Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1886-11-10
A New Jersey Opening.


and walk another hundred, and you
will find an old bob-tailed street car
and two crazy-losking hacks waiting
to carry you up town. There is no
rivalry between the car and the hacks,
unless it is to see which can assume
the most antiquated expression of
countenance. When l walked out
there the mule attached to the car
was lying down, the mules on the
carriage were leaning against a rail
ing, and the three drivers were play
ing pedro in the shade of a stunted
elm.
"My advent on the scene produced
no CONSERVATION. The mules shut
shut their eyes the harder and one of
the men slowly raised his eyes to the
level of my knees and remarked that
he claimed high, low and the game.
That was all right. He looked like a
hardworking young man and | did
not begrudge him his luck. | walked
past the three without being accosted,
made another turn to the left, and
after a short walk reached the bridge
over the Delaware river. A few
hundred feet above the bridge a fac
tory girl was leaning to swim, and l
noticed how much more awkwardly a
woman kicks in the water than man
when stranger approached from the
other end and saluted me with:
"Are you philanthropist ?"
Eyes, sir"
you feel for your fellow-men ?"
81 do"
"Willing to help man who is
down ?"
"I am"
Good am the only son Of a
widow. | am employed in that
brick factory up there as bookkeeper
and cashier. In a moment of weak
ness | took $50 of the company's
money to bet on base ball and l lost
every dollar of it. Tonight my en-
bezzlement will be discovered and my
mother and myself will be forever
disgraced. came here to jump off
the bridge and seek watery grave,
but / can be saved"
"How ?"
"You will give me the money to
make good the defalcation. Oh 4! sir,
how can ever show my gratitude ?"
"Give it up. So you bet on base
ball?"
"Yes, sir"
"What club ?"
"The New Yorks."
"Oh, you did? Didn't bet ON the
Detroits ?"
"Not a red."
"Then you'll have to make the
jump off the bridge. | never saw
game of base ball in my life, but l
won't 60 back on my own town. If
you had bet on the Dc"
"Say" he interrupted, 81 did win
so on the Chicago club"
"Then you'll have to jump twice ?
The enmity between Detroit and
Chicago is implacable. If you had
lost $500 OH the Phillies l could have
forgiven you, but to have won $40 on
the Chicagos, and that in all prob
ability in game over the Detroits-
you'll have to CO."
stranger, think of my mother~
81 daren't do it. My wife is
naturally of jealous disposition, and
it wouldn't do"
He walked to and fre for three or
four minutes, and then he stopped and
and said
IF l had s25 perhaps mother
could raise the rest by mortgaging
the household furniture. 1t seems
hard to die at my age"
$50 it does. There's going to be
good rabbit. hunting this winter.
Will you smoke before you go?"
well, yes suppose man might
as well smoke on the gallows as do
anything else. You couldn't spare
$50, could your"
Couldn't do it."
"Nor ten?"
"Nor ten."
"Still you seem to have some good
streaks about you"
Thanks"
"You might advance me 50 and I'll
telegraph my brother in Camden and
see if he won't make up the balance"
"Yes, l might"
"And you will?'
"No."
We smoked for about five minutes
in silence, watching the suckers swim
ming over the sand.bank below, and
then he turned and asked:
Whats your particular lay9"
II work the confidence racket ?"
III thought so-shakel That's my
racket, too, and I'd like to travel with
you for month. We can pick up