The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1898-09-23
|DavenpOrt's Difficulties /

IN SOME respects Mr.. davenport wa
not a particularly nervous man
He could listen to the lachrymos,
strains of a barrel organ with equa
nimity. and the gay rafting of piano
organ rather exhilarated him. More
over, his wife kept a macaw whose es
N pecial accomplishment was the imita
" son of circular saw tearing its way
through a knotty log. He did no.
shun the society of his six-year-olt
son. Yet as he stood before his shaw
ing mirror he looked anxiously for cor
rugations in his forehead and streak,
OF silver at his temples, and was sur
| prised, in view of the fact that Pier
netton had been practicing, TO fine
that no alarming change had taken
place in his appearance.
He was still wondering at this mex.
plicable circumstance as he paced ul
and down the platform of the little
suburban station, waiting for the
train that was to bear him TO his daily
| grind in the city. and when he raised
his meditative head and saw before
him new automatic weighing ma
chine that had been placed there by
an optimistic corporation he at once
dived into his pocket for the necessary
penny and adjusted himself carefully
and exactly on the center of the bal
snce plate. The penny ratified down
through the internal economy of the
machine, and the dial hand spun
around and stood quivering at $50.
That settles it," said Mr.. Davenport,
trumphantly. Three pounds gone.
Phernetton and l are going to have
little talk together. I'm not going
10 be reduced to an emaciated wreck
forany leather1unged pariah that ever
| blew a horn"
dog, a curly black retriever, with
tongue several inches too large for
It's mouth, had driven Davenport from
his residence-20 minutes walk from
the city hall. 1t was then that he be-
came aware of the fact that he had
nerves. The animal at irregular in
teryals would wake In the night and
bay the moon or anything else he
took II into his head to bay If he had
Gone this constantly and continuous
" Davenport would not have minded,
rut the barks would have intermis-
SONS varying from five seconds to two
hours, and there were frequently
nights when he would not bark at all.
One night when the dog had been
particularly exasperating. Davenport
got up and stumbled to the dressing
table and took a revolver from
drawer. He understood that by i'm
memorial custom, as biazoned in the
pages OF comic papers, he had the
ight to shoot the dog-or was it cats
whose slaughter was thus condoned?
ie examined the cylinder OF the
Seapon by bar Of light that slanted
through the Venetian blind from
ne street lamp and saw that it was
|iiied with cartridges; then he remem-
perez that tradition required a shot
Enn and that he ought to have been
'sa'iag tasseled rightcap; besides.
noisy. ~
lie looked around the room for some
missile. lie had no bootjack-in fact.
ne had only very hazy idea OF what
oootJack was. lie would not have
lesitated to sacrifice his hairbrush II
ny execution had been likely TO prove
ven painful, or his water bottle ~ be
laa been confident of his ability TO |
VII ~ SO far with precision. Then an
uea suddenly illuminated his gloomy
'lnu and he stopped and extracted the |
as'ers from the four legs of his bed.
eaning far out OF the window, he
nrew one OF the little iron wheels
''n an his force at the black shane
"a. was jerking out its occasional
srRs' There was crash of broken
Ass and the rattle Of an iron chain
- caster had gone through the base
I'm window and the dog had retreat
70 ms kennel, from which refuge
oarked with renewed energy.
davenport was posing himself for
"v'ner throw when a policeman
aned gruiliy out Of the shadow ia In.
Da l'e what the disturbance was a bout.
"ehport counseled him TO close HE
Egg and go back to bed. The doc
rpeared to be listening.
~ ~ ended by Davenport paving Ave
fs and costs, amounting n s,s
malicious mischief and S25 with
~ ior disorderly conduct. includinr
language, and oy his remoyinS
nil, mouse a little beyond the CITY |
s ~ lived peacefully and han