HICKEY IN A DEADLY ROLE
HICKEY, be it remembered, had just severed his connections with the
Lawrenceville school after a display of pedagogical despotism which had
no parallel except in the case of the celebrated Captain Dreyfus. Just
because certain disturbing incidents had occurred in close succession,
beginning with the theft of the clapper; the disappearance of Tabby's
bed, when that inexperienced young master had dashed two miles down the
Trenton road in search of fictitious burglars; the famous Fed and
anti-Fed riots when a misdirected effort to inculcate the love of
politics had almost resulted in a recourse to the financial institution
which insures the school against destruction by fire or otherwise--the
head master, without an iota of evidence (he acknowledged it frankly),
had requested the Hon. Hickey Hicks to seek a wider field for the
admittedly fertile powers which were peculiarly his.
When Hickey with his resplendent social manner cast the eye of favor on
Dolly Travers, after having remarked her unquestioned superiority with
the light fantastic toe, Skippy felt exactly the way the Vicomte de
Bragelonne did when royalty appeared to claim the hand of Louise de la
Valliere. Hickey was in the heavy middleweight class while he was still
a bantam. Hickey was one of the princely figures of school tradition. He
came, he saw, he conquered. He was an athlete, whose arrival was
disputed by the three leading colleges. Sambones Bedelle himself,
captain of next year's Yale varsity nine, allowed himself to be seen
publicly with his arm resting affectionately over Hickey's shoulders.
With such a halo it was no wonder that Dolly in her early teens should
have yielded to the flattery of his preference. Skippy acknowledged so
much to himself as he stood on the fringe of the spectators and watched
Dolly with rapturous upturned face whirling about the room in the arms
of the great man.
"What ye doin' to-morrow afternoon, Skippy?" said Puffy Ellis, who
enjoyed the reversal of roles.
"I'm cleaning up the mitts. Want to come around?" said Skippy, with what
is commonly described as a steely look.
Puffy did not pursue the subject and the chip on Skippy's shoulder
remained unchallenged.
How Hickey danced! The days had not arrived when acrobatic feats had
invaded the decorum of the ballroom, and such simple departures from the
routine as dos-a-dos and single hand were enough to provoke envy and
astonishment.
Skippy forgot his irritation as he watched the graceful guiding of his
rival. Hickey certainly could dance! He admitted it. Never with or
without the assistance of a dressmaker's manikin could he ever hope to
rival him in this accomplishment. He went dutifully to claim his turn
with the faithless one. His heart was acutely torn and he knew the
peculiar delight he was affording his numerous friends, but he forced a
smile of indifference. Besides, in his fertile imagination he had the
glimmerings of a stratagem.
"I've saved the fifth two-step and the seventh waltz for you," said
Dolly, squeezing his arm ever so lightly, "though you haven't asked me
yet."
The summer was long and she was quite aware that in another ten days the
resplendent Mr. Hicks would pass as Shelley had passed. Besides she
secretly admired Skippy's sporting manner in adversity.
"Awfully good of you," he said lightly, "but see here, Dolly, don't
bother about me. Hickey's got us all skinned hollow when it comes to
this game. Go ahead, keep on dancing with him. Go as far as you like."
"My, but he waltzes divinely!" said Dolly, relieved.
"He's a wonder, all right, and a cracker-jack at anything he touches!
Sambones says he'll make the varsity, certain next year."
"What happened about his leaving school?"
"That--that was an outrage," said Skippy, who would have scorned to
attack a rival meanly. "I'll tell you all about that."
"You're sure you don't mind my dancing so much with him?" said Dolly,
who had allowed Hickey to cut in six dances running.
"I? Bless you, no!"
"It's just his wonderful dancing," said Dolly, looking down.
"Don't blame you. He is A No. 1 with his feet all right," said Skippy,
and he added carelessly, "wonderful how he manages it, too, with his
infirmity."
"His infirmity?" said Dolly, startled.
"Did I say infirmity?" said Skippy, pretending surprise. "For heaven's
sake, don't tell any one. Gee, I shouldn't have said that."
"Yes, but what infirmity?" said Dolly, now in a high state of
excitement.
Skippy compressed his lips to show that they were forever sealed, and
moved away. But he noted with satisfaction that the next time Miss Dolly
Travers passed whirling about the great man, instead of the rapturous
upturned gaze, was one of alarmed curiosity.
The next day at the beach Dolly opened up at once the question of
infirmities.
"Dolly," said Skippy firmly, "I'm not going to say any more, so it's no
use trying to pump me. I'm ashamed to have said what I did. A feller
can't help what he's got, or what he hasn't got, can he? And it's only
a foolish prejudice after all."
"But Jack--"
"There was another fellow at school," said Skippy, without attention,
"who had a glass eye, but he was a positive nuisance. He used to take it
out and leave it around. No one could stand roomin' with him. It
certainly gave you the creeps to be lookin' on the table for a collar
button or a pen and find--"
But here Dolly gave a shriek and fled with her hands over her ears.
Now Skippy had made no direct insinuation (he always had the greatest
respect for the letter of the truth), but it is a fact that when
forty-eight hours later the Mathers gave a dance, Hickey became suddenly
aware of a complete change of attitude among the feminine portion of his
admirers.
"What the deuce is wrong with me, anyhow?" he said after the second
dance. He went outside and scrupulously examined himself in the mirror.
Then he went back and tried another partner. Again the strange feeling
stole over him. Every time he brought the battery of his blue eyes to
bear upon his partner her eyes turned uneasily away and the moment his
own glance was averted, back hers came, in an uncanny fixed
interrogation. The night was a triumph for Skippy, who danced eight
times with Miss Dolly Travers and had the further satisfaction of
observing her in a state of nerves after each of the two which she
begrudged to Mr. Hicks.
But alas for Skippy and his short moment of triumph! Within twenty-four
hours the mystified Hickey had discovered the truth and Hickey was one
that was never lightly challenged.