The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1885-05-08
THE TOWN TRAMP.

It's been 60 long since wrote to
you that / feel almost q stranger.
But 1 guess we can get acquainted
again. suppose you thought I had
been out of town. But / haven't. I've
been hanging around, doing odd jobs
part of the time and loafing the rest.
Suppose might have written to you,
but for n week or two after my last
letter it was warm and ] didn't feel
like it, and then / kind o. got out of
the hang it. Don't know that I've
got anything particular to say now.
But it's raining to-night-it rains most
of these nights-and feel lonesomer
than usual and thought I'd talk TO
you awhile to keep myself company.
-
AS general thing don't care much
for company. When fellow follows
the kind of life that do, he learns
to get along pretty well without talk
ing to anybody. For whole weeks
sometimes I don't talk a dozen
words. One reason, and that is pref
ty good one, is that 1 haven't got
anybody to talk to. But the main
reason is that L don't want to. Most
anybody, even tramp, could find
somebody willing to talk to him if he
would bestir himself a little. Talk
don't cost much and almost everybody
is willing to give it away to almost
anybody. But I've got out of the way
of talking SO don't hunt people up.
AS 1 was saying, talk don't cost
much. In fact it's about the cheapest
thing 1 know of. Still there are GER
tain kinds of talk that are pretty ex-
pensive when you consider heresults.
I've heard some in the past week that
the community could afford to pay a
pretty good price to have stopped: 1t
was in connection with the Memorial
Hall that the G.. A. RS are going to
build. The fellows. that were talking
weren't going to have anything to do
with the scheme. because So-and-So
and So-and-So, have got too big fin
ger in the pie. They're trying to run
the thing, "-and more talk of the
same kind.
pve heard heap of foolish talk in
my life, but don't know that l ever
heard any that topped that. 1 sup
pose the facts are that with this, as
with every other public enterprise,
two or three men take a more active
interest in it perhaps than others do,
and SO go ahead and try to have some
thing done. May be they do try to
"run things" But what of it? Most
likely if they didn't, things wouldn't
run. Would the fellows who are do
ing the kicking, for instance, go ahead
and build this hall if "So-and-So and
So-and-So" would take their fingers
out of the pie? If they would 1 have
no doubt that "Su-and-So and So-and-
So" would be glad enough to let them
do it.
If two or three men have got brains
enough to run the whole town, for in
stance, and run it right, why shouldn't
they be allowed to do 1t? If a few
men are willing to spend their energy
and their time and their money in
building house that is to be for the
good of the town, why,
in heavens name, should
they be abused for Il? There are few
enough men at best that are willing to
do anything that isn't going TO put
money in their own pocket, and when
such do show themselves they ought
to be publicly and privately thank
ed instead of publicly and privately |
abused. 1t isn't very encouraging for
a man who is really willing and even
anxious to do something for the bene-
fit of his fellow men, to know that the
said fellow men. will accuse him of
having some mean. motive or some
selfish object in view.
-
I'm afraid. Mr.. Editor, you'll think
1 am a good deal of sco!d. Guess in
nearly all my letters I've. scolded
somebody or something. But think
that these fellows / have been talking
about need scolding, and as 1 didn't
see any signs of your doing it, 1
thought wouid take the job myself.
OF course this whole business is moth
ing to nie personally. "So-andSo and
So-and-So" are no friends of mine. l
Amt even acquainted with them. And
l don't suppose will ever put dol
lar into the Hall they are going
to build, or get dollar out
of it. But 1 want to see it
built-for l've quite made up my mind
to stay here a year longer, anyhow
and if they have got patriotism and
push enough to shoulder the job, |
don't want to see any body creep up
and try TO ham string them while they
are carrying the load.
The Town TRAMP.
ARIZONA LETTERS.
IN CAMP ON CHA, a. T.,
Arril 4