill said that they would now listen to Good Old Stick-To-It-Iveness. Jim played, and they crowded around, singing, but they couldnât get any harmony because Bill bellowed and Tubby and Muggsy tried to be funny. They sang Alexanderâs Rag Time Band, The River Shannon Flowing, Itâs a Long Way to Tipperary, Dear Old Girl, Dance and Grow Thin, and Bell Brandon . Then Jim started In My Harem . Bill got in the center of the floor and did a shocking hula-hula that was so funny they nearly split laughing; he sang:
And the dance they do . . .
Is enough to kill a Jew . . .
Da-Da-Dadadada-Da . . .
In my harem with Pat Malone.
Jim played When Itâs Apple Blossom Time in Normandy , and just as they started the chorus Bill goosed Tubby, and Studs did the same with TB. The two victims jumped, yelling ouch. It broke up the singing and everybody laughed. Bill asked Rastus where the ghosts were, and Tubby replied by calling Bill snake Irish, so low that he crawled in the mud. Studs said that trying to decide which was the worst, an Irishman or a jigg, was like shooting craps for stage money with loaded dice; and he was proud of his crack even if they didnât laugh.
âLetâs dance!â Helen said, interrupting all the tomfoolery.
The fellows who knew how foxtrotted with the girls while Lucy played. Studs, TB and Weary stood in a corner whispering dirty jokes. When the others tired of dancing, they sat down; this time the fellows werenât all on one side of the room and the girls on the other. They talked some more, and wondered what they would do, and Bill kept the party going by his clowning. Martin wandered in, looking oh-so-darling, and the girls made a fuss trying to pet him. Tubby finally grabbed him and
âWeâll see,â said he, trying to save his scattering dignity.
âFather will see!â said she with finality.
He scowled, felt unmanned, felt that Weary was sneering at him as if he was a weak sister. He looked at his meaningless long trousers.
Weary said with great braggadocio he wasnât going to high school and his sister protested. Tall Jim Clayburn said he thought going to school was sensible and necessary if you wanted to get ahead. He said he thought that Sister Bertha had once told them the truth when she said you needed education and stick-to-it-iveness to get ahead in life. Lucy said Jim was so sensible, and she had a devilish look in her eyes. Dan commenced to agree with Jim, but his brother interrupted him:
âSay, did you see High Collars?â
âYeah, I saw him walkinâ with Dorothy and his wife,â Tubby said, glad to get back in the conversation.
âHe wouldnât let her come to the party. He told Mother that Dorothy needed her proper rest,â said Fran Lonigan.
âHeâs an old mean thing,â said Lucy.
âThe poor kid! Sheâs all right, and awfully sweet, but she canât ever do anything on account of her father. Sometimes she tells me about it, and cries,â exclaimed Fran Reilley.
âI wouldnât want an old man like him,â TB said.
They looked at TB, because his old man was nothing to brag about.
âAnyway, he didnât wear his silk hat tonight,â Dan said.
âI wonder if he uses perfume?â TB said.
âIâll bet he wears ladiesâ underwear,â contributed Bill Donoghue.
The guys haw-hawed, and the girls giggled modestly after stating that Billâs language was not exactly nice.
They talked on, and wondered what they would do. Bill goofed Tubby, because Connell looked like a smoke, and Bill said that now Tubby was graduated, he shouldnât find no trouble becoming a Pullman porter. TB said that every time he saw Tubby he thought it would rain because of dark clouds all around. Tubby hock-hocked in imitation of Muggsy, and the girls said Tubby was too frightful for words.
Jim Clayburn went to the baby grand, and Bill said that they would now listen to Good Old Stick-To-It-Iveness. Jim played, and they crowded around, singing, but they couldnât get any harmony because Bill bellowed and Tubby and Muggsy tried to be funny. They sang Alexanderâs Rag Time Band, The River Shannon Flowing, Itâs a Long Way to Tipperary, Dear Old Girl, Dance and Grow Thin, and Bell Brandon . Then Jim started In My Harem . Bill got in the center of the floor and did a shocking hula-hula that was so funny they nearly split laughing; he sang:
And the dance they do . . .
Is enough to kill a Jew . . .
Da-Da-Dadadada-Da . . .
In my harem with Pat Malone.
Jim played When Itâs Apple Blossom Time in Normandy , and just as they started the chorus Bill goosed Tubby, and Studs did the same with TB. The two victims jumped, yelling ouch. It broke up the singing and everybody laughed. Bill asked Rastus where the ghosts were, and Tubby replied by calling Bill snake Irish, so low that he crawled in the mud. Studs said that trying to decide which was the worst, an Irishman or a jigg, was like shooting craps for stage money with loaded dice; and he was proud of his crack even if they didnât laugh.
âLetâs dance!â Helen said, interrupting all the tomfoolery.
The fellows who knew how foxtrotted with the girls while Lucy played. Studs, TB and Weary stood in a corner whispering dirty jokes. When the others tired of dancing, they sat down; this time the fellows werenât all on one side of the room and the girls on the other. They talked some more, and wondered what they would do, and Bill kept the party going by his clowning. Martin wandered in, looking oh-so-darling, and the girls made a fuss trying to pet him. Tubby finally grabbed him and
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