Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1898-01-23

man, but now l was really glad to see
him, he would afford me an exccliei.
excuse for postponing the boxing les
sons, at least for time.
But, alas! The best laid plans O
mice and men gang aft ag1ee. Alter
accepting my excuse from dinner, with
out a word of warning, Hart himself
strolled round to my humble abode
with those everlasting gloves in dress
suit case, saying that he knew we both
wanted ''limbering up" and he was
sure my friend would be interested in
the exercise. My friend-confound
nim-showed the most childish glee
in anticipation Of the bout, and so we
got to work.
Of course as usual was punched ali
over the room, and after Hart had DIG
den us a jovial good night, promising
to call and amuse the old gentleman
again soon, | leaned against the man
tie with my head in my arms, bruised,
aching and ashamed, and slowly the
tears forced themselves through my
unwilling eyes and fell to the hearth.
7 was too sick and miserable to care
II tudC Olu SdOy "oS . AAAA-No -
discontinue or not.
Presently I heard him shuttle i'll his
chair. then he said querulously, and
with his toothless drawl, "Sa-ay, Bill
", wy didn't yer I-lk tha-at cnap'
aye?"
I shrugged my shoulders impatient
". but vouchsafed no reply. lie was
silent a few moments, apparently cog
itating. then: "Sa-ay, Billy, yer cud
err li-ik't Their he'd off ov tha-at chap y
pause. and then-'ef yer know q
how"
Said I, turning on him angrily:
"What the devil are you talking about,
anyway"
"Sa-ay, Billy, don't git mad; l ony
asst yed wy yed didern't li-ik him. You
kin do it easy enuf''-another pause
IF yer wussens skeart.'
Scared. Well, what Of it? l took
my licking if l was 'skeart,' as you
call it,
"sa-ay, Billy, done git mad; l done
say yer was skeart Nv him."
Then what?"
"Sa-ay, Billy, tibet chaps he'd a
powf eddication, amt he? Vase,
that's it. Thet's what skeart yer, not
Their chap hisself, but his education.
Sa-ay, Billy, yer kin li-lk him sure II
yer warn't skeart Nv his book larnln
| stared at him in astOnlshment, at
first about to make some contemptu-
GUS rejoinder, but slowly there crept
over me a vague suspicion that there
was some truth in what he said, SO 1
only answered, well, what then?"
'fSa-ay, Billy, you're kindr shamed
Nv me cause 1 amt had no eddication
and amt got no city manners, an done
know nawthin, but, sa-ay, Billy, L
amt skeart ov that chap, an kin
make yer li-ik him, sure
you can make me lick him.
"Sure. that's wot sed. / done know
much about ettiket an that, Dut !
kin do wot l sez.'
well. | don't know what you are
trying to get at, but if you are so clev-
er. why didn't you make me lick him
to-night?''
cause that warn't the way. II |
had 'ev. well, next time you went to
his house an seed all his fine Turner
tur' you'd git skeart agin, but if you
wuznt 'shamed Nv me an 'ud take me
along next time yer'd li-ik Their he'd off
NV Hltu uOAC hAOn Al1 w SAliA boS L
kin do wot | seq"
More than this I couldn't get out of
him, but during the next two days ase
persisted in informing me on every
conceivable occasion that Il cud Link
Their he'd off NV that chap"
Shortly after | met Hart, who asked
me up to the house as usual, and
when | pleaded my company" he
wouldn't listen to it. Bring the old
cock along. | told Clara about him
and she told me to bring him up. She's
great at studying character, and your
friends Bird
So despite my remonstrances he, as
usual, had his way and we arrived, the
old gentleman and l, one evening I'm
time for a late dinner. How | ever
got through that meal | don't know.
Every moment was torture. Hart
seemed to take the greatest delight in
leading the old fellow on and-weIl.
he behaved like a Hottentot and my
modification was complete. Even af-
ter we adjourned to the library for our
usual interview" I was still on the
rack, so much so that | forgot entirely
all about the old fellows mysterious
assertions in my fear of some still
more glaring contretemps. But he sat
quite quiet, huddled in an arm chair
mumbling an unlighted cigar between
his toothless old gums and apparently
taking very little notice of our prep
arations.
The next moment Hart was at me.
and a smart biff on the ear recalled nv
wandering attention. The blow was
not a really hard one. but it seemed ia
sting something to sudden life: a man
had struck me, carelessly, half con-
temptuously, and suddenly my blood
beean to boil
The room seemed to swim for a mo-
ment before me; then all my fear. all
my hero-worship and my sense of the
mans superiority was lost in the blur.