The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1890-09-06

sometimes spend Il long afternoon swear
ing at each other. but Simmons wa
afraid of LoSSon and dared not cha!lenr
him TO light. He thought over the word
in the hot. still nights. and half the hat
he felt toward Losson he vented Oh tn
wretchcd punkah-cooIic.
lesson bought Il parrot in the ba2ar ant
put ii iptO Il little cage, and lowered tn,
cage into tEc cool darkness of the we'll
and at on the wCll-curb. shouting bac
language flown to the parrot lie taught
IT I" say: " Simmons. We SO-oOr." which
means swine, and several other thing,
entirely unfit for publication. lie was
! big. gross man, and he shook like Il icll,
when the parrot caught the sentence cor.
roctly. Simmons. however. shook with
rage. for all the room was laughing At
| him-the parrot was such Il di>reputabe
( pull of green feathers. and looked 81 hu-
man when it Chartered. Losson used ia
sit. swinging his fat legs, on the side OF
the cot, and ask the parrot what il
thought of Simmons. The parrot would
answer: Simmons, We so-Oor" Good
I boy, Losson used to say. scratching the
parrots head; Eye ear that sam" and
Simmons used to turn over on his
stomach and make answer: Il car.
Take 'eed you don't ear something one
of these days"
In the restless nights. after he had
been asleep all day, fits of blind rage
came upon Simmons and held him till he
trembled all over, while he thought in
how many different ways he would slay
lesson. Sometimes he would picture
himself trampling the life out of the man
with heavy ammunition boots, and at
other times smashing in his face with the
butt, and at other times jumping on his
shoulders and dragging the head back
till the neck. bone cracked. Then his
mouth would feel fcvcrish. and he would
reach olt for another sup of beer in the
pannikin.
But the fancy that came to him most
frequently and stayed with him longest
was one connected with the great roll of
TAT under Lessons right ear. He noticed
1t first on moonlight night, and there
after 1t was always before his ewes. 1t
was Il fascinating roll of fat. a man
could get his hand on it and tear away
one SIDE of his neck; or he could place
the muzzle of a rifle on it and blow AWAY
all the head in flash. Losson had no
right to be sleek and cOntentcd and we'll !
TODD, when he, Simmons, was the butt
OF the room. Some day. perhaps. he !
would show those who laughed at the /
summons, We so-oOr, joke that he was !
Us good as the rest, and held mans life !
IN the crook of his forefinger. When
lesson snored Simmons hated him more
bitterly than ever. Why should lesson
DC able to sleep when Simmons had to
tay awake hour after hour, tossing and
urnlng on the tapes. with the dull pain
!nawing into his right side and his head
hrobbing and aching! He thought over
MS TOR many, many nights. and the
World became Improbable to him. He
ven blunted his naturally fine appetite
With beer and tobacco; and all the while
he parrot talked and made a mock of
i'm.
The heat continued and the tempers
'ore away more quickly than before. A
'rgeant's wife died of heat apoplexv in
ne night. and the rumOr ran abroad that
was cholera. Men rejoiced openly.
oping that it would spread and send
lcm into camp. But that was a false [
arm. 6
1t was late on Tuesday evening. and
he men were waiting in the deep. double ,
erandas for Last Posts" when Sim
ons went to the box at the foot of his {
I'd, took out his pipe, and slammed the t
Il down with bang that echoed S
trough the deserted barrack like the
ack OF rifle. Ordinarily speaking. :
Ie men would have taken no notice: but S
elr nerves were fretted to iiddlestrinas. S
hey jumped up, and three or four clat-
red INTO the barrack room only to find 1
mmons kneeling by his box. a
"Ow. It's you. is it." they said. and |,
ughed fooiishly; ''we thought n
waS- q
Simmons rose slowly. If the accident S
ID so-vshaken his fellows, what would
t the reality dol
" GU thought it was-did you? And b
nat did you think" he said, lashing
mself into madness as he went on; I'VE b
rty spies" S
" Simmons. We so-oor," chuckled the n
riot IN the veranda, sleepily, recogniz-
"A wcil-known voice. And that was 81
soluteiy all :.
The tension snapped. Simmons fell B
OK on the arm-rack deliberately, the
N were at the far end of the room. and in
Ok out his rite and pack of ammunition. Ill
Don't 90 playing the goat. Sim, " said m
sson; - put it down." but there was a ii
aver in his voice. Another man
oped. slipped his boot and hurled it at 81
nmons' head. The prompt answer was h,
hot which. fired at random, found its
let In Lessons throat. Losson fell "a
ward without word, and the others Oh
tered ~,