The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-07-19
BOSS DARLIN'."
A Lions Heart That Was Hidden
Under Effeminate Manners.

'You can't always tell what's in a
bundle by the look of the wrapper"
The old man had found seat on a
fallen tree that lay upon sunny hill
side, and was carefully smoothing and
shaping cane he had cut near by. He
held it up as he spoke. and let his eye
run along its length as if to discover
its Irregularities; but his gaze wander
ed quite beyond the stick to the valley
and river below, where stood the great
mill. with its tall. blackened chimneys
and massive walls.
No, sir. you can't always tell by the
looks of bundle what's inside it." he
repeated, more emphatically. "And if
folks would only understand it, and
stop tryin', 'twould save deal of trou-
BILE Now there the Darlin'-"
"Darlin'?" the visitor repeated. I'M
certainly.
The keen eyes under the old mans
shaggy brows twinkled, and his gray
mustache twitched.
"Oh, faint the name OF any kind of
workman, like puddler, or mailer, or
such; it's just name that's his. We
give it when he first come here. twelve
years and more ago. Things had been
going pretty bad at the mill then-stops
and bitches of one kind or mother
and times gettin' worse for the men all
the while.
"Mismanagement most of it was, or,
leastways, we thought so. Old Hes
wick-he was the overseer here-was
one of the short-sighted, savin' kind,
that would lose a dollar in tryin' to
keep a penny. He'd pinch and screw
and 'conomize. as he called It. and let
things go that ought to be tended to,
till at last some big break would sweep
of in day all his stinginess had saved
in year Then he'd think expenses
was so high that wages ought to be cut
a little lower.
Il don't need to tell you that there
wasn't any love wasted between him
and the men. The'd got discouraged
and bitter, and sort of reckless-like.
when all of a sudden one day keswick
dropped down in a dead faint in the
mill, and had to be carried home. That
was the beginnin' OF long sickness
that ended his work at the mill.
The rest of the company bought out
his interest and he went off to Europe.
We didn't know who would be sent to
take charge then. but we sort of hoped
'twould be left in Jim Bryce's hands.
He'd been here the longest of any of the
men, and knew deal about the BUSH
ness in practical kind of way.
There wasn't much reason to expect
1t. of course but he was the man we
wanted. Naturally, after the way
things had been goin' We thought one
of ourselves, who'd feel some interest in
his old mates, would be an improve
ment- Then. one day, down in the
mornin' train comes one of the COM
pany. bringin' with him young Teller
looked younger than he was, with
his white skin. blue eyes and light curly
hair like girls; that kind always
does-that he said was the new super
intendent.
Superintendent says Tom Clark
son, as they passed by where We was
workin'. That chap never super
, intended nothin' heftier than Land
box in his born days
We'll he didn't look like it, that's a
fact But the company owned the
mill, you see, and this Teller was one of
their sort and so into the place he goes.
fine clos, curly hair. white hands and
all. Ib' lieve them white hands made the
boys madden than any thing else. They
was strong enough lookin', too, but
white rs ladys.
Look at EN- said Tom. holding
up his own rough, black paws to show
the difference. If the company
bound to give him somethin TO do,
why don't they buy him a'pretty little
pianner, aud set him to playin' it?
That's all he's fit for. He ought to be
sale at home, mammy's darlin'r
so that was the name we got TO
calm him-'The Darlfn'.' Not 70 his
face, bless you, no. Them blue eyes
could turn steel-blue now and then, and
flash out sharp Of sudden like a
knife-blade-