Part 36 (2/2)
”Well, would it bore you awfully,” said Eunice's soft voice, ”to come round now and go on talking it over?”
Ramsden tottered.
”We shall be quite alone,” said Eunice. ”Little Wilberforce has gone to bed with a headache.”
Ramsden paused a moment to disentangle his tongue from the back of his neck.
”I'll be right over!” he said huskily.
10
_The Coming of Gowf_
PROLOGUE
After we had sent in our card and waited for a few hours in the marbled ante-room, a bell rang and the major-domo, parting the priceless curtains, ushered us in to where the editor sat writing at his desk. We advanced on all fours, knocking our head reverently on the Aubusson carpet.
”Well?” he said at length, laying down his jewelled pen.
”We just looked in,” we said, humbly, ”to ask if it would be all right if we sent you an historical story.”
”The public does not want historical stories,” he said, frowning coldly.
”Ah, but the public hasn't seen one of ours!” we replied.
The editor placed a cigarette in a holder presented to him by a reigning monarch, and lit it with a match from a golden box, the gift of the millionaire president of the Amalgamated League of Working Plumbers.
”What this magazine requires,” he said, ”is red-blooded, one-hundred-per-cent dynamic stuff, palpitating with warm human interest and containing a strong, poignant love-motive.”
”That,” we replied, ”is us all over, Mabel.”
”What I need at the moment, however, is a golf story.”
”By a singular coincidence, ours is a golf story.”
”Ha! say you so?” said the editor, a flicker of interest pa.s.sing over his finely-chiselled features. ”Then you may let me see it.”
He kicked us in the face, and we withdrew.
THE STORY
On the broad terrace outside his palace, overlooking the fair expanse of the Royal gardens, King Merolchazzar of Oom stood leaning on the low parapet, his chin in his hand and a frown on his n.o.ble face. The day was fine, and a light breeze bore up to him from the garden below a fragrant scent of flowers. But, for all the pleasure it seemed to give him, it might have been bone-fertilizer.
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