The Philipsburg mail., 1895-08-15


indeed, is the crop. Novels, old and
new, are literally peppered with these
oddities in character. Some mono
mania Of which the victim becomes
possessed holds him or her in its pow
erful grip until routed from it's mental
stronghold by some violent shock to
body or mind.
Did you ever hear of the man with
the glass legs?' said well-lnown ply
si3lan. THAT fellows record break
er in Authorizations. Here you have
an active business man, sound in body
and mind suddenly struck by the con-
victon as he lay in bed that his legs
were made Of glass. If he bent his
knee or wrgged his toes they'd snap
right off like a stick Of candy. They
tried to argue and laugh and bully him
out of his mania, but all no good. So
his distracted family had to make the
best of it. No doctors were allowed;
his case was beyond medical aid. They
handled him as gingerly as a peach
blow vase
SO things went for nearly two years.
One day seedy and frouzled vagabCnd
knocked at the kitchen door. Couldn't
the lady give him something to eat in
return for some work about the house?
She fed him. His talk was clear and
logical, his fund of knowledge strangely
out of plumb with his fallen fortunes.
ahe grew interested and confidential.
She told Of the skeleton in her closet
that glassed-legged monstrosity who
had almost made her reason totter on
its perch
Then it was the tramp's turn to
play. Madame said he, in husky
pathetic tones, long ago, before this
viper got me down, I was a physician
with handsome practice. I let it go
to the dogs and went to join it myself.
I'll cure your husband if you'll do pre-
cisely as l direct
'She believed him and gave her
promise. Very we'll, then, said the
tramp, as he gathered his nerves to-
gether and shook his tattered wings
out for professional flight, lead me to
his room and bring along a can of ker-
osene'
In less than no time doctor, kero-
sene, and the glass legged invalid were
alone in the room. The wife had been
ordered out and the key turned in the
lock. One brief, business glance the
vagabond turned on the sick man, but
never a word said he. Tilting the can
he soon had streak of kerosene along
the carpet at the foot Of the invald's
bed. Then he reached for a match
and touched it off. Imagination can
daily with horror on that bed-ridden
creatures face as he gazed at that re-
pulsive and ragged agent Of doom and
realized that he was at the mercy, no
doubt, of some maniac who had started
with fiendish deliberation to roast him
alive. He beloved for help like de-
spairing bull, but no relief could come
through that locked door, And all the
time tbs flames grew warmer and
stronger, and there stood that stolid,
ragged man. that diabolical goblin
fresh from the halls of hell, with the
merciless purpose of hundred fiends
in his cold, determined eye.
"A moment more md this horrible
situation changed. Those glass toes
began to wiggle and squirm at the ap-
preaching heat. Then, with a sudden
jerk, up went the glass knees like
half-sprung jack-knife, and the next
second the classified cripple was in
hot Graeco- Roman wrestling match
with the tramp.
"It was the work of minute to
quench the blaze. unlock the door, and
edmit the terrified wife Next day,
when the poor yagabond called again
by request, he received the fattest fee
he had handled in 80 years"