Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1899-01-08

Ahother monopoly has come to liEht--a
monopoly whose existence has doubtless
been suspected by few people. All the
luck in Kansas city is under the control
of one person. and she doles it out just
as she pleases. Grandma the mascot
OF ellis street, is the president. secre-
tary. treasurer, board of directors and
stockholder Of the "Amalganated Luck
Association" according to her own state
ment. She is the whole show. Good luck
and ill-she controls both. You pay the
money ard she makes the choice.
Very neat and comfortable, but decidedly
hafd TO ind. are the quarters of the Luck
Mandatory" in the rear basement of a
Gilils street tenement. No gaudy sign at
tracts the passer by nor directs the earnest
seeker after good fortune. One must pick
nus way cautiously down a steep stairway
from The street level to Il place about
thirty feet below. Then a promenade along
a single plank, laid beneath a network or
Dack porcnes and stairways, leads to the
place where the Fates have their abiding
place. A knock at the door brings on
imnIediate answer. Grandma's beaming
s smi,e an the D gigfs of sr fSs de eyes Penn! peer i IN
darilnt;' she says. and you know immedi-
ateiy that good fortune is yours. Grand
ma" is 4 native of the Emerald Isle. 1t
is safe to surmise that She receives a fresh
consignment of Irish brogue every few
months. for her accent is full of gentle
eouNSIiiS VI oulu Ireland. Arrdh. Wis,
dear" she says. I'm the only wan in
Kansas City that can give We good luck.
That's the fun av it, that's the fun av it,
Then in a mysterious whisper she adds.
Twas under a planet was born. and i
was black as that shtovepipe at first.'
After enjoying to the utmost the express
sions of awe and wonder which this con-
fession brings out. Grandma proceeds:
And l was covered, with a veil from head
to foot. was the sivinth daughter of a
slVinth daughter. and me mither was the
same. Shllre. 1lat'S hound IN mako mo
lucky-but.' and her voice sinks again to a
whisper. twas the planet l was born
What planet was it. grandma" you ask,
Her eyes flash fire. and she rises as ma
9estlcally as is possible. considering her
Il coodn't tell We that, I coodn't tell We
tEat; It's a sacret. and you wooldn't know
Thus humbled. it is some minutes before
you muster up sufficient courage to make
a few gentle Inquiries about the VEIL. Can
that! For all the wurruld 1 coodn't show
You are even more mystifed than ever.
SO You ask:
me?" -" 'o s"o" II 10
But such trifling is evidently not in order.
A digniiied silence ensues. The look of
o~VertaXed patience that comes over the
features of the luck producer makes you
feel once more as you did in the long ago,
when the materfamilias had to
dinner. and your table manners were such
uncertain quantities that you were gently
invited to 'bide a wee"
You change the subject with sudden en-
ergy. Did You ever hoodoo anyone?"
just wan woman, and I'm sorry for
that she answers.
.,Twa when l was a little girl and me
get her some milk and the ovid blathero
skite woodn't give me a dthrop. So whin
she wasn't lookin' I helped myself. l towld
her she'd be sorry the day. but little dif
she care then. 1t wasn't VERA long, II
tillin' ye, till she was sorry. All ther
horses began dyin' off. because l hoodood
time, and begged me fur all the wurruiSio
set her a charm to bring her good uck,Me
father says to me, .Dauther, says hs set
of we again. But l ownly reminds that
woman of the tonne | had to shtle the
d %,lf fur forr ms sick Hon m!thf But An I'm l S soSy mover move.
Now 1 think you want your fortune
g ass'h Insakk." !Ah. heavens saV nss: yes aE Eriint. iii
bring you good luck" she %croonsto herself.
wish and face them up in mylap. There
| now"
She picks up the first pile md runs the
voice that quite unnerves W. Wan. two.
three. four, foive, six. sivi. eight. nome;
tir. tin, tin; ele eve tTilvss eTI looks up a and
iuek,s to ye. dear. Good Itck,s to ys"
ou nWha! .k KIM ! Of I ESed E lssdi la SSH ASK and he she
beams a patronizing snse npon you: neo,eo
The s eGpn I'll e. PP;ad9enrdiing Is details neRsa nnG
once more YOU are as1red that good luck's
coming to you. Thu five cards are held
out to you face don and you are told to
repeated again an again. and no matter
which card You hypen to draw 1t is always
a sure sign thary Wlsh VIII J get Eos gn wi Ean
wish! shure asye're there in that chair. |
l haven't q hi. of a charm by me this
Tonight ri ct up when everybody else
is aschiape al sit there be that table un-
til 4 o'clock 4 the marnin' Then to-mor.
TIL ye-oh, Din till ye."
You are Immensely impressed, naturally,
with the CAVITY of the situation; and you
in" Yo keep your word, of course.
EveryonIis possessed of some measure of
| curiositys and 1t doesn't take more than
an ordiary share to interest one in such
marvelhs revelations as you feel certain
will b,made. AT 10 o'clock. perhaps even
a littl earlier than that. if the truth must
be kpwn. you present yourself at the door
"Gme in. d%arlint. Yis. shure and I have
| dom Main sthrate to find this. / set il
lat noisht and now it'll bring ye good
What did you find out about me?" YOU
*. snxiously. Did you find out my
"Oi had ye're name lasht noight as plain |
as Good be. but I'd so many others in me
moind that 1t shlipt away. Maud. Maud,
the confirmation is not forthcoming, for |
Maud not only happens not to be your |
name. but to be the particular name You
have always detested.
Grandma takes up her cards again and |
the proceedings of the day before are gone |
through with, ad infinitum. This time you
make a few special inquiries about your
future and are assured that there is a light
man and a dark man who both adore you.
THE dark man would make the best liyin' |
fur We, but yen take the light one"
Now. which dark one. do you mean,
grandma is your query. There are sew
eral dark ones
Such an admission shocks her so thor
oughly that no answer is vouchsafed. yell
How about that girl that's trying TO mako
trouble between Gs?' you ask. A fortune
without a jealous third party would be no
fortune at all-and you want yours strict
ly n Ii mode. Grandma lets herself fall
into the trap. "Arrah. that's all the good
1t does her. He just speaks to her when
they pass. but he don't have a thing to do |
with her. She goes to him with stories about |
you. but he never believes her. Don't you
worry! Don't you worry
But don't you think he's a selfish man,
grandma you ask. with as much SOL
emnity as YOU can muster up. All the
while you are wondering who che" can
be-.
No. indade." she says, emphatically. |
Hes a good man. You may not think
Now don't you want a cup of tay?' she |
says, SolicitOuSly. ..Shure ORR make Il, |