The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-05-22
HE WOULDN'T SHARE.
WHY A DRUMMER REFUSED TO Dou-
BILE WITH ANOTHER GUEST.
There Was Timc When He Did That Sort
OF Thing without n Murmur. but He
swore on After His Thrilling Experience
With the Editor In Culpeper.

With the Editor In Culpeper.
1t was drummer, and he had Just ar.
! sived at tho best hotel in New jersey
! town.
| "This is the first time I've ever been in
| the town." he said in the fresh and breezy
manner OF the CHEEKY traveller that makes
you feel us If somebody had left the door
open, "and / want to have good impres-
sion made on me, so I'll come back again.
Nothing like first impressions. you Know,
my boy, to make town stay mp in the
front end OF the procession, and the hotel
Is the place where the impression business
starts. Good hotel, good impressions; good
impression, good for another visit"
| The clerk looked really hurt.
"I'm awfully sorry" he said, "but I
| can't do as well for you tonight as / would
| like to. You geo, we are crowded with a
| convention in town of district teachers
association, and you'll have to go In a
| room with man who Is the only one in
the house who hasn't been doubled yet"
well, won't have 1t, said the drum
,mer peremptorily.
What would you say to mattress on
the floorS''
SIN the hall?'
Ou, DctteT bHdI III tH6 TOOUl
with that party"
That's rs bad as doubling"
what do you say to taking my bed and
letting me have the mattress on tho floorf"
81 don't know you"
This made the clerk hot.
"Nor don't know you, SIR" he said.
with indignant protest
Here's my card" laughed the drum
mer good humoredly THAT'S all right
no went on. "It isn't you or 1t isn't any
one else except myself. I've got preju
dice about getting into anybody's power.
used to didn't have, and I'd just as soon
sleep in q stall with horse as not If it
was going to accommodate tho landlord
and give him chance to pick up dollar
or two on the side. But did 1t once too
often, and now / don't want anything be-
tween me and the four walls of my room.
You see, 1t was this way"
The clerk submitted helplessly.
about six years ago." continued the
drummer, II was down here in Virginia
where the editors eat cOons and cortlwood
for Thanksgiving dinner, and one night
stopped at hotel in Culpeper, believe
the name of the town was Something
was on in town, and the place was full,
the only bed that had room enough in it
for me being occupied by an editor. i
never turned word, though, but went off
to bed like good child, and i'm about IS
minutes was sounder asleep than dea-
con on a warm Sunday.
What happened in the interim / do not
know, being the kind of sleeper that at
tends strictly to business. But along in
the night some time was awakened by q
light In the room, and before knowing
just what 1t was was entirely awakened
by voice which kept repeating: Il owe
the devil %. I owe tho devil 81 That
sounded like crazy man in the room, and
was wide awake pretty soon, and was
correspondingly wary, for did not know
what was going to happen next. As far as
could learn by oyesight my editorial
roommate was sitting by table with
lamp burning on 1t, and he was bent low
over a piece Of paper on which he was
writing. AT the same time he kept sway
ing back and forth and grooming to him
self: Il owe the devil So. lowe the devil So
Presently, when had stood 1t as long
as could, cOugbed slightly and esSayed
speech with my friend.
Say said !, If you don't owe the
devil more than that, you ought to think
you arc in great luck. I'm not nearly as
bad as l might be, but I'll he hanged il /
don't consider my Indebtedness to the old
serpent u good deal more than S2 Then
thought I'd laugh tho man out of his
foolshncss but hadn't more than given
one half sized smile till he grabbed loose
revolver there was on the table and turned
it full on me.
"'Ahap he shouted until could feel
the gooseficsh raising all over me so
could scratch match on myself; AHA,
it's yon, Is ity 1t is delinquent subscribers
like you that never pay their bills that
make it go hard on us poor, long suffering
editors. It's you that never see the X
mark on tho wrapper and give no heed to
our appeals. It's you that take the paper
out of the postoflice all the time and when
we ask for pay for it tho postmaster sends
il back to us marked "Refused" or
"Moved away" It's you that never sees
our slogan at the top of the editorial col
umn, "s2 per year In advance It's you
that plunge us into the vortex Of ruin and
prevent MS from filling long felt want
Aha, now is the time to die!'
That's the way he carried on" con-
tinued the drummer, almost losing his
breath in his excited recollection, land
then began slipping over TO me as if he
was gloating over the fun he would have
when he had filled me full of holes and
begun blowing tunes through me. II l
wasn't scared to death, it was because
| was born immortal, and didn't do u
| thing but lie still there in an utter paralysis
and him coming nearer every minute.
"'But, no, he hisscd when he got up
| till could have stuck my head in the
mouth Of that pistol and had room for "a
four inch washer; but no, You shall dis
! gorge your i'll gotten gains before you de-
part this life mourncd by n large circle of
loving friends. Give me 81 for your last
years subscription! Two dollars, do you
hear? owe Sc to the devil. / can stand
the printers of another six months, for
they are my ssters-in law. But the devil
| Aha, he 10 differenti Two dollars or your
| lfe!'
well, tn make long story longer, I
Just had to get up and give the crazy Ike
| s2 Of my hard earned money. not fo men
tion thc wear and tear on my nervous sys.
TEN and the uncertainty Of my future
state, and when II was all over and Ifcll
back ON my pillow and began saying my
last few words on earth. I'm DANCED IL the