The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-02-10
WHO DOES NOT KNOW THEM7

A story of western characters has at
last been written and published that de-
plcts the figures so naturally that we
recognize them at once and we know them
so we'll that we all believe we could have
written the story ourselves. This is Wal
colt Balestier's ''Reffey" in the February
Century. Walcoti Bslestier who collab-
GRATED with Rudyard kipling, is dead, but
he has left a story that deals with Pc
culiar and interesting phase of western
life.
We all may have our appreciation of a
Pecksniff or a Micawber but it emanates
, more from our knowledge of human ma
ture than from an actual acquaintance
with the character himself as
Dickens saw and drew him.
But there are western characters that all
of US know intimately and appreciate
keenly though they have never crept into
books-counterfeits of them have perhaps;
stage drivers talking in impossible dia-
lects, and the like, but the real living,
breathing speaking men have never ex-
listed in modern work.
But 'Reffy'' has these, in their untrim-
med native fulness A conductor, I'M
q TIC
shouldered, brass buttoned. fobbed. mus
tached, imperious, with the sophiscation of
knocking down. fares and easing his
conscience with the argument that the
railroad, heartless, soulless corporation
underpaid him and overcharged the pas
sengers. A conductor for whom the drum
mers would lay over for a day in order to
get to ride on his train and pay him three
dollars for five dollar fare. He is as
natural as life and makes his rounds
through the coaches, bending over the
passengers, now here. how there, with a
lantern on one arm, a bright punch in his
hand and pencil between his teeth. Don't
you know him.
But a more familiar figure still-the
manager of Harvey eating house; the
full Tipped, black haired, bronze checked
beauty who behind the lunch counter
heaped with pyramids OF ham-sandwiehes,
glass globes over jelly cake and scaffold-
ings of yellow doughnuts, twirls you a
triangular piece of pie with an indepen-
dent stolidity of her pretty face that is
aggravatiDg. You have seen her behind
this little counter, just before the train
arrives. trim ming the wick of her spirit
lamp under the bright coffee urn: quietinc
the whiriing bunch of bananas suspended
from the wall, and arranging her wares
for the anticipated onslaught. This is
Rely" Rsffy, whose father was a Kan
sas City storekeeper and was caught ia the
boom; whose step-fsther was Wichita
man who i'll treated her SO much that she
ran off and became manager Of a railroad
paTlnLr-lOs.SR "A TnnaEa Rafir
selfish headstrong Jealous. Rely, beautiful
passionate, unsatisfactory Reffy. Refy,
wild western Rely, vino calls her lover
Jim Dandy" an "out-and-outer," "a
beaut' from Loveiyville" in rspturous en-
thusiasism- She IS natural enough
Just another character AID the quota o.
the tale is complete a little slender
woman at the telegraph key in railroad
station, with honey fingers and PITCHED
face, not pretty. but still a woman. Lonely
and still in her duties, sewing between
times and CESS ping with another woman
operator up the road telling her plans aud
loves and pains 20 her best friend, a person
whom she mas never seen. As we have
whirled past little station have we all
cot seen her through the car window. her
slight figure bent over the keys
These are characters we all know, that we
have seen speak, act and known 70 think
It would be just as well not to relate the
story OF the conductors lore for tie lizzie
telegraph operator. OF how he threw her
over tor the voIup,uous 'Reffy' ard bow
that Seit-wllled girl acted IN jealous frenzy
when he was IN disgrace The story i the
authors Tie characters beloag 20 u all