The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-11-19
NY OATH TO A. CAB HORSE.
BY MADGE DAVIS.

along for the Union station. Just in
front of me stood a hack with a big
gray horse hitched to it.
Now, it is nothing unusual to see a
horse standing by a curbstone, and
simply glanced at the horse. and the
thought came to me, II wonder if he is
cold'
1 have read about electric waves car
rying thoughts from one brain to an
other, or something of that kind.
think the old horse must have felt a
slight shock via his backbone. / am
sure 1 saw him SILVER. He threw his
head from side to side and then looked
up in my face and deliberately winked
at me.
"Wen,'' thought, ''this is a funny
thing for a horse to do; guess he has
something in his eye l was quite
interested and wondered if it hurt him
as ii would me, when To- 1 saw another
ripple crawl up his back and when it
got to where his brain is located he
threw his head to one side and winked
again. / was aStOniShed. The horse
was evidently trying to fiirt with me.
You old white-haired rascal,' said,
under my breath, you do that again
and I'll call a policeman, How dare
You stand and wink at a defenseleSS
woman in that fashion,
Another ripple climbed slowly up his
spinal column and he actually smiled
when he slowly shut and opened his
right eye twice. 1t was the funniest
thing l ever saw. I forgot all about
the policeman and just threw back me
head and laughed.
Just then l heard a gruff whisper
right near my elbow. Say" it said,
you wouldn't tell policeman on a
poor old chap, would you?"
[ turned around to see who it was.
There was no one in sight. 1 was begin
ming to get scared. Mercy sakes, I
must be crazy, I thought. 1 surely
heard some one speak. 3
That's what you did" said the
voice again, and this time I could see
that it came from the horse.
"Well, if that horse hasn't swallowed
a graphophone or may be he has eaten
the driver; he surely has got something
inside him that talks" 1 said to my
self
Amt swallowed nothing but saw
dust for two days. growled the horse.
.Oh, you poor thing" L said. you
must be hungry at the same time
Offering him my bag of chocolates, in
my excitement.
NO thank you." chuckled the horse.
candy gives me the toothache. Say
continued the horse, you are the first
person that 1 ever met that had horse
sense"
Thank you" said I, hardly knowing
whether to feel flattered or not.
Yes" said the horse, you are the
only person 1 have ever met whose
brain l could communicate with. 1
have been looking for such a person
for years.
1 looked at his back and it was sea
of wrinkles and ripples chasing each
other up and down like waves on the
rolling deep.
Say. would you mind telling me
what those things are crawling up your
back?"
Sure" replied my conversational
equine. those are thoughts on the way
to my brain-a telephone message, as it
were, coming from your brain; my tail
is the switch" and he laughed a hoarse
horse laugh.
Trying to be funny in your old age
said I.
We'll, if I couldn't be funnier than
! etorted, and, continuing, said: 'Now.
there is that fool of a driver; some
day I'll fix him. Just wait tin I get
my left hind foot in the right position,
I'll make Spaniard out of him all
right Just look at my mouth where
he has .yanlIed at the bit" opening his
mouth and showing me a raw red cut
at each corner, and suspect some of
those electric waves you see on my
back are my ribs. OF course l can't see |
myself, as my dressing caSe-hasn't any |
mirror in it," and he gave a slight |
cough. Say, You just stand off and |
tell me what kind of a looking critter
me if my tail is on straight and what |
color my eyes are. You know. never 7
see myself as others see me-
1 told him he was looking bang UP, /
his tail was six feet long and his eye |
a beautiful pansy blue. You should
have seen that horse stretch his neck |
to view himself in the shop window OPP
ppSite.
Come, now" says /, what do you
want anyway-want ton of hay.
barrel of oats or a bucket of water?"
Stop" cried the horse, while a big
tear dropped onto the cobblestones, Il
feel as if 1 could eat a house and lot,
but / have more important things to
talk about while the current is on.
| can eat later, providing can get any
thing that is diges1ible What is
me lately is these buggies
and carriages, and cabs and dray
wagons that go without horse
You mean automobiles" 1 ventured
TO suggest
Yes them's what L mean; of all
hateful things / ever saw. Why, the
other day one came up near me and l
was looking it over when the sassy
thing squeaked out, ia, ia, bones. But
do you Know, ! nave mad a PRESENT.
ment for long time that something
was going to happen"
Something does happen every day."
said I, trying TO cheer him up.
Yes. know and ne smiled through
mis- tears, but feel that the days of
my race is numbered. Man is ever
tickle; he clamors for something new,
md he will eagerly leave his old
friend, tried and true, for this accursed
1taPbiue and we will be left IN a hor |
1bie fate-oh. 1t is hard, hard and
ais frame shook with sobs.
After wiping off his briney tears on
ny brand new $40 muff. he continued:
II want you to promise me that so
ongl as you live you will never, never
-ide in one of those horrible things
IND he looked pleadingly in my face.
His quivering voice and trembling
ids as the pearly tears rolled down
lis cheeks. touched my heart. then
md there did enter into a. solemn COM
,act with a gray cab horse that 50 long
IS l live I will never step foot in any
sorT of a horseless vehicle.
Just then the driver calce out and
yraSped the lines. The horse made one
rantic effort to speak; but the current
vas broken. A dead calm rested on his
Jack Quickly the light OF intelligence
he'd out of his eyes, his head dropped (
Iejectedly and at the drivers summons /
o get up. Lazy" a common gray horse
etched TO a weather beaten cab moved
lowly down the street.