The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-29
DELUSIoNS OF JOHN IRWIN.
ueinE the Strange story of n bright
Brain and W hat S13 Did TO II.

was not important; indeed 1t was 10 real
information at all Something always was
the matter with Mr. Irwin; always had
been. 10 the best Of my knowledge, and be
lief The gentleman himself once told me
that il began 80 years before he was bore
His earliest known ancestor fourished-or
vainIy tried to foursh-in London near the
close Of the sixteenth century; and nothing
IS now remembered Of him except that ne
was always in trouble. The capacity for
being so was his only legacy, and it had
never passed out of the family.
Such being the case, the servants words
meant nothing; but her manner was reie-
want. She was frightened out Of her wits.
The spectacle Of ordinary human suffering
could not have alarmed nor even interested
one who had served in Mrs. Reardon S
boarding house for period Of seven years;
therefore / was led to suspect a distinct
unusual occurrence. If something was me
matter with Mr.. Irwin that had never Deeh
the matter with him before, 1t must De
worth looking at; and upon this CONSIDER
alton I assembled two flights OF stars 10
the gentlemans apartment.
II must not be inferred from what have
said about Twins troubles that ne "as
blind or crippled or i'll of any grave as
ease III he frequently was, but MS
friend DR.. BLAND. who attended him graf
Is always said fl was mere accideni-an
obscure dietary misfortune, strap plo-
main in the lobster salad or mouthIu III
of air from New York street excavation.
In appearance he was healthy enough
though worn thin by worry and prema-
turely gray.
Tbis room was the farthest from the
front door, and worth 81 week, WIN
board, by Mrs. Reardon's scale OF prices.
il was a moderate charge for one VINO
earned so good an income with his pen
vet Irwin was always botherlng me on
SATURDAYS for a couple Of dollars TO piece
out Mrs Reardons money or TO gIatly
the washerwoman who must go 10 Coney
island on Sunday. What he did with MS
money heaven knows. He spoke Of debt
but when he contracted il cannot guess
unless the rumor that he had been so FOOT
ish as to assume his brothers be accurate.
found him pacing the floor, though
there was little room for such exercise.
His hair was rumpled, and the collar of
his shirt had been ripped from It's fasten-
ings in front.
Seven and seven are a." said he, land
three are II and one makes l8 and Tour
mske-Blossed heaven! l must have some
money
whats the matter, Irwin?" demanded.
seXVhat are YOU raising such row about?
"sav ten" said he Ten and four are
IA. and one makes IS, and four
''Sit down and keep quiet said l.
You've been overworkng in this hot
place, and You mustn't do 1t any more
WHAT you need is rest"
Blessed heavenw he cried. II must have
some money!!
You worry too much" said I. Don't
do il. Let the other fellow walk the
floor"
And I tried to make him sit down upon
the bed
seven and four are II. and one-one
for the washerwoman," he muttered, tax
ing an old letter from his pocket and
scratching uuon the envelope with a pen
an "and four are 16, and one one Tor
me Two boiled eggs are 10, and coffee hVe'
is Is. Twice 10 is 30, or say three times IN
two days"
For heavens sake, old man, quit figur-
ins" I exclaimed. There's nothing in 1t.
Come and take a walk. This room Is an
oven"
AS a matter of fact that back attic is
huilt on a plan which divine mercy re-
iected when perdition was in contemp a
tion. Irwin was absurd to work in it, yet
for days and nights n the hottest August
that ever baked New York, he had toiied
upon a long story that he was writing for
The Gravesend literary syndicate II was
sheer foolshness, and I had often asked
Wait a minute" said Irwin Il could
fix IL this way Seven and four are II, and
four ones make IS. But what's the use?
Blessed heaven! l must have some mon
eyr'
Money is of small value compared to
health" said l. Go down ana engage
Mrs. Reardon's back room on the second
door Coolest room in the house: l wish
I could afford ii myself. Hello; here's DR..
Bland
what seems to be the matter, John?"
inquired the doctor.
In the name of heaven" replied Irwin,
II must have some money"
Bland rummaged in his pockets, and
finally pulled out a leathern case, from
which he extracted physicians thermom-
eter.
take this" said he, land put fl under
your tongue
would not stop pacing the floor, and as
he walked, with the thermometer sticking
out of his mouth. he continued to make
figures on the envelope.
How long has he been this way?" ask
ed the doctor of me.
Il don't know" I replied THE girl
told me about it. Did she call you?'
Yes" said he. TN glad she had the
sense to do 1t. John looks pretty bad"
II told him he needed a rest" said l.
Rest and change of scene" assented
Bland. lie ought to go to the seashore
for a month or two and take life easy"
I'm afraid he can't get away" said L.
Hes turning out a story for the Graves
end people, and it ought to be done next
week"
AT any rate" said the doctor, with de-
csion, I'VE must get him out of this room.
Isn't there a cooler place in the house
anywhere? 1 don't want to send him TO
a hospital"
l mentioned the room on the second
floor, adding that I did not believe John
had the money to pay for il in advance,
a formality which Mrs. Reardon would
certainly exact and the more particularly
If II seemed that her ledger was likely to
be i'll.
"In stand half of It II you'll stand the
other half" whispered Bland Wen fix
1t up with Mrs Reardon, and say nothing
10 John-just walk him down there and
put him to bed"
lie took the thermometer out of Johns
mouth, and after examining ii by the win
dow, remarked that the patient had no fe-
YER Meantime Irwin had begun to add
again ending his sums with the exclama-