The record-union., 1899-06-12
FATE'S CAPRICE.

John Van Styver pushed the swing
ing door of the Postoffice, went in ana
dropped his letter in the box marked
| Pacific Coast
The little woman will be glad to get
| it, and if a big duffer like me can't
earn his dinner somehow, why, he don't
deserve to have any he mused
The letter he had just dispatched was
addressed to Mrs. John Van Styver.
2C4 Front Bay street, San Francisco,
| Cal.
1t contained besides an extensive col
lection of terms of endearment, which
proved that Van Styver's collegiate ed
ucation had been good, and that he
possessed a considerable amount OF en-
! thusiasm and warmth of feeling,
check for every available cent he had
| in the world. sent to violet-eyed
young woman and a baby girl living
at the other extremity of the con-
| tinent.
OF recent years all things had con-
spired against John Van Styver
First a savings bank failure, then
the protracted litigation over mine,
which John persisted was rightfully
theirs, and could be worked at profit,
had swallowed up the remaining CAPT.
tai, and now required more funds IT
the fight was to be kept up.
| So when an offer came from a pub
| fishing house in New York to Van
Styver to illustrate new and prom
| ising periodical he telegraphed his ac-
| ceptance, packed his valise and took
| the night train East.
That was one year ago.
Of course. it would have been absurd
| to bring the two away from their cot
tage home to SO trying climate as
that of New York, where the child
would have sickened, possibly died.
Van Styver thought he had his foot
in the stirrups and would mount and
rise to success when obtaining the con-
/ tract to decorate the ballroom panels
and arched gallery of the white marble
house on Fifth avenue. He had COM
pleted his preliminary work, had re-
ceived his first payment. had eagerly
dispatched it home, when stricken
| down.
| Two months of constant fever in a
hospital. however skilled the nursing,
leaves him a pretty bad wreck of his
evitable to garments worn unremitting-
ly summer and winter, the broken and
patched shoes, and weather beaten hat,
and the disguise is quite complete be-
tween a man in easy circumstances and
a poor devil on whom the world looks
askance and shows neither mercy nor
favor.
Going to- ascertain Van Styver found
his place taken on the newspaper and
| the mural decorations of the white
marble house all completed.
! A logged determination seized hold
| of him to recuperate quickly and get
an INNING in the game, and his anger
| at the kicks and cuffs of fate gave him
a revivified pugnacity of infinite value
to him just then.
A windfall in the way of some Illus
trating to be done hurriedly gave him
the check he inserted in the letter he
dropped in the Postoffice box before
going to see if there was nothing to
be had in the way of extra work at
the office of the Herald
There was nothing that day, and he
went slowly back to the shabby dark
hail room in a shabby and poor board
ing house. sc
A hlettershad been brought by the
postnan during his absence and was
| thrust under the door. Tearing it
open, Van Styver read an agitated en-
treaty that he come back as fast as
steam could take him. Their rosebud
and joy lay ill-in unto death, and her
one cry was for him.
The manager of one of the depart
| .
road having ramifications all over the
Union, sat in his office in a dissatisfied
brown study. Palmer Davidson had
great responsibilities resting on him,
which his big salary could not cover.
On the wide desk before which he sat
lay a confusion Of sketches, showing
in more or less elaborate form and
hackneyed style the route of the main
line, from east to west, to be used as
advertising cards by the road.
Here. Dick, chuck these things in
the fire. will you? They are not worth
the pasteboard they are drawn on. Not
one of EN- will do" said Davidson,
turning to a young clerk who was
checking up some books across the
room.
| ''It seems - queer that there's not
single artist in the town who can
catch my idea. Why, I explained what
I wanted fully to- at least fifty of them,
and not one seems to have caught the
faintest glimmer of what I want. Ii
S could draw I'd do the thing myself.
And yet. hang it ALL" said Davidson,
rising and walking up and down his
office, his hands in his pockets, 1.-The
! hox r6c n11f in, y
months time for the spring traffic.
There are those prairie lands out in
Texas. It's got to be shown in clever
and novel way what are the sections
the road covers"
John Van Styver, gaunt poorly clad,
with bloodshot eyes and tumbled hair,
a look of haggard wretchedness on his
worn face, his hands trembling from
weakness and anxiety. was not a pre-
possessing figure. Nor could Davidson
distinguish between the ravages of ty-
phoid fever on his once splendid ply
sique or those which long habits of inc
briefly would have produced.
What do you want, my MANI" he
asked, scanning the wan appearance of
! the figure before him with growing dis
favor.
ITO work my passage from New York
to San Francisco on your road" said
Van Styver
Ever been connected with a rail-
road?" asked Davidson.
| Never"
This road doesn't take tramps. 1t
has all the men it needs. and only en-
ploys honest, sober fellows said Dav-
! ;dro,, +,,ro;,or a nd, If king m a lo,tter fo