Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1891-10-22

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"Haue 1 forgotten somcthing7'
"Did ever tell you that story about
Jason Brigham, the man without Il past:
All, thought not! Well, if you care to
spend the fag end of the night listening
to an uncommon incident I'll spin the
yarn. Our train don't start until seven,
and it isn't worth while to go to bed at
four"
The speaker was the major For the
purposes of this story that is all that
need be said of him, perhaps. However,
better all around newspaper man one
would not find anywhere; a more COM
panionable fellow one would not care to
meet. We were the last ones left in the
majors den in The Tribune Office, for
the paper had gone to press and the
night gang had deserted the rooms
That we remained was due to the fact
that our annual outing was at hand, and
at seven a. Ia. we were to cut away for
two weeks-the major making flying
trip south, l going for little fishing up
near the Sault Ste. Marie.
Light fresh cigar" said the major.
handing one of his favorite black weeds
over. 1T will help keep you awake If
the story don't. Tough work this, tell
ing stories, but it's better than missing a
train for the sake of catching 4 nap that
at best would make fellow feel stupid,
SO here goes.
81 guess you know that in seventy l was
on the Memphis Avalanche. There was
no end of good fellows in town then, and
the papers were holding up a long string
of bright men who were doing space
work 1t was a kind of haven for the
fellows who were drifting north or south
"a half way house where they staid
awhile to recruit. As q matter Of fact
was doing a little recruiting myself, ana
had a sort of brevet place on the city
staff, which enabled me to pay the rent
of a room and cherish faith that |
might eventually liquidate my board bill
if no unforeseen bad luck befell me. !
came into the Office one night, and the
city editor said to me:
GILMAN, we have new man on the
police work tonight-just arrived from
st. Louisiana looks Il little the worse
for wear. Jones is on a spree and 1 put
him on. Hadn't you better take him
home and look after him."
"Well," replied, I'm used to almost
all kinds of bedfellows, and l guess l
can stand it if he isn't too bad"
There IS something about him
fancy" replied the city editor, rather
something that appeals 10 me. I'm not
usually susceptible to that sort Of thing
but this new man locks to me as though
he would stand sOm2 care, and knew !
could ask you without your feeling
offended"
"In other words, you knew wouldn't
be particular who l rooued with" re-
torted laughingly.
And so the matter was settled. Really
the man dropped out of thought until
the nub of the night was passed and the
work well out of the way. Twas vague
ly conscious when he came in and sat
down at his desk, though the boys kept
dropping in and going out all evening,
but along about two o'clock l finished
my assignment, turned in the last page
of copy and lit my pipe. Then l thought
of the new arrival, and looked over to
where he was sitting. His head rested
on his arms as they lay folded on the
desk in front of him. l thought him
asleep. He was of middle height, slender
in build, with full head of dark hair,
and hands that had been tanned by the
wind and sun. After watching him
awhile | went over and laid a hand on
his shoulder to wal,en him, but he locked
up instantly, and said in a wonderfully
sweet voice, Have | forgotten some
thing!"
mo, guess not" replied; what
makes you ask"
Il don't know" and he stammered a
little in confusion, but sometimes l
have a feeling that | have forgotten
what l set out to do. Are you the gen
leman the city editor spoke to me
about"
HE said you would share my lodg-
ings," replied. ''Shall we go now"
Now it was plain to me what the city
editor meant when he said this man ap-
pealed to him. l could not define the
cause, but l experienced the sensation.
The strangers features were regular,
clean cut. His forehead was of medium
height, broad and intellectual, his nose
was straight and fine, his eye a trihe
too large, perhaps, but with a wonderful
light in it which gave it mysterious
hold upon ones thoughts. A brown
mustache dropped over his mouth It
was good face, but there was absent
from it that fir1nness which is the ex-
preston of virile manhood It was
wanting in resolution, in purpose. and
yet it was such face as inspired conf
dence and gave assurance of fast friend
ship. 1t called forth sympathy even
when one sought TO elude it. In other
words, it was a face that Christ n light
wear, or such a mask as a devil might as
sumo to trap the unwary. In my tine
have thought it was both-but 1 am get
ting ahead of my story.
In those days, when we were meet
ing up" as we used to say, with so many
good fellows, we sometimes overlooked
the little formaities of conventional as
sOCIdllOn VIII QUIZ AeAOH HenI SO OIu
not even ask the new man his name IN
til the next evening. We chatted in a
desultory way about a score of common
place things connected with our work
He said he had just arrived from up
country" and l took it for granted that
he had drifted down from Chicago or St
Louis, on the regular fall campaign,
which slways wound up in New Or
leans Il was plain enough that he was