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

pear a novice, for he did his work very
well, as things went in those days. No
very heavy assignments fell to him at
first. In fact, think he was kept among
the cotton factors, looking up the new
crop, which was just beginning to move.
l was home before him the second
night, for having shown him the way
and given him a nightkey, which the
landlady relinquished with more or less
reluctance, took it for granted he could
find his way in himself. Feeling in a
reminiscent mood, 1 was sitting by the
open window taking good night smoke
and looking out on the magnolia trees in
the garden opposite, where the moon
light shone so brightly that one could
see the red and waxlike berries that sue
coed the perishable blossoms. 1 was
wrapped pretty deeply in thought and
nodding a bit, maybe, when my new
chum came in, and, throwing off his hat,
stretched himself YEARLY in a big arm,
chair near by.
eve have been in the thick of the
work, said, "and that must be my ex-
cuse for not formally introducing myself
to You. Then we haven't seen much of
each other and are not likely to, except
as we meet at turning in time. My
name is Gilman, and yours is
Brigham, Jason Brigham" he re-
piled.
"Well, now that we know each other
we will get along better" said. 81
suppose that, like the rest of US, you are
merely drifting through"
Yes, merely drifting" was his an
swer. l looked at him. His face was
in the moonlight, and it wore a curious
expression of unutterable sadness, such
as 1 have never seen since on any mans
face. Yet there was not the shadow of
an emotion about it. 1t was a negative
sadness-a mere deepening of its normal
expression. We sat silent for some time,
he looking out in the peaceful moonlight
scene, furtively studying his counte-
nance. Then he said:
81 wish the city editor had assigned
some one else to do the Sufferers ball
tomorrow night"
"Oh, you are booked for that, are you?
Lucky fellow. There will be fair maids
galore, gallant men, plenty of dancing
and no mean spread in the supper room.
Brigham, you are to be congratulated.
I'll stay up to hear you go into ecstacies
over it when you get back here"
"It is not exactly in my line" re-
sponded Brigham, land am not pre-
pared to present myself in evening dress"
"Give yourself no uIeasiness on that
score. Wiley has a dress suit, and it will
Just about fit you. He will be delighted
to loan it to you-if for nothing else, to
let you know he has it..
"Well, I'd rather stick to the cotton.
It has been a long time since 1 moved in
feminine society, and fear l have lost
the fine art Of making myself agreeable"
''Tll trust you for that. Where was
your homo originally? take it you are
an eastern mana New Yorker, per-
hapS?"
As l asked the question he looked at
me quickly, as though seeking to divine
my purpose-as a man might who had
some reason for not caring to have his
past probed into too rudely. Then he
passed his hand across his forehead in a
vacant way, and said slowly and with
evident effort:
''YOu must excuse me, but-but some
how my memory is strangely PREACHER
Gus, and-I-dO not remember can
not tell you"
81 beg your pardon" replied. "Let
me assure you l had no intention of pre-
suming upon our short acquaintance to
seek to know anything of your affairs
which you would rather should not
be known. The question was asked
thoughtlessly enough"
''And it was a natural one," he said.
Il wish 1 could answer it, but cannot"
''Say no more about it," l replied,
knocking the ashes out of my pipe. 1.-The
morning stars-that is, the vegetable and
fish venders-will soon be singing to-
gether under our window. Let US go
to bed and get well to sleep before the
chorus begins"
Deuced strange, thought, that this
man should be so manifeStly reluctant
to tell me of his past. What secret did
it hold that he was so chary about? He
did not look like criminal-like man
who had done something which made
him fugitive or an Ishmael. But there
was the hard fact of his evident embar-
rassment when the question was asked.
1t aroused my curiosity, but it did not
make me shun him. had nothing to
lOse-perhaps that was the reason | only
felt piqued at my guests dissemination
to talk about what men most glibly talk
of under such circumstances. But that
was his affair, not mine.