Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1895-05-11
A COLLEGE STORY.

One evening not many years ago George
Wilson made his way through one of the
side streets of New Haven. His full name,
as it appeared in the catalogue of the uni
versity, was George Ellis Wilson of Smith
vile, Pa. He had just eaten supper at the
''cOmmons, and leaving the other fellows
had hurried down the walk between 1.-THE
old brick row. and the new dormitories,
across the busy streets and down this lit
tie lane till he came to dimly lighted
secondhand book store. Here he stopped
and looked in the windows. They were
6lled with old books, with surprisingly low
prices pinned on them, and steel engrav-
ings of Washington and jefferson that
doubtless had been the pride of some patri-
otto home but now looked fyspecked and
bedraggled enough. After pausing at the
threshold long enough to shake the snow
from his coat he entered Out from be-
hind the stacks of books that filled the rear
of the store came little man with long
= beard, round shoulders and very old and
ANdusty coat that came down below his
knees.
GLOW do you do, sir? A stormy even
ing" he said to Wilson as he climbed
upon a chair to turn the gas little higher.
. every" replied Wilson, and without
more ado began to examine the books
around him. They were stacked up in
the z eatest confusion. Bookcases were
full, d uwers were full, and great piles
in the corners reached almost to the
ceiling The air of the room had the
must, odor peculiar to old books, and
the little old man who kept the store
seemed to have absorbed some of the mus
ty learning of the shop, such scholarly
i II IG
clothes An effort had been made to sort
some of the books, and over several shelves
was hung the label "Religious, and over
some others "Greek and Latin" while in
the extreme corner were organisations"
Wilson eyed these last suspiciously, for
he had "boned' his way through prepar-
atory school, and he had made up his
mind not to "hOrse" through college.
Turning to the Latin books, he looked
them through till he came to copy of
Horace, somewhat the worse for wear, but
still serviceable The little old man mean
while was trying to bring some order out
of confused heap of magazines piled upon
gethe floor. Wilson glanced over the pages OF
the Horace, and deciding that it would an
swer his purpose paid the old man 80 cents,
put the book in his pocket and went out
into the street Going back to his room
IN - OfUD lie lOOh Oll HIS COdI
and threw it on chair, with the Horace
still in the pocket. The next morning he
got up late, and in his hurry to get to
breakfast put on the coat just as he had
left it the night before. At chapel, how
ever, during the long prayer, while the
president was imploring blessings for the
heather in all lands, under which head
Wilson would have little thought him
self included, he pulled out the Horace
and looked at the fly leaf. There were
two of the initials of the former owner,
W. B., and his class, '55. The last name
had been carefully scratched out. Up in
the corner there was note, evidently writ
ten during some recitation 30 years before,
''Can you tutor me an hour in trig tomor-
row." BY the time that Wilson had OBJ
served this much the prayer was ended,
and the president was walking down the
middle aisle, while the seniors, in accord
Rnce with a custom handed down from
long ago, were making prodigious bows as
he passed and falling in unceremoniously
behind him.
Pocketing the book Wilson returned to
his room, and after a few preliminaries
began to get ready to study. He put OH
his slippers and study coat, pulled out
Latin dictionary and opened it, and then
went to the chair on which his overcoat
lay and got his Horace. Then he put his
/. feet on the table and was ready for work.
l The lesson assigned was the first two odes.
No one can study book, however, until
he has thumbed it over and over and made
himself familiar with it. The first thing
Wilson did, therefore, was to glance over
the pages of his Horace and see what sort
:, of fellow it's former owner was. On the
fifth page he saw something that attract
ed his attention. Written in mans hand
in rather small characters, as though the
writer would not have it too public, and
sn the inner page of the leaf was the name
"Mary." Smiling to himself, Wilson turn
ed on. Nothing else noteworthy appeared
till he came to what was evidently very
difficult passage on the fifty first page, for
the leaf was badly worn and soiled, and
written in the same hand as before were
the names "Mollie" and "Mame." "Get-
ting more familiar evidently" solilo-
a1ized Wilson as he turned on. He found
no more writing, however, except an oc-
casional repetition of these names and now
and then the meaning of word written
In between the lines.
Wilson turned to the first ode and work
ed steadily over the dictionary for two
hours Then he kicked his slippers across
the ROOM threw the study coat on the bed,
and pulling on his shoes and coat started
for the recitation room. The professor was
William B. Henderson. but the boys al