St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-02-06
"CONDISH- TEN."
An Aged Vagabond Who LOafed
UDOn a SALARY

used to try and hgure OH how much
longer he could hold out, writes NJ. Quad
in the Detroit Free Press. He was a
man of fifty when first knew him, and
drink and exposure had then made a
wreck of him. It's singular about these
tramps and vagabonds. Once in while
there's something in one of them which
will make you take to him i'll spite of
his rags and vice and drunkenness. Old
Jack was uncOuth, red-faced and rag
ged, but he came in with his hat in his
hand, and made every effort to keep his
legs under him as he said:
I'm case you can overlook my present
condition, should like to be given a
show"
He got it. Thereafter he attached
himself to me. | became his banker.
The feeling gradually grew upon him
that,no matter how luck went with him,
he had reserve to fall back upon. 1t
put him above other vagabOndS in point
of independence. He invariably used
the same words and sentence in address,
ing me, and | never replied with word.
For the first five OF six weeks he went
over the whole sentence as | have given
it above. Then, as he felt that fOrmality
could be dispensed with, he abbreviated
to:
dime"
1t meant the same thing and saved
time. He had three regular days in the
week for coming, and many time |
have stopped at the postoffice to get
change so that he should not be disap-
pointed. The police got hold of him
one night and run him in. and he was
sent up for thirty days as vag. L
saved out his dimes at regular intervals,
plling them up in pigeonhole, and on
the day he came out he came to see me.
There had been q break in our arrange
ments, and he felt that all explanation
was due me. He began clearing his
throat to make it, but l handed over the
money. He slowly counted it over,
found the sum correct, and went out
with the observation:
I'VE does business on a regular SyS-
tenn, we does"
AS time went by and he felt himself
more solid he abbreviated his Opening
address" still further. He came in,
steadied himself on the corner of the
desk and said:
present condish-10 cents"
He acted as if he expected kick or
protest on my part, but there was none.
[ don't think he ever satisfied himself
tlo " my LIlOIlSC IOI IOIS
while he must have argued that was
batting trap for him. and wOnld some
day read him lecture OH temper
ance and industry, but as the days went
by and nothing of the sort occurred he
felt more at ease. On several occasions
he waited minute. as if anxious to
have me ask why he didn't brace up and
become a better and different man,
but didn't do it.
Old Jack finally became Jealous of
me. That is, he was jealous of his in
come. One day there was wrangle
in the hallway. A strange vagabond
had come up to hit somebody for a dime,
and old Jack had followed after to say
to him:
''Who yer going to strike, because Fve
got rights up here?"
Who be you as talks so big? Do you
own this foundry?''
II say I've got rights as no bundle o.
bones must interfere with. You skipv'
II won'tw
''Then I'll make yerr'
And the strange tramp was hustled
down stairs i'll manner to damage
every square inch of his anatomy. On
another occasion, when L was conversing
with an old vag on the market, my
friend happened to pass. He didn't
proceed to violence, but he gave me
such look of reproach that felt it for
week. There was that in the look
which accused me of an intention to
swap vags and secure cheaper one,
but after II week or two old Jack evil
IDENTIFY realized that it was only chance
meeting, and that l was not to blame.
One regular pay day again missed
him. He was always on time to the
minute, and when he did not show ND [
was somewhat alarmed. Had the police
run him in again? Had the end finally
come? | was waiting and wondering,
when a bit Of bootblack appeared and
handed me piece of brown wrapping
paper, OH which was serawIed:
'Condish-ten."
Thereafter, every pay day for the next
three weeks, the boy came for the money.
Neither OF us asked a question, but L
suspected that old Jack was laid up
somewhere with sickness. After the
third week the boy ceased to come, nor
could l hear of the old man. His 'ssaI-
ary'' was regularly laid aside for him
for six weeks, and then l started out
one day to hunt him up. After long
search found him in riverside howell
He had been wild and delirious for
many days. and had come out of it only
to die. He lay Oh bed of rags, his face
pinehed and drawn and pale. and, as
[ bent over him, was hardly sure of
his identity. He knew me at once, and
as took his hand he whispered:
"COndish--ten"
l put his salary into his palm, and he
died grasping it. And now wonder if
he did not say at heavens gate:
''In case you can overlook my present
condition, l should like to be given
show"
A WHITE STAIRWAY.