Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1896-11-06
MY BURGLAR.


When l went to bed that night my
hair was as black as 1t used to be-
When the day dawned 1t was light. So
you may see how badly was fright
ened.
I was paying the penalty for over
work at the time by taking a health
trip, and I carried along $475 to pay 1t
with. also took a fish pole and
northwesterly direction for the Michi-
gan woods.
When was leaving Detroit on the
steamer wrapped up $500 in rubber
band and slowed them away in the N
side pocket of my vest, and / soon ac-
Quired the habit of touching myself
every time thought of 1t to see wheth-
er my cash balanced, or, to speak more
accurately, to see whether l still had
the bulge on my vest.
AS soon as l found this nervous ha-
bit fastening itself upon me was sorry
that l had not always carried large
sums of money and got used to the SEN
sation, but it was too late for vain re-
grets, and l determined to make the
best Of it. But decided that l would
always in the future have plenty OF
money.
1t was little too early in the season
for the summer run Of schoolma'ams
on the lakes, and there were only
few passengers on board the steam
boat. These were made up mostly OF
commercial travellers and a fair as
sortment Of those dusty-booted, SLOUGH
hated, shoddy-clad men who travel on
trains and boats everywhere without
any apparent reason or object. There
was one lady on board.
There was also another passenger
a red-headed man with sinister eye
and a smell of horse about him SO pro-
nounced that the lady passenger asked
for "the radish" at dinner, thinking to
avoid hurting his feelings by saying
horse radish in his presence.
If had not been carrying wad OF
money into lonely country shouio
have paid little attention to this Ill
favored person; but 1 was carrying
wad of money, and I suspected that ne
knew of it. For the life Of me could
not help pressing that wad with my
fingers every time met him or heard
his voice or smelt horse. was GER
tain that he noticed this involuntary
action and that he knew the reason OF
1t, and came to believe that he was
on the boat because was and that he
would get off when / did.
? He did get off when l did, at IL
o'clock at night on the lonely dock in
the town Of Gravelton, and no one left |
the boat there but us two. l saw him
disappear in the darkness and look
my seat in the hotel bus.
The Gravelton hotel was one OF those
large, cheaply built houses which one
will find in all the numbering towns OF
the west where land Is cheap and pine
is cheap and regular boarders are
cheap and numerous, but my room was
clean enough and reasonably secure.
The window had no fastenings, but the
sash had swelled and the easement held
It in a grip which all my strength
could not loosen. The door was pro-
vided with a bolt and lock, and the
transom was too narrow to admit the
body of a man. l felt pretty secure, but
was made nervous by the fact that
the curtain failed to cover the lower
part of the window. l was morally
certain that my ugly fellow traveller
stood outside in the darkness, watch
ing me with hungry eyes.
did not feel sleepy enough to go to
bed. neither did I find it particularly
,M, v,u,Iud / 4 II Ms./ |