Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1878-04-16
Concerning a Proaigais

The first time I encountered the late
Noah Babbitt, jourDuyssian printer, he
struck me, as they say on the frontier,
for loan OF two dollars. It was in ihe
sanctum OF the Commonwealth pewspa
per at Topeka, He had drifted in from
his habitual wanderings only the day
before, and been put on as q Sub" with
the customary promise Of Irregular
cases" as soon as a vacancy should oc-
cur. This particular night he was not
at work; and after the last of the loafers
had gone, and while | sat running my
pencil over delayed proof hurriedly,
and veyed with the heat and the buz-
Zing Of insects about the lamp shade
it was fervid August night / remem-
Der, with not air enough to disturb the
exchanges lying loosely in the open
window-he tapped me famiIiafly on
the shoulder, and said
Gap, that leader of yours, yesterday,
on the labor question was an awful good
thing; you sounded the keynote, and
I want to congratulate you"
ThereupoD we shook hands with ex-
travagant warmth, though with res
ervation of mutual distrust, l think,
and then we fell to talking on variety
of topics, ranging from pauperism to
the doctrine of the atOnement, in that
candid, positive and encyclopedia, but
picturesque and superficial style, COM
mon to newspaper Offices the world
over. So much did the fellow interest
me, that weary SIS was with the nights
work, ] found myself, after two hours,
still patiently listening to him, as the
town clock struck four in the morning.
In spite of my first instructive misgiv-
ings, he made me like him. He seemed
SO frank and selfconfldent, so ebservant,
so quick Witted, and so heroically con
tented and then, did he not fill every
lull in the conversation with q fiatter-
ing reference to my editorials? All,
right well lie knew, the calculating
wretch. that he, too, had sounded key
note with that Introductory congratula-
ton! But it was not until after we had
finished our talk, and | was making
ready to leave him, that he asked me
terously-to favor ili.:i With 3 "coupie
of dollars, I'LL Saturday" OF course ne
got it, though | needed not to be told
that with the borrowing printer, ''till
Saturday" is measure of time that
spans eternity and then he walked
with me, ar,n-in-arm, to the Old Crow
saloon, where he would not permit me
TO avoid Joining him in a glass of ale,
and as l turned to go, / saw him hand
my two-dellar bill over The bar with an
air Of conpla acance that really TOUCHED
ne like = personal kindness.
| After this we We're fre1, llently togeth-
er, and became quite cordial. not TO say
confidential in our relations. Every
night, almost, when [ was waiting for
the eabalistic 1907 that ended the tele-
graphic news report, or after the final
| proofs had been corrected and the com
positors had "pasted their strings" he
| would GONE slipping into my room with
/ that soft, uclSiderate tleaii, peculiar to
printers Whe;i entenng an editorial
sanctuul, and We would talk there all
| alone as at olsr first nieetlng, or II the
weather was pleasant, @Cula 90 fITth
into the night and walk the broad
smooth streets TIL the Moon went down.
NV friend was confirmed "bannerite, u
as the printers term ia careless, shift
less, strolling vagaboad, hereto day and
there tomorrow, without home Or kin
Grod, treating life as q farce full oi
amusing caea..s gnI balances, with
death closing it all, al i-st. in kind OF
unguessed conundEula. Ee had walked
thousands Of miles over the country
He always walked when he travelled
II get sea-sich on the cars" he said to
me once, with grim smile; and then
he added, slowly and in shrinking
tone, "makes my feet sore to ride, too, y
During The previous year lie had "made
the tour or Canada, IS l.e phra9ed 1t
thence to Boston, New York, Charles
ton, New Orleans, and up the Misaissip
pi to st. Louis, and then across Illinois
and Iowa, and finally to Topeka. He
had not worked over week in one
place, nor rode a mile On the wholt
Journey. "a hankerin' for scenery,
was the reason he gave me for this ex.
! tended ra'nble. And surely he had mol
been blind 10 tna 3niit.lg delights. o
sky and sea and sbadoWing forest WhicE
had opened cut before him like an IN
rolling picture, Nor had hefailed, vag
abond as he was, to note the psouiial
and varying traits Of the different pee
pies among whom his travels had lee
him; for he had keen insight, ant
detected flaw or foible of character a
If It had been bourgeois letter In
j1ine Of flonpafe.i. A4e vas BETTE. .gpn.t
book to me, since he read himself AM
turned his own leaves; and l grew T.