Roseburg review. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 1885-1920, 1885-07-03
TOO MEAN FOR HANGING
Burdette Finds the Meanest Man in the
Country.

/ j
The meanest man In all this land of
United America went down from Lin
| coin. Nebraska, into Kansas, the other
day. Mind you, he wasn't a Nebras-
kan; he vas an inter-statH immigrant,
coming from somewhere east of the
Mississippi. At Wynole, these is
merchant who carries lis stock in
basket, and he is famous all the land
over for his pop corn. He came on
the car with his wares, and this mean
man, who was travelling with his wife,
iittleschiid ofpefh.lI,s three years, and
Ills father-ill-law, asked the price of
popcorn. give cents package
That WAS too much. He didn't want
any. Aft,r the merchant left the car,
! the mean man said: 'I want some o.
that ere popcorn, but / kin get 1T
cheapern that" Presently he went
out on the platform and said to the
dealer in the fruit that cheers, but not
inebriate. Say mister, want some
O that ;,op corn, bit | hain't got only
three ceats. Now if you kin femme
have paper of it fur three cents, all
| right; but I can't give no more fur it,
because [ hain't got only that much
money! Well after some Naickering,
the merchant finally let him have
paper of popcorn for three cents, and
the mean man came into the car, sat
down beside his wife and little child,
and began manching his popcorn.
Never crumb did he offer to anybody.
iIe WAS just enjoying it. He said: 81
had enough money to buy his whole
basketful, but I knowed I could sit
some fur less EN- five cents" As he
munc:,ed, his fatheriu-law and wife,
seemed to understand that they were
not in, on that treat, but the child be
gan to reach up its little dimpled
J han,lS, and in tie sweetest, childish
accents, beg for sore popcorn. Save
to hold the package out OF the reach of
the pleading little hands, the man laid
not the slightest attention to the baby,
hut kept on enlins. Presently the
~
mother spoke to him and said the
child waEted some Of the corn. "Well," +"
lie replied, ''if the child is any hnngri-
er 'en | am, an wants this popcorn
rore'n / DO, he'd ought to have it, z
but he kept on eating it himself, and
never gsain did the child get. pret-
ty soon the little fellow began to CT,
for the corn. This may have ANNOYED
the father, because he soon arosp, nut
: the popcorn up in the rack out of the
5 child's reach, and went into another
Q car While he was gone, the child
continued to cry and reach after the
corn down and gave some to the little
one. While this was going on, the
mean man came back. Fufiousl You
never saw anything like it. He
> snatched tie popcorn away from the
child and poured torrent of abuse
upon his wife for daring to touch his
popcorn. Then he pat it back into the
rack, and at intervals got up and ate
some Of it until it was all gone
Now in case like this,-and the
above is truthful narrative Of an ac-
tual occurrence,-is pot lynch law
justiiiahle? Is not that kind of man
more valuable and useful as feitil.
izer, than anything else2 Isn't he a
!. curse to society SO long as he lives ?
And might he not prove blessing to
the medical student and barren land,
when he dies? Then why not kill him
and make a blessing of him The
world has no use for IA mean man. A
drunkard, liar swearer, tramp,
a swindler, "a murderer, may have
!. some good traits. and have some sphere
, of usefulness in this world, but mean
man, pure and simple, Nature wasted
;. mud when it made him.