The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-02-28

cClOeS OF the hammer as tOlOueI lSSClleE
finished mailing another political lie.
Field welcomed me heartily TO Denver,
and taking his foot out of a large hole
i'll the wall which he had bored with
his heel-a fashion he has vet while en-
gagged in thought-he rose to his feet
and catching apprehensIvely at the waist
band of his trousers ere 1t was too late he
put his suspender back over his shoulder
again with sigh Of relief and graSped me
heartily by the hand. While at work Mr..
Field removes great deal of his clothing.
Sometimes when a poetess calls on him
suddenly while at work he only has time
to stick his limbs into the drawers of his
desk and run his head through a vile con-
temporary, allowing it to drop down over
his shoulders, before some great warbler
from the tall grass of the literary field en-
tiers the room.
He asked me to be seated, pointing TO
the only chair in his office. barring his
own. | began to remove the exchanges,
OF which there were a great number, but
he said: Never mind the this, that and
the other papers. Sit down on them.
them. l can remember it yet. There was
no seat to the chair, and so | passed on
rapidly till | struck the floor with much
feeling. | never saw any one feel sadder
than Field did over that. for he never
could bear to give any one needless pain.
Once he left hotel in Denver and went
elsewhere because, as he said to the pro-
prietor, he had thoughtlessly. while
asleep, rolled over on several little crea-
lures in his bed, crushing the life and
lights and fragrance out of them, and he
would pay his bill, please. and so else
where, where he would not give pain 10
the smallest or smelliest of Gods crea-
lures.
So he went away to another place, for
Field has tender heart.
Mr.. Stone, who used to own the Sr1rs
but who is now a banker and has pleas
ant relations with dividends and first
mortgage bonds and preferred stock. said
that three little boys hung around his
Office once for several days, attracting
his attention by their brightness and
their pathetic and hungry look, till at last
he inquired about them, for they were
handsome boys, and yet their poor little
blue toes stuck out of their little red and
broken shoes, while the blast outside
seemed at times almost 10 outshriek the
blast that Mr.. Stone was giving the cor
rupt city government az that time
Finally he called the boys to him and
asked them whose children they were-if
they had any father. one OF the lads
rubbed his purple foot against the calf of
the other leg and said in pathetic child
treble, while his little chin quivered, I'VE
are Mr.. Fields little boys"
That settled it with Mr.. Stone, for he
has q kind heart. is it possible" he
said TO himself. THAT We are accepting
the wonderful work of this wonderful
man, yet failing TO pay him enough to
keep his family from WANT" on the
following day Genes salary was doubled
and patting the little bows on the head
that evening he COmplimented them on
the way they had created the part and
he gave each of them nice candy cane
over i've feet in length.
Three years ago, on a professional trim
with Mr.. Riley, and while my wife was
with me bound for the Coast, We got word
n Kansas City that the children had been
attacked simultaneously with scarlet fever
anu 50 i was necessary to give up the Cali
tornia trip.
our manager hated 10 give W the tour
entirely, and in order to make It moro i'm
pressiye wired tina: was ill. which was ali
right for 4 manager. but would not do for
anybody else. He sent the following mes
sage, totally unpunctua;eG, TO Field:
KANSAS CITY, April =. $50
EHas7e F..{, Nc.cs, "a caro-:
y: very !. w5s' ot Missouri what wonld YOU
teSa Tor sixty nights with Riley9 PoSn
Eugene did not seem TO understand tho
telegram. Judge, for he wired back:
J E Pgs4. K1ssas C1y: 49,
aise IN sex vest Of the Yi,s 7l,ri. but 10 no,
know y hat I would tEke. EugESF FfrIn
Mr.. Field IS ar erudite scholar and g.
great collector of antiques. have prOn,-
lsei him 4 Joke Of mine To plt with a
hookworD which he has in = bottle Of
alcohol.
In his Office while at work once he was
Interrupted by q very raw visitor who
wanted 70 see how he thought his
thoughts. DO you think them easily -
he asked. DO you think them between
meals, or how"
oh, never know when it will attack
me, Field said. This divine racket i
Eaole 10 catch me at any moment He
then looked far away and his symmetrical
limbs began 10 jerk.
EXCUSE me moment" he said ~
must write Z poem He then put hi
ieet on the table, with one heel in a yeYti-
iaio- over his head, and wrote that beauti-
iN- ami pathetic little thing that has
spoken with tenderness and tears in many
lands, the story of Little Boy Blue. " The
visitor did no. know that Gene had al.
ready written It in his mind and only
wanted little leisure 10 put i on pape-
jls- rs the visitor came in, but il han
penv1 50. and now he reports III MS home
II Egypt. H.. that Mr.. Field has times
when he can no more help writing a poero
tAan man can avoid feeling OF a freshly
painted letter box.
OIL 2w