The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1895-02-22
WONDERFUL WHISTLER.
How His Accomplishments Won q
Valuable Customer.

How His Accomplishment Won a
-: Valuable Customer.
II was . perfect night and the incom.
ing ocean lines seemed poised between
two frmaments, SO truthfully were the
stars reflected in the placid sea The
hour was late and gradually the pas
sengers drifted away into the bril-
hantly lighted salons, or sought their
staterOoms for q few hours straying
upon the invisible Islands of Dreams;
and only a few were still haunting the
decks m~oon-fecked promenade.
Suddenly the scholarly looking and
specialized young man from Chicago,
who had been sitting quietly among a
group of friends, with his eyes turned
somewhat wistfully toward the not
now distant homclands, began to
whistle softly a street song that had
fingered in his mind since he heard it
on the wharf the day he sailed. His
companions listened in delighted III
prise. Never from mortal lips had is
sued more dulcet sounds; the voices of
a hundred n~ightingales were all con-
densed to form the liquid sweetness of
his notes. The struggling groups of
loungers all about the deck drew ear
and listened in entranced delight
Bravo ''Encore!''' 'Enccre!' came
from every side; and warbling the
changes of various melodies, he finally
thrilled his hearers with the measures
of dear Home, Sweet Home
Silence, deeper than all uttered
nroica cnff1aH ~, araru Cnr,1 0p1u tho
music tloated upon the listening air.
Bright eyes smiled out across the sea
through mlsts of homesick tears, and
Helen Harper, who was standing near
the flag, furled for the night close
round it's lofty staff, reached up to
loosen a starry fold and draw it down
across her lovely lips.
SWELL said her mother, her brisk
voice broken by a sudden closing in
her throat. Il remember OF reading,
years ago, a poem entitled 'Whistling
in Heaven The idea seemed strange
almost irreverent-to me then, but |
am now fully prepared to think that
the angels songs may we'll have such
accompaniinents!'
"How did you acquire such an UNI
usual accomplishment, Mr.. KIP" asked
the younger woman. did you, like
Hiawatha, learn of every bird it's Ian
guage?'
" think Whittier's description of the
barefoot boy with cheeks OF tan
echoing all the voices of the fields
would picture my childhood days bet
ter he answered. And then, turning
to Mrs. Harper, he said:
Your remark reminded me of an ex-
perience / had a number of years ago
although I guess it's pretty late for
story telling"
"Do let us have it!' they all ex-
claimed.
Mr.. X. looked out over the star
gcmmed waters reflectively. lit was
more years ago han ! realized when l
recalled the incident he said. II was
little more than a boy and had just
started in, with a capital Of hopes, to
make my W way in the world. Twas
travelling for a wholesale house in
Chicago and covered small inland
towns within a radius Of a few hun
dred miles of that center. While rea-
sonably successful everywhere else, |
was kept dissatisfied by the fact that
the largest dealer in a Michigan village
in my circuit would AVE nothing to do
with me The home firm observed
with displeased surprise that Mr..
Gray's name was never on my order
sheet, and time after time l renewed
my solicitations for his patronage, only
to be grufay and unceremoniously dis
missed.
One rainy day in early spring / was
in the town, and as my way led past
his door ! gathered my courage for a
last attack. There was the usual terse
dialogue, and then the proprietor
turned abruptly away and went into
his little private Office, which was built
up like a huge box in the center of the
store-something after the fashion OF
Tim Linkinwater's den in the Office OF
the Cheeryble Brothers
''Outside the rain poured furiously,
and / sat down on an empty cracker
box to wait for it to slacken. / began
whistling in an undertone, as much to
rally my spirits rs anything, guess,
and presently the door of the Office un.