Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1899-08-16
A NAGABOND.

almost became reCunCtICd to the storm r VAT
had driven me into the ramShacLlu WAY
side inn He bore his rags with inimitable
ease and grace, and there was good tenn
per,d independent, whimsical something
behind his devil may care appearance that
was simply irresistihlc--a strong dash Of
poetry and romance, moreover, 80 often
found in your lord Of the lane and high
way
His first words Disappointed me, l con
fess, for he spoke with the uHmistal,ab'c
tone ana accent ii "a gentleman. and Wa
growing a trl'e fird Of people Who had
GONE down In life.
When he had finished the second Isat Of
ale that he permitted me to pay for /
hinted, somewhat rudely perhaps. that n
/ doubt ne had seen better days.
seen better days. l should hope
have, and worse ones, loo, many of them
Better days. Did you ever come acres i
man on his beam ends that hadn't seen
better days Talking Of lies, it'll have
struck you by this time, no doubt, that
man is "A lying animal. Mo- oh. we'll,
that because you Re. thinking of one kind
of liars only They re not all OF one kind
grant you There's the man who de
oeiycs others. lies "A materialist if ever
there was one But, then. therrs the man
who dcccivcs himself. and that your
idealist Sea-
did see and tried to draw him out fur
Their, but he did not really wax eloquent
until he was deep in his postprandial
glass Of teddy and his huge frame doomed
dim from out a smoke cloud, 1t was then
asked my man to spin me n yarn.
He raised himself from his lolling pos
turc, and, planting both elbows on the Ia
Bile looked at me with those half qulzzic>I,
half pathetic eyes OF his,
What queer fish you steady going r.
specialize people are he said at last.
You re- rs keen as ferrcts on tales ofwild
life-and low life. too. for that matter.
But that's neither here nor there Do
you believe in a regular tramp and vaGa-
bond repcnting and turning round-lor
good, l mean
Don't you: l parted, laughing at the
suddcnne>s If the question and wondering
what he was driving at.
! We got 10, BE answered dryly "for
I've seen them do II, and l could DO more
keep them back than a baby could haye
Gone
He stopped and, signing, yelled himself
in melancholy smoke.
How hrartbreaking 1 murmurcd
/
When he emerged again from ont his
cloud, the melancholy had departed.
Now did you ever hear of a respectable
and law abiding citizen suddenly taking
headlonE plunge into trampdom and rly-
ing on in happy lawlessnvss for the rast Of
his natural life
/ ] grayely shook my head.
He pulled away in deep meditativencs>
why shouldn't tha. he possible as well
as the other he said. i never did STE
/ Why it shouldu {. and-I m n bit OF q mcn-
tai and moral philosopher, you must know
( I never heard of a man worth the namc
who didn't pick up that trick On the
! tramp, and thought 4 try !. settle the
/ question by an experiment in flesh and
blood -
You actually tried to turn a.
"A decent man into vagabond' EI
sctly. Hark at the wind screaming up
the hillside! 1t was just such night rs
this when first began But III let you
have it in regular order.
! After once determined on my expert
ment l tried to get hold of decent sub
| ject. 1 was in London at the time trying
| TO get the hang Of the place, and didn't
| know respectable soul there except little
| Tom Allen, a poor city clerk, who lived in
the same house l did, and he was respect
able--a nervous. lily livered sort Of a fell
low, who Went TO chapel regularly and had
never tasted anything stronger than water
| in his life. He drudged at his desk all
| day and came home at night to tea and
| Pollok Course of Time or some other
| equally entertaining work, and he'd been
| living this monotonous little life of his for
| close on % years when l came across him,
| and fixed on him at once for l saw the