Page:Elizabeth Jordan--Tales of the city room.djvu/59

 Marbury talking about, the one you thought Mr. Davidson wrote. I—I—did n't think there was any harm in it. Anyhow, I ain't goin' to let him shoulder it. I thought you knew my jokes," finished the boy, desperately. The thing was harder to do than he had imagined, and the embarrassment he had felt in the beginning developed into a nervous fear. His evident suffering as he wriggled uneasily under the cool gray eyes of the editor led that young man to consider his statement, startling though it was.

"Tell me all about it," said Mr. Kelly, briefly.

"I 've been writing jokes, you know," stammered the self-accusing culprit, "an' I thought one like 'The Funmaker' publishes would go if 'twas polished up." Chesterfield had heard this expression used freely around the office and he could n't resist introducing it at this point, where it seemed most appropriately telling. The editor turned his head hastily to conceal a smile, but the maker of jokes saw the telltale twitch of the lips and went on with reviving courage.

"I did n't dast to turn it in as mine," he