The Opelousas courier., 1898-09-24

~&lI Central Hotel, tt
NNMTNAK obtain q light TO-
MNhNbN his pipe. It wa
wIHml< long after m d
E"w night, and in thu
cpen mir thermometers registered fal
below zero. Snow lay too deep fol
comfort in the streets OF the little
Pennsylvania mining town, and owe,
the mountains beyond great drifts
spread themselves, as if trying desper,
ately to crush out Of view fences,
bridges, buildings, even the roads,
Colonel Fogarty had just come from
the last troIley-car which would run
until daylight.
"Come, sit down here and have 6
cigar while you tell all about it," ]
urged.
"Well, I don't mind" replied the
Colonel. "Fact is, I'm not particu-
larly hurried tonight, this being Sat-
urday, and l being without an engage
ment until Chuseday afternoon"
So We sat down, and leaned back in
easy chairs, and he commenced:
"The LATEST man I ever knew" be-
gan Colonel Fogarty, els dead now.
He was too lazy to keep on living, I
suppose. But I knew him ever since
I was a youngster, and was working
IS ~driver-boy in the mines, miles away
from the Lehigh region, long before L
was elected to the Legislature at Har-
risburg. Jimmy Hoolahan, or some
such name, he was called, but as long
as 1 can remember he went by the
name Of Lazy finland he was that,
for sure. Let me tell you, when we
went to school the teacher would
always give him out a Wednesday
lesson on Monday, because by no
earthly chance could he ever get
around to studying q Chuseday lesson
Monday; and he'd always eat his lunch
before school commenced in the morn
ing instead OF at noontime, for the
reason that he never got around to
eating his dinner the day before. Lazy
Tim was a sort Of Inexpensive creature,
some ways, because he wouldn't out
grow his clothes, or wear 'em out
either, SO he saved money for his
father, and when he got to be a man
he spent less than any of his friends
tor the same reason. Why, many and
many a timo I've known him to 20
into Lanky Pete's place, down the
road apiece, and order q glass of beer
at lever o'clock in the evening, and
when ton came he'd have q full half of
left, and he'd get the barkeeper to
put it away till the next night. That's
kind Of a man Lazy Tim was, and
never in the whole course of his life
did he hurry, excepting the time the
mine rats gave him warning, and that's
what I'm about to tell you of.
I'm the first place, here at the very
beginning of the story, let me impress
vou with the fact that the queer doings
about to relate didn't happen in
his town, or a%nywleres near it. ]
nay want to 60 back to Harrisburg one
# these days, young man, and I don't
propose to have the railroad people
Town on me when the time comes to
ook for votes. Tt was years and years
'go, too, and may lie Lazy Tim never
old any one else about it-but it is a
rue story, il it is strange and mysteri-
and it may help explain ore of
hose queer things college professors
nd such like have been puzzling over
YER since rats first commenced to
cave sinking ships.
1T happened years ago. on a hot
hummer day in July. Invent to work
It seven that morning, but the sun
anne down hot even then as I walked
rom home to the slop.. But as soon
8 | got into the car hero with half a
lozen other boys, and we commenced
0 slide down, OF course the air got
ooler. There isn't any summer or
under ground; the dir is the
ame all the year round, coolish and
aoist, but neither hot nor cod, and a
would mark about the
sme III July and january. That's
he main reaaon a man who has once
unde. ground hates to come to
he surface and work. The miners
nd their hntties sal keep comforta- {
lie year il snd year out so long as they
lay below The surface, and that is why
. few Of them evm get sick, barring i
liner's asthma. and {. suppose that
ONES from the lampness as much as 3
nythiDg else. s
"However, we got aboard the car,
nd welt 1nder groAnd. OF course it
as dark dark as a stack of black
sts-but all Of us had lamps i'll our
apps, and we'd learned to see in the
ark that way pretty much as animals |
IN. Soma Of the men had to travel +
long the gangways under ground for
mile Or more before reaching the q
reasts where they were at work, and y
azy Tim was QUE Of these.
cat the time TIM tellin' you of I y
doing Inspection work going !
lrough one part Of the mine au d an. a
shes to sos that TIE timber support
- the root was safe, aud that the '
acks along the gangways were all 4
gLt. BY The way, though, if you a
AGENT been under ground much, I'd S
etter tell you something of it. You /
now, two OF three hundred feet below s
le surface there is one set of work
lgs called a 'lift.' laid out something i
. . level. though mighty irregular. i
trst, when you get 70 the foot o. the =