Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1899-11-10
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8 My Fellow Passengers Story. s
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succession, like the reports from six
chambered revolver fired against time.
l shifted my seat little further from
the newspaper and let down the win
dow, so as to be within reach Of the
communication cord should necessity
arise. AS l did so, the paper fell on
to the fat, drab knees, disclosing red,
clean-shaven face and pair of saw
age gray eyes.
The man in the corner appeared to
have experienced a warm time OF II
behind the newspaper, for drops OF
perspiration stood like small glass
beads on his high forehead, and his
face was distorted oy passion, which
made him look anything but desira-
BILE fellow passenger l wished the
train would reach station; even
slight accident to stay its headlong
speed would have been welcome to en-
able me to put few carriages between
me and the man in the corner. But
nothing of the kind happened, only
my fellow passenger, after staring
fiercely at me few seconds, blurted
out:
Them sales of great auks' eggs
made me wild. hate the very name
of 'em. They say the blooming bird
is extinct and the sooner them eggs
are. the better l shall like it."
l felt relieved that my fellow passen-
gen wasn't madman or in n fit, as
Of G,.ct ln1 tC, SnnnnSp He
was only laboring under little excite
ment occasioned by reading an account
of the recent sale Of couple of great
auks' eggs.
/ smiled, and remarked that he was
not lover of great auks' eggs.
"No; dash 'emw returned the man,
savagely; 81 wish the whole seventy,
which. they say, are knocking about
the world, were burnt up, and the ashes
scattered to the winds of heaven"
felt interested and longed to hear
further particulars, so, taking out my
cigar-case, l handed it to him, at the
same time venturing to inquire if he
had ever had any dealings in great
auks' eggs. | thought by his manner
he had.
He paused a moment before answer
ing, while he bit off the end of his cigar.
"Well, yes-or, more strictly speaking,
no." he said slowly. But there, it's n
queer story" l Soked interested, and
after lighting up he began:
''It was one night some years ago
;,, hn ro,,,,nnrnio1
by a shabby fellow, who asked me to
buy a queer-looking thing which he
held in his arms. 1t looked something
between football and an Edam
cheese as hard as adamant, and the
color of a walnut-peeler's hands. The
man said he had just arrived in Eng
land from abroad, where many years
of his life had been spent. The ball
had been a present from some black
king; he did tell me his name, but for
get 1t now. | know ii took ten minutes
to say 1t, and you had to sneeze twice
at the end to pronounce 1t properly.
The man didn't know what the ball
was, but the king had valued it highly.
/ tod him 1t was no use to me, but he
begged so hard for enough to get him
nights lodging that l at last gave him
a tritle for II, and took the thing home,
thinking 1t would do to keep the door
open, If nothing else.
For long time the queer old thing
was knocking about the house; it was
useless for holding open the door. The
only use It appeared to be was for peo-
pie to fall over. fell over 1t first and
injured the bridge of my nose and
knocked a leg off table. My mother
in-iaw followed me over It few days
after, and was laid up three weeks
with black eye and shock to the sys-
TEN. Then one of the kids let 1t fall
on the cats back, and though they say
a cats spine Is made of inda-rubber it
couldn't stand that ball, and snapped.
At last the baby made a desperate eff
fort TO rid the house of that dashed
thing by eating 1t up, and injured the
only two teeth 1t possessed. My wife
grew very indignant at this, and said
the injury to Obadiahs teeth was the
last straw that made the load too
heavy to bear, and she chucked the
ball into the backyard, where it lay
for months behind some boxes, forgot
ten and uncared for.
ut was couple of days before the
Derby, and n friend of mine had drop
ped in to arrange about going, and how
we were to raise the necessary funds,
as we were at very low water. We
were having smoke together in the
yard, while his little beggar of a dog
was scrapng about for rats, which ex-
listed only in his Imagination. In his
search, among other things he laid