The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-05-10

s1bIe, because 1t couldn't get across the
Red river owing to high water.
lectured once in Mississippi. After
had done so, and the roar of applause
had died away, a small boy with pale,
Milwaukee brick complexion. broken
here and there by large meledioas
freckles, came forward to the footlights,
and in childish treble inquired, "Is
that all, captain?" l said yes, and he
went away rather reluctantly, thought.
That is the reason why I went home
feeling rather depressed, for although
regarded the lecture as financial and
moral success according to Horace Gree
leys standard-viz., that more people
staid in than went away during the
show-yet when this boy called me cap
tain, here in land where you can get
enough majors for a mess in twenty
minutes, concluded that possibly l had
missed it in Mississippi. All railway
conductors in the south are captains.
Captain Taylor. of the Santa Fe, said
that they used to do very poor bust
ness between Galveston and Houston.
Once, he said, he played to fifteen cents
a round trip. l think he used this term
IN order to make himself clear.
Speaking of the show business reminds
me OF pleasant afternoon and evening
with MI. Griswold, the old 'Fat Con-
tributor," only few days before his
sudden death. He was a most gentle
and genial man to meet, and when use
the overworked word genial" | do so
because it did really fit him. He told
me about his experience as lecturer in
little place. think, in Pennsylvania.
This town had made laudable reputa-
ton for itself twenty-five or thirty years
ago because it could and did break up
everything in the line of show that
had come there for years What a glo-
rlous ambition! Just as some of the
tough schools of the woolly wilderness
used to clean out the teachers who tried
to educate them. remember one case
where consumptive boy teacher was
virtually murdered by big boys in such
a school. His successor only remained
one day, but ne conquered the school.
lie entered at o'clock with Bible,
vallse and. an armful of beech gads. He
opened with prayer Then he read
chapter and opened his valise. He took
out hammer and big nail. He drove
tie large nail into the door frame over
che latch. Then he took a big revolver
out of his valise, and with that in one
hand and big beech whip in the other
he went at that school, and with Won
derful generosity and liberality, and
COM ,endable equity, he whipped every
boy in that school SO that people passing
by thought there was carpet renovat-
ing establishment inside. He did it so
well that two of those boys are now said
to be in the ministry, and two of them
doing time in congress for term OF
years.
Then he took his valise and left the
place. He never asked for any salary,
but those who saw him last saw him
with his little valise in his hand, crying
over the grave of his brother, the poor
teacher who preceded him,
and who gave his life to this tough and |
heartless school.
Well, ''the Fat Contributor" was ad-
vertised to ''argy" at the hall on GER
tain evening in the town speak of, and |
as he did not know anything about the
place or this record, which, am told, is
now forgotten almost, he had no fears
about it. and so went there to honestly !
please and entertain people as well as he
could, knowing that il they did not like |
his methods they had the divine right to
remain away.
Well, after the owner Of the hall had /
received his fee, and had filed it carefully |
away in the dried pancreas of 'beef |
was the popular purse in
that town-he told "Gris" that they had .
the reputation there of breaking up
every show that came, no matter what it
was Not because the show was poor,
mind you, but because the town had
to sustain.
"Oh, yes he said, 1.-The last thing
was what's called the blind vocalists.
Come back here and I'll show you where
they had to jump out. Struck down
there, about thirty feet, on that lumber
pile. | bet you it was rich. One of 'em
was def, and she lost her bearings and |
bumped her head agin that blacksmith
shop over there. Oh, they lit out like a
scared covey of quals, you bet. One Of