The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1898-07-08
MES, Sammy, I'm back from tlEe

war. Don't go laughing, asking
me how many Spaniards 1 killed, like
the rest of them. That's mean. You
know you wanted to go just as much
as | did. Of course, never-quit laugh
ing, will You, and I'll tell you all about
it,
Only be fair and honest, Sammy.
You remember how we used 10 meet
evenings down by fathers sugar shan
y, and build fire and sit round and
talk and read the papers, till we ali
got crazy about Cuba. And don't you
recollect that silly little company CT
Cuban Liberators' we organized. You
ought to, Sammy; you were first lieu
tenant. y lot Of the fellows were in It,
and l don't see how you've got any call
10 kid me just because / was the only
cne that had sand enough t. start.
Il know, SAMMY was the biggest
| fool in the gang, and nobcdy's trying
to deny it; I've learned a thing or two
since. Td saved up S11.c3 cents, and /
thought maybe that would do to begin
OH. At first l meant to use part Of it
they'd be suspicious at the store, and l
decided to wait till got to New York.
! thought most likely they'd furnish me
arms and things for nothing when they
| found out why I'd come. You see, l
had a notion they were going to see
me. Oh, yes. it's all right for you to
snicker now.
Il was afraid TO get Oh the train here
at home, 50 | walked over to Kilkuck
and got on there-not from the plat
form, either; l climbed up from the
| further side OF the track for fear some
body would see me. When the con-
ductor came along | told him l wanted
to go to Cleveland. He looked sur
prised, but when l told him l had an
aunt living in Cleveland he said all
right And so | have, you know, but
/ guess it wasn't much different from
a lie just the same, and | felt pretty
cheap. Il took lot CT my money, too.
Do you know, Sammy, $11.33 cents isn't
very much money nowadays?
1T was night when we got to C1eve
land, and l had to hang round the big
depot there till morning. l got some
doughnuts to eat. After awhile [ got
so tired | crawled in under the iron
arms Of the benches and went to sleep,
but fellow with a broom came around
and made me wriggle out. Just as
soon as the train was ready [ sreaked
on board and lay down en- one of the
seats. Those cushions felt good, 1 can
tell you.
when the conductor walked me up,
we were going the fastest I ever saw.
l showed him my money aHd said /
was going to New York. He said L
hadn't near enough, and his train only
went to Buffalo anyway. Then [ said
I was going to stop over in Buffalo, and
told him a nasty little lie about my
uncle meeting me there. l couldn't
seem to help it. but l felt sick: I'd
started out to be a patriot and net a
liar. You don't know, Sammy, how
much meanness there is in you till you
begin running away.
cat Buffalo / got banana and some
more doughnuts. l don't like bananas
much-they taste so soapy-5ut l
thought I'd better be getting used to
them. I handn't much money left, but
l got on another train.
This time, though, the conductor
wasn't half so good-natured as those
others. When he found I couldn't pay
he seemed to get pretty mad. l heard
him say to the brakeman rot TO fire
ne till they got to Rochester, and then
to put me in charge of the police. That
scared re, and l slipped eff the cars
at q little bit of a station, don't know
just where.
'It was dark, and they locked up the
depot right away. Only ere man had
got eff, and he drove away in wagon.
There were hardly any houses, ard it
looked like rain: but at last | found a
straw stack in field, with holes where
the sheep had eaten in at the bottom,
so I crept under and made sort Of
nest-and it really wasn't so bad as
you'd think.
Early in the morning [ was walked
up by somebody yelling. | crawled out
in a hurry, and saw it was an awful
looking tramp with his clothes OF fire.
He'd got off his coat and helped him
ri;, cYgay part OF his shirt; but his
shor, der was burned some. and his
whislers. Then l noticed the stack
was s-oking.
'1-ctcEed in under from me pipe.
he said. an we two better be scootin',
And that same minute the whole thing
blazed UP with a kind of roar and
! burned like a tar barrel. Just fancy,
if | hadn't been walked by his squeal-
ing!
s'Fe'd started for the nearest woods
he ran pretty much like a camel, but
he got over the ground-and | chased
after him. When we looked back we
saw a lot of men, around the stack, but
they couldn't do the first thing. Guess
they'd have done something, though, if
they'd caught us there.
ssBut we went on through the woods
till we came out on the other side. 1t
was cold and drizzly, and we were hum
gry enough to eat raw potatoes.
What's yer name, kid?' he asked
me, al az q sudden.
"'PauI,' told him.
"'Won't do; soun's too Script'ral and
preachy. Call We Polly fer short.
Where ye goin'?'
"Wasn't it mean of him, Sammy, to
give me such nickname as that, after
| I'd helped him out of the fire? I didn't
say anything about Cuba; l just told
him was going to New York.