The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-08-20
MrsaMcclure's Stove.

4
The family had remained IN the Fest
when Tim started for Mexico in search
OF employment; but now that his ability
and faithfulness had been rewarded by
rapid promotion from fireman to engineer,
and thence TO foreman OF the roundhouse,
he was receiving monthly stipend that
would enable him to establish his house
| hold goods in Paso del Norte.
He had never taken kindly to sleeping
on the hard earth floor Of a bare adobe
house; nor could he eat with relish the
| food served by the immobile-faced Wah-
Kee, who conducted the fashionable res
taurant OF the place; and he longed with
the longing of a homesick schoolboy for
| the coming of the time when a well-cook-
ed supper and comfortable bed would
await him at the end Of days work
And so when he converted his first
months pay as foreman into money or
| der, wherewith his wife should defray the
expenses OF the family's transportation
to Paso del iNorte, thrill of anticipatery
pleasure ran from the roots OF his hair to
the tips Of his toes.
The family arrived in due course OF
time, ana Tim proudly headed the process
| sion that wendell its way from the depot
to the adobe house ne had prepared for Its
domiciliation. He had furnished the house
as luxuriousiy and artistically as his
purse and taste would permit; but he
had been able to accomplish but little, IL
viewed from the standpoint of the aver
age American woman, and Mrs. Mcclure
was one OF these.
Her disappointment was keen, neverthe
less she made brave effort to stifie her
feelings, and succeeded fairly well In do
ing so until, in her inspection Of the prem
ises, she arrived in the kitchen. There,
the tiny sheet-iron camp stove and the
meager array Of culinary vessels that met
her view caused her utter collapse.
30, Tim, Timr she gasped." how ever
will get enough cooked for the chill
dren on that-that toy?"
'It isn't much Of a stove" Tim admit
ted, stroking his chin ruefully, "but IL
is the best that money would buy in Paso
del INorte. You know, my dear, cooking
stoves are little used in Mexico"
well. why on earth did you not order
one sent out from st. LOUISE" rejoined
Mrs. Mcclure.
such a stove as you are accustomed to
would cost 100 to put It in the house."
"A hundred dollars!' snapped Mrs. Nc
Clure, contemptuously. why, Tim, you
cen get an elegant stove and all its fur
niture for only $3O.''
I'm st. Louis, but not here" replied
Tim. 'rBut say the stove, laid down In
Ell Paso, Tex, just across the river. would
cost not more than $40. 1t would cost go
more to get 1t brought over here"
What" gasped Mrs. Mcclure. sixty
dollars to move a stove one mile! Tim
Mcclure, have you lost your .senses?'
mo, my dear, not quite, ! hope" Tim
replied humbly. but you do not seem
to know that an import duty must be
paid on everything brought into Mexico;
and on stoves the rate Is about 80 per
cent of their value"
1t required a lengthy explanation of the
tariff question and his most solemn assur-
ances to persuade her that he was not
testing.
"Why, Tim," she exclaimed, when he
had finished, ''it's an outrage. and no bet
ter than highway robbery. Can't we have
the stove hauled across the river some
night, and the customs officers know
nothing about It? It seems to me that
We could. and we don't care whether the
government Of Mexico has any money or
not"
It was not a sense of the moral wrong
of smuggling that caused Tim to hesi-
tate. for he was no novice in the art Of
clandestinely introducing articles OF mer-
chandise into the cactus republic, but he
knew that the entire frontier was pa
troled night and day by a numerous and
vigilant customs guard, past whom 1t
would be all but impossible to smuggle
so cumbersome a thing as a stove.
He finally hit upon the plan OF taking
the stove apart and lowering 1t. piece by
piece, into the tank of ''El Buey." the
lob,
when It would be on the Texas side OF
the river. But upon obtaining the dimen-
sions OF the stove Mrs. Mcclure wanted.
he found that the larger parts would not
pass in at the manhole.
He would have given up in despair had
not his better half kept the subject fresh
in his mind, not only with words, but
with the poor quality of the meals she
sat before him as well.
AS a last resort, he decided to confer
with some OF his friends-those most
adept at eluding the vigilance of the GUS
toms guard. At his request the men ne
selected gathered in his office one morn
ing, q conference that lasted an hour or
more followed: every face was smilingly
confident when 1t was concluded.
The scheme'll win, Tim. never fear"
cried one of the party. The guards
think they're getting mighty smart, and
so they are; they've caught on to nearly
all the old tricks. but they'll never sus-
pect this one. Just make a bold play and
bring over the stove in broad daylight,
right under their noses. ana they'll never
see it."
The stove was at once ordered. and
when II arrived IN FL Paso the car in
which it came was switched. at Tins re-
await the unloading of the stove. Along
In the afternoon OF that day the switch
engine. with Tim standing on the forward
footboard. went scurrying across the riv-
CT. It was gone but a short time. and
when II returned it was observed by
those of the roailroaders who were idling
about the yard that there was something
queer in its appearance.
Standing on the truck platform Of the
engine. just in front OF the boiler, was a
dark object that seemed 20 be a part OF
the engine; within It a fire was burning
fiercely. and from its sIended pipe, which
passed up along the engines smokestack.
a roll OF black smoke was pouring out
and mlngling with that OF the engine. to
all appearances emanating from a single
chimney.
When the engine had reached the Gus
tom house track u came TO a standstill.
and the guards. who were always swarm
ing at that point. gravely and somewhat
perfunctorily examined II for articles Of a
dutiable character. They discovered moth
ing. in spite OF the united snicker OF the
Americans who witnessed the scene. ard
the engine was allowed to proceed 10 the
foundhouse. where Il was received with a
wild hurrsh by the railroaders who had
gathered there 10 welcome II.
It OF course became known within Il
short time after the eniso1e that soma