The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1885-01-17
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THE HUNDREDTH MAN.

Proctor, his honest eyes looking gravely
into the tramp's face, as he balanced dime
on the tip of his finger, "I'm not going to
read you a homily on the subject of labor,
but | want to present to you little matter
of statistics. You know as well as | that
the territory is swarming with men Of your
class. No less than six, begging for money,
have stopped me on the street to-day;
while down there at the yard, indicating
with his hand row of tall lumber piles
surrounding a building in the distance,
eve haven't had three applications for work
in month. ;"
"Try me-
''Do you imagine you would work if you
had the ehance2 | have had little ex-
perience with fellows of your sort. You
have such remarkable appetites. =" He ad-
dressed him generally, as the representative
of race "You work half an hour, then
come around with the plea that you can't
work on an empty stomach, draw an ad-
vance of half a dollar ON your wages, and
that is the last we ever see of you.
The man retorted SO sharply that one
could almost have fancied the poor remnant
Of spirit abiding in him stirred him to
something resembling wrath.
'That's always the way" he muttered.
"Say we won't work; then won't give us a
show. / know we're pretty low-down
lot, but some of us start out square enough.
IF man gets down there is no getting up
again.
There was something almost pathetic in
his very sullenness as he shufied away, his
rags Tapping in the strong breeze, and i'll
mated shoes Gathering an accompaniment
to his gait.
'Come back here, will you?"
John Proctor's voice was stern and de-
cisive The tramp halted, hesitated, looked
away, then shuffied back again.
"Come down to the yard this afternoon
and I'll give you job But take this
half-dollar and get filled up hrst.
He had exchanged the dime for larger
coin, and held it in his outstretched hand.
The man did not Immediately extend his
hand to take it. In the moment or two
that elapsed the young lumberman thought
he detected trace of something allied to
resentful pride in his bearing, but the il
lusion vanished as a grimy hand closed
greediIy upon the silver, and the fellow
disappeared without even troubling him
self to make any formal expression of his
gratitude.
JOHN Proctor looked after him with a
quizzical smile. Five minutes later he
knew his own name would be the toast of
drunken crowd of loafers in the saloon
around the corner. To be sure it wouldn' t
help to advance a certain Quixotic reputa-
ton which had attached itself to him since
his first advent in this little New Mexican
town. But he steadily adhered to his
creed Grant that ninety-nine out of a
hundred of this population were thieves
and mendicants, he was wont to say he
preferred to be victimized by the ninety
and nine rather than miss the hundredth
man.
Arrived at the park, strip of land run
ming through the heart of the place, the
title to which was in dispute between the
railroad company, handful of determined
squatters and the government, John
brought down the wire fence this noon with
one vigorous kick Kicking down this
wire fence was one of the legitimate pas
times Of the inhabitants, who could not
afford to make detour of mile or more
to reach their place of business, nor yet
hazard garments by scaling it. These en-
croachments on the part of the citizens had
once been resisted with warlike demon
strations; but now, as Proctor stepped
through the gap, patient-looking, round
shouldered little man advanced, trundling
wheelbarrow laden with huge coil of
barb wire, and, politely greeting the tres
passer, set about repairing the fence
Parsons was in the employ of the road, and
scrupulously obeyed his instructions, but a
CLEAN of humor in his eye told that he
sympathized with the transgressors.
As John Proctor took his way down
through the park in the direction of his
office, he seemed to throw off the unpleasant
reflections which had been annoying him
with one shrug of his powerful shoulders.
The young mans eyes fell cheerily upon
the somewhat incongruous array of build
ings that constituted the town He gloried
in the homely little edifces, squatting over
the ground in various directions. Had
not every foot of lumber been supplied
from his own lumber yard And did not
this avalanche of trade mean-Annie :?
Nothing could be mean or poor which
brought these weary years of waiting to an
end He was a practical man, little given
to enthusiasm of any sort; but for her sake
he looked with glowing vision upon the
turreted mountain tops in the distance,
with their purple shadows and golden
lights. How she would rejoice over them,
that quiet little denizen of Western prairies,
who had lived among the monotonous levels
of Central Illinois all her life.
The thought lent cheerful energy to his
voice as he entered the yard and gave some
directions to Maxon, his hard-worked book
keeper and general factotum. Proctor was
deeply engrossed in making out an order
for several carloads of finishing lumber,
when a shadow darkened the door, and the
tramp stood before him. He could not
repress an exclamation of surprise. The
vagabond observed it, and his face lowered
as he asserted himself defantly.
'sYes, I've come" :" he said; "what are you
going to give me to do?"
John Proctor put on his hat and went