The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-10-25
HIS EXPERIENCE IN TEXAS.

Old. but was sick Of doctors. some OF
whom had a cure for consumption and
some had not. The fierce east wind Of
the Massachusetts, coast had bitten into
his lungs. Very lsttle Of them was left.
He was six feet high and broad In pro-
portion. At Harvard he had been stroke
OF the second boat on the river. main
backstop Of the second nine and a sub
stitute on the university eleven. There
must have been something inherently weak
In him, however. Three years after leay-
| ing college he was doomed man. he
was an orphan with plenty OF money, and
the doctors sent him South. He went to
| Florida, which he found too camp Then
| he went to Denver, which he found too
| high. In New Mexico he could set moth
| Ing to eat. All Of this time lie was con-
Stunning cod liver oil by The gallon and
coughing his soul out. 1t seemed VII
famous thing to him that q man OF his
physique should die like a rat. Human
science was a very little thing after all.
he thought when It could not handle
mlcrobe whose life and habits were so
| we'll known. Finally in desperation he
decided to try the table lands OF Western
! Texas He told his few friends goodbye
| and boarded the train for San Antonio.
He reached the quaint half-Mexican
city after an exhaustlng ride Of nearly
| 5000 miles, more dead than alive, and was
carried 10 his hotel. The December air
was like wine. A brilliant sun shone
| from sky that was cloudless blue.
profusion of flowers bloomed In the yards.
| Near his window grew an oak and in its
| leafy branches hooking birds sang the
whole day through. 1t was a world into
which snow aud ice did not enter. He
found that his livid face and gaunt frame,
with the pathetically raised shoulders and
| shrunken chest excited no comment In
| the hotel or on the streets There were
| mainy like him fighting desperately for a
| few more DAYS of life. He Kissed the
| sympathy that had burdened him in Bos
| ton. People regarded him and his disease
as matter of course The hotel physi-
| cian was fat, jolly little man with a
red face. "Sleep as much as you can,
he told him, land don't tire yourself
You've come down here too late to do any
good, but with care you'll last through the
winter The trouble with you fellows Is
| that you won't come South until you have
one foot in the grave
Thompson was far gone, but he had some
of his old spirit left. II may have one
foot in the grave" he said, ''but you can
bet your undertaker's commissions, Doc,
that the other is on the moon. IN live to
bury you yet" That was one promise which
Thompson made. In day or two he had
occasion to make another. Going into the
hotel dining room for breakfast, faultlessly
dressed, as was his fashion, but totterng
with weakness, he found opposite him at
table giant Of man. This was an Irish
railway contractor named Grogan, height
six feet two, chest measure forty-ive
inches. weight 22O pounds, roughly good
humored, occasionally brutal and without
the memory OF one sick day in all his life.
He looked at Thompson with disapproval,
and when the consumptve began to cough
pushed his chair back angrily. A small
bit of phlegm had lodged upon the poor
devils snowy scarf. Grogan glared at It
ferociously. That's beautiful scarf pin
yez how there" he said. Couldn't yez
cough me up pair of cuff buttons?" He
tramped heavily out, and Thompson looked
Hfter him helplessly. "I'l get even,' he
said to himself.
A man whom he met In a barroom, half
TO take more interest in him than any one
else. This fellow was graduate of Prince
ton, had lived for some years in the West
and shot game for the market. "How much
money have you paid the doctors?" he
asked. Ten thousand dollars, If a. cent?
said Thompson bitterly. The market hum
ter whistled Well" he declared, 81 can
cure you for bottle Of wine. 1t makes no
onus where man dies. II he's got to 90.
ne might as well have the blue sky over
MIN as tin roof l would rather have It
myself. People standing around his bed
doh do him amy good. They'd only irritate
me- Live In the open air. Man, it's your
ohiy chance. Don't say word to the doc
tors. but get yourself some rough clothes
ana go out on the plains. You may die
there. but you'll die hero sure" "Pn go"
said thompson, and they drank the wine.
Inc next day Thompson spent some money
He bought him stout covered wagon and
pair OF good mules. Into the wagon he
loaded bedding. some books. a frying nan.
Dutch oven. coffee pot, food supplies
winchester rifle, shotgun, ammunition
a barrel OF s-year-old whisky and a look,
ing glass. He hired negro man to do the
sooHing ana attend to the animals, crawled
INTO the wagon, lay down on-dhe blankets
Northwest. II was done.
Ihen began the bitter struggle for life
tnat was fought out in silence. yoyeiny
over hard roads all day and coughing al,
one night feeling himself for little
while grow weaker and saying to himself
mat the end was near; racked by- fever
and all It's pains; shivering with cold ,r |
the warm days and dragged back from,
the Jaws of death more than once by the
powerful stimulant of liquor, THOMPSON
pa'tied on. The air, though. vas ozcnic.
1t sent the blood through even his sunken
u sent the blood through even his shrunk.
en- veins. Far on every side rolled the
=, hl shofeiess as the sea. Overhead at
; ys,, black An infinite quiet was around
mmen the wagon was still there was M
spaua save the swish Of the wind in the |
srasses, II norther howied down across
the plains shelter was sought IN Tho hns
h ~" oi some creek and giant Ares were