CONTRABAND [Illustration] BOOKS BY CLARENCE BUDINGTON KELLAND YOUTH CHALLENGES THE HIGH FLYERS THE LITTLE MOMENT OF HAPPINESS SCATTERGOOD BAINES CONFLICT CONTRABAND THE HIDDEN SPRING THE SOURCE SUDDEN JIM HARPER & BROTHERS _Publishers_ CONTRABAND By Clarence Budington Kelland _Author of_ “YOUTH CHALLENGES” “THE HIGH FLYERS” “THE LITTLE MOMENT OF HAPPINESS” “SCATTERGOOD BAINES” “CONFLICT” ETC. [Illustration] Harper & Brothers Publishers New York and London CONTRABAND Copyright, 1923 By Harper & Brothers Printed in the U.S.A. _First Edition_ A-X CONTRABAND CONTRABAND CHAPTER I Tubal gave the key another quarter turn in the quoins and tested the security of the type in the form with the heel of his grimy hand. After which he shut his eyes very tight and ran his tongue carefully over his upper teeth and clucked. Then, in the voice of one who pronounces a new and wonderful thought he spoke: “Simmy,” he said, “I dunno. Mebby so--mebby not. There’s p’ints in favor and p’ints against.” “I,” said Simmy with the cocksureness of his seventeen years, “am goin’ to git through. Don’t ketch me workin’ for no woman.” “She’s one of them college wimmin we’ve been readin’ about.” “Makes it wuss. Wimmin,” said Simmy, who had given deep thought to such matters and reached profound conclusions, “hain’t got no business gittin’ all eddicated up. What they ought to study is cook books. That’s what _I_ say.” “Calc’late she’ll be gifted with big words.” “She’ll wear them kind of glasses,” said Simmy, “that’ll make you think you’re lookin’ into the show winders of the Busy Big Store if you come onto her face to face.” “Simmy, I’ll tell you suthin’.... I’ll be fifty year old, come September, and I hain’t never married one of ’em yit.” “I hain’t never goin’ to marry, neither.” “Shake,” said Tubal. There ensued a silence while Tubal completed the locking of the form and secured it on the job press. “Well,” said Tubal for the hundredth time, “Ol’ Man Nupley’s dead and gone.” “Seems like he might ’a’ left this here paper to you ’n’ me that’s worked and slaved fer him, instid of to this female nephew of his’n....” “Niece,” corrected Tubal. “No.... Ol’ Man Nupley wa’n’t fond of me, but he didn’t owe me no grudge to warrant him wishin’ this thing onto me. Say, we got out two issues since he passed away, hain’t we? You ’n’ me--alone and unaided.... Gawd!” Tubal mopped his brow at recollection of the mental anguish suffered in achieving this feat of editorship. “They was dum good issues,” Simmy said, pridefully.