The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1897-05-08


repressible young man that
brings the daily milk is the
tutor OF my parrot in the latest up-to-
date slang of the day.
lam an old sea captaln-at least, not
old, perhaps the word slipped out I'M
awares. am on the right side of 90,
anyhow; but being in receipt Of a pen
sion and a small private income to boot,
1 have cast anchor in my present abode
In the expectation Of weathering many
a winters storm yet.
Being without known relation in
the world, willingly fell in with the
suggestion that l should pick up my
moorings alongside my old friend and
meSsmate, Capt. TraveTs, late r. NJ,
who, having left one of his legs on the
west coast of Africa while capturing
SLAYER, was pensioned off at an even
earlier age than myself, and now lived
with his sister-a most comfortable
party, fat, fair, and 40, or whereabouts
lin the adjoining house to mine in the
neighborhood of London. We had al
ways got on well together, our tastes
and dispositions were similar, and we
had often met during our naval careers.
His sister had not previously been
acquainted with, but, being in many
respects like her brother, we were soon
firm friends.
Capt. Travers and myself had each
a favorite parrot-his the common Afri-
can gray, with a red-tipped tail, and
mine the purer variety, without trace
Of color, but otherwise similar.
had not long settled down In my
new quarters, and got everything ship
shape, or what seemed so to me-a very
important difference, us know to-day
when, almost unconsciously at first,
began to feel what lonely old bach
elor l was and what a set-off to all my
other belongings the figure Of Miss
Rachel Travers would be by my fire
side. But just here the course of my
life began began to make itself felt.
Inherent shyness in the presence Of the
opposite sex had logged my footsteps
from my earliest recollections. Give
me gale of wind in the bay of Biscay,
a tornado In the tropics, or twenty
hours duty on deck, wet through to the
skin, and Capt. Manley, late Of the p,
and o. service, will thank you for 1t,
and consider life we'll worth living; but
as dispenser Of delicate attentions to
the fair sex, intensely as he inwardly
admires their pretty ways, Capt Man
ley does not, no, he certainly does not
show up to advantage.
Although fond of pets generally,
have an antipathy to cats, especially al
night. l am not aware that our neigh.
borhood was particularly beneficial In
Its aspect or other qualifications to
feline constitution, but know that I'm.
til / was inhuman enough to start an
air-gun eannonade on my numerous
nocturnal visitors, was frequently un.
able to get respectable nights rest,
One Internal black and white Tom de-
fed my finest efforts. If average cats
4 have nine lives, am sure this one must
/ have had nineteen, and began to won.
der what sort of uncanny being this
was that had no objection to letting my
bullets pass apparently through Its
body without suffering any inconven
fence. But after all it must have beer
my bad craftsmanship, for one after
noon 1 saw my enemy quietly walking
i up the low fence that divided my bach
garden from Capt. Travers'.
The opportunity was too good to b.
lost, and quietly getting my airgun
took steady aim and fired. There was
no mistake this time, and without &
sound poor puss dropped on to my flow
err bed as dead as the proverbial dool
nah.
My exultatIon, however, was Of shor
duration, for to my horror and dismay
on proceeding to pick up his unfortu
nate carcass and give 1t decent burial
saw that my shot had passed RICH
through the unlucky animal and killet
my neighbours parrot, which had beef
put out to sun Itself In little summer
house that stood at the bottom Of tn
garden.
1 was staggered at my position;
knew the parrot was a supreme favor
lite with Miss Travers, and how coult
ever explain my carelessness l coult
not imagine. Suddenly a way out o
my dilemma presented itself to m,
mind, and l FASTENED to put 1t int
execution. knew that the Traverse
were out. and would not be back 70
some little time, so htrrylng indoor
and taking my own parrot from it
cage carefully painted the end of II
tall with red ink in imitation of its d.
ceased comrade. and finding no on
was about l stepped lightly over til
fence and substituted the living for th
dead bird. which l buried, togethe
with the cat, in my own garden.
knew that my parrot would not readil
talk before strangers, and hoped tina
by the time It had got used to Its me-
surroundings 1t would have forgotte
its former accomplishments; at an
rate, must risk 1t.
Alasl Uneasy lies the head tina