Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1891-04-25
1910.

fIofJo.
Through "a thickly falling snow, on the
outskirts of one Of New York's suburban
towns "a hamlet Of some 100000 popula-
tom, walked a man who had but one de
sire in the world unqualified His name
was Richard Brant, and he was a large,
deep chested, handsome mana mans
man; hardly a woman's man at all; and
yet the sort Of man that is likely to make
a pretty serious matter Of it il he loves a
woman, or if a woman loves him.
Mr. Richard Braut came from the west,
the western born child Of eastern born par
ents He made his fortune before he was
thirty-five, aud for five years he had been
trying - find out what he wanted to do
with that fortune. lie was man Of few
tastes. of no vices and OF "A straightforward,
go-ahead spirit that set him apart from
the people who make afIectation the spice
of life He wanted only one thing in the
world, and that one thing money would
not buy for him. So he was often puzzled
as to how he might best spend his money;
and he often spent it foOlisbly. As he walk
ed through the suburban streets OF the SUI
burban city this sharp winters night he
was rejecting on the folly of spending
money on a fur coat. He was wearing the
coat-a magnificent affair Of bear skin and
sable
South Of Canada" he said to himself,
"this sort of thing is vulgar and unneces-
sary. don't need it any more than COW
needs a side pocket It's too beastly hot
for comfort rs this moment. I'd carry it
H.. fol H.. D,
surdly heavy il really is"
Then he looked ahead through the thick
snow, and, although he was "A man, he
started and stepped back like woman
who sees a COW.
Great Caesars ghost'' said he
lie was justified in calling thus upon the
most respectable spook of antiquity. The
sight he saw was strange enough in itself;
seen in the squaid, commonplace, sub
suburban street. it was bewiderng. There
ahead of b,m walked MephistOpheles-
Mephistophcles dressed in red flannel
suit, trimmed with yellow, all peaks and
points: and on the head Of MephistopheleS
was an old brown Derby hat.
Brant caught Mcphsto by the shoulder
and turned him around He was a slight
understood man OF fifty, whose mustacht
and goatee, dyed an impossible black, served
only TO accentuate the meager commonnes.
of his small features.
"Who are you" demanded Brant.
"Sh-h-hp' said the shivering figure
'1emme gol I'm Zozow
Brant stared at him in amazement
What was it? 4 walking advertisement
for an automatic toy or a new tooth pow
der2
ITS all right" said the slim man, hi
teeth chattering, "lemme get along. In
most freezing I'm Zozo, the astrologist
Why-don't you know?-on Rapelyei
street,"
Brant dimly remembered that there wa
Rapelyca street, through which be some
times passed on his way TO the station, an'
he had some faint memory of guadii,
painted shanty decSed out with the sign
of the zodiac in gilt papiermache.
any orfice got aGre this morning" eX
planned Zozo, from the bakery next door
And had to light out over the back fence
Them people in the neighborhood is kinde
superstitious. They amt no idea Of astrol
ogy. They don't know it's a science. The,
think it's some kind of magic. And !
they's to see me drove out by common
ordinary fire they'd think | was no sort o
an astrooger. SO lit out quiet"
His teeth chartered so that he made tel
syllables out Of "quiet."
t"Ihey don't understand the science O
it." he continued, land the fire got at m
street cloe before knew it, and so ha
TO light out mighty quick. Now, ies' len
me get home, will your This here flame
amt no fur coat"
Brants coat came off his shoulders in a
instant
"Put this on" he said. "Confound you'll
as the man resisted, 'put it on"
The astroioger slipped into the coat wit
gasp of relief. :.
"Crackyln he cried, "but was freezin'l
"Do YOU live far from hereW Brant II
quired.
Just bit up the road. Pm most hon
now" replied Zozo still chattering as
his teeth
As they walked along the half bui
street Zozo told his tale. He had been
the astroiogy business for thirty years, az
it barely yielded him living. Yet he ha
been able by rigorous economy TO save
enough money to build himself nous
Elegant house, sir" he said; tam
what you may call large, but It's an ell
CANT house. got the design out ola Doc
that cost a dollar, sn a dollar The
aiu,t no use in trying to do Things chea
,,,han Won re going to build a house
But his Joy In his house was coun,e
balanced by his grief for the loss OF u
aorfice." He had taken the ground se'
Of the city lot, and had erected the "oriic'
At his own cost. Three hundred and TIVE
ty-seven dollars he had spent on that mo
cot structure. No, he had not insured
And now the bakery had caught fire, AZ
his "orfice" was burned to the groun
and his best suit Of street clothes with II
his only suit, as he owned after SECOND
hesitation. ,
In ten minutes walk they arrived
Zo,o's house. II was quite the sort o.
house that might have come out OF aoi