The Press., 1897-12-23
Number 80.

"Only wish to heaven Harry hadn't
been so fervent in his desire to have mo
meet the fellow" he observed to him
self. IT suppose that, as he says, this
man Ferguson is all right, but haven't
time to go skating all over this town
looking him up. l presume ought to
have gone and dug him out for Harry's
sake long time ago, but keep forget
ting it, and now I've involved myself
In foolish mesh of lies about my ex-
periences with Ferguson, whom l have
not met, and whom, to tell the truth,
I'm getting SO don't want to meet. -
Out in Pocatello Harry Howard was
delighted with the tidings he received
from Chicago. "It's a great satisfao-
tion, he told himself, "to bring two
good men together this way. It's really
a noteworthy thing to be the author of
firm friendship between two first class
people Only 1 hardly think / under
stand this last letter of Ferguson's Is. /
thought Walker had only two children,
and here Ferguson writes me about his
little girl. She must have been born in
the last year. There were certainly
only two boys when passed through
Chicago last summer. I'll send Ben my
congratulations p"
When Walker received the sheet con-
veying honest Harry Howard's good
wishes for the best and brightest future
for little Miss Walker, he ran his fin
gers through his hair and looked dazed.
"When did say anything about new
baby?" he wondered. "I must have
xxyvsS%% 80 oh Nl,oN FoI
low Ferguson 8 child. 1 think 1 have
described. the mans wife and children
and father in-law and the mortgage on
his house in my communications with
Howard. Harry's always asking new
questions, and the chances are that Fer
guson hasno family and Howard thinks
1t was slip of the pen and that wrote
about my own new baby-which
haven't got. Heavens, l wish this bust
ness had never startedl wish I'd never
promised to call on Ferguson. l wish
Ferguson would get run over by cable
car or come to some definite and perma.
nent end. I'm getting to hate the very
name of him. I'll bet he's a cheap
skate anyhow who has imposed upon
Howard's good nature. Why should
go drilling three miles into town just
to meet him and say: How are you?
know a friend of yours. shan't do
it,"
Ferguson had already come to a SINH
lar conclusion Howard s first class
fellow, and he made things mighty
pleasant for me in Pocatello, he rea-
soned, land it would have been no more
than white for me to call on that friend
of his at first, but I've got so blamed
tired Of the very mention of the name
that it fills me with loathing. l believe
that If were to meet that pirate of a
Walker I'd want to throw bricks at him.
thought the first lie told about him
would let me out, but the falsehoods
have multiplied upon themselves until
don't remember half the facts have
reported concerning that outlaw whom
have never seen.
Two weeks ago Ferguson and Walker
met. Ferguson, entering the library of
his club, was accosted by fellow mem
Der, who introduced his visiting friend,
Walker. The two glared at each other,
and Ferguson hurried into the billiard
room.
81 have changed my mind about pre-
senting an application for member
ship, - said Walker to the man who was
escorting him. The next day Ferguson
met the member who had introduced
Walker and said, "I'm sorry, old man,
but if it is your intention to offer that
fellows name for membership I'll GER
tainly do my best to get him black
balled. q
And this was the consummation of
Harry Howard's kindly designs of re-
viving Damon and Pythias. Chicago
Record.