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By Root 8868 0

Myra, and Mrs. Bingham was a fat faded flatfaced blonde who wore round steel spec-tacles. The only one of the family who didn't wear glasses and have buckteeth was Myra who seemed to take more after her father. She certainly talked a blue streak. She was the youngest, too, and E. R. Bingham, who was striding around in oldfashioned carpetslippers with his shirt open at the neck and a piece of red flannel undershirt showing across his chest, introduced her as the artistic member of the family. She giggled a great deal about how she was going to New York to study painting. She told Dick he looked as if he had the artistic temperament.

They ate in some confusion because Mr. Bingham kept sending back the dishes, and flew into a towering passion because the cabbage was overcooked and the raw carrots weren't ripe and cursed and swore at the waiters and final y sent for the manager. About al they'd had was potatosoup and boiled onions sprinkled with hazelnuts and peanutbutter spread on wholewheat bread, al washed down with Coca-Cola, when two young men appeared with a micro-phone from N.B.C. for E. R. Bingham to broadcast his eighto'clock health talk. He was suddenly smiling and hearty again and Mrs. Bingham reappeared from the bed-room to which she'd retreated crying, with her hands over her ears not to hear the old man's foul language. She came back with her eyes red and a little bottle of smel ingsalts in her hand, just in time to be chased out of the room again. E. R. Bingham roared that women distracted his attention from the mike, but he made Dick stay and listen to his broadcast on health and diet and exercise hints and to the announcement of the annual crosscountry hike from Washington to Louisvil e sponsored by Rugged Health,

-504-the Bingham Products houseorgan, which he was going to lead in person for the first three days, just to set the pace for the youngsters, he said.

After the broadcast Mrs. Bingham and the girls came in al rouged and powdered up wearing diamond earrings and pearl necklaces and chinchil a coats. They invited Dick and the radio young men to go to Keith's with them but Dick explained that he had work to do. Before Mrs. Bing-ham left she made Dick promise to come to visit them at. their home in Eureka. "You come and spend a month, young fel er," boomed E. R. Bingham, interrupting her.

"We'l make a man of you out there. The first week orangejuice and high irrigations, massage, rest. . . . After that we build you up with crackedwheat and plenty of milk and cream, a little boxing or trackwork, plenty of hiking out in the sun without a lot of stifling clothes on, and you'l . come back a man, nature's richest handiwork, the paragon of animals . . . you know the lines of the im-mortal bard . . . and you'l have forgotten al about that unhealthy New York life that's poisoning your system. You come out, young man. . . . Wel , good night. By the time I've done my deep breathing it'l be my bedtime. When I'm in Washington I get up at six every morning and break the ice in the Basin. . . . How about coming down for a little dip tomorrow? Pathé Newsreel is going to be there. .

. . It would be worth your while in your business." Dick excused himself hastily, saying,

"Another time, Mr. Bingham."

At the Shoreham he found J. W. finishing dinner with Senator Planet and Colonel Judson, a smooth pink toad-faced man with a caressingly amiable manner. The senator got to his feet and squeezed Dick's hand warmly. "Why, boy, we expected to see you come back wearin' a tigerskin.

. . . Did the old boy show you his chestexpansion?" J. W. was frowning. "Not this time, senator," said Dick quietly.

"But, senator," J. W. said with some impatience, evi--505-dently picking up a speech where it had been broken off,

"it's the principle of the thing. Once government inter-ference in business is established as a precedent it means the end of liberty and private initiative in this country."

"It means the beginning of red Russian bolshevistic tyr-anny," added Colonel Judson with angry emphasis. Sena-tor Planet laughed. "Aren't those