The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-07-09
OLD POP WHITES PLEDGE.
COOP WORK DONE BIZ THE BARNDoOR
ATYLE OF PAINTING.



Committed the Sin of Drinking Alone!
IL never soc specimen of the old barndoor
style OF painting-those startling limitations OF
voins. dollar bills. playing cards. hunting
horns. old hats and the like. painted on an
equally startling imitation OF an old barn
door" said New York artist. that l do
not recall hoy Pop White happened to sign
the pledge. Fop White kcpt-and keeps-a
tavern in n little bsckwoods Pennsylvania
town, a popular stopping plhce for trout fish
ermen. artists and hunters. the trouting be-
ing excellent. the scenery exquisite and game
plentiful The tavern was popular. although
the landlord was a grouty. grumpy. taciturn
fellow. oil Of which might have been excused
by his fellow citizens who frcquented his bar
room IL he had not possessed. in their opinion.
that utterly objectionable charac tcristic. the
unvariable habit Of drinking alone. The land
lords Eroutincss and generally disngrccable
nature made him all the more interesting TO
most OF his guests from abroad. especially to
artists, who dotted on using his qualities with
out stint for the amusement OF themselves aud
others He was not only addicted to drinking
alone. but to drinking early and often. so that
he never went to bed sober. Even that home
dissipation did not entirely satisfy him. aud at
regular intervals he went on what he called
fishing or hunting trips. which lasted from
three days to week. and were simply sprecs.
The first thing that the landlord used to do
on coming down in the morning, which was
promptly ut half past I. was to brew himself
glass OF rum and tansy. On post at the en-
trance to his bar he kept hanging on nail his
trnsy masher. the little wooden pestle once an
indispensable appurtenance OF the backwoods
bar. when everybody drank sugar or tansy or
mint in his liquor. The landlord was very
methodical. and II he ever found that tansy
masher out Of its place or something else
hanging on It's nail he waXed extremely wroth.
aud let people know it. Artist visitors were in
the habit Of taking advantage OF this trait by
now and then dsplacing the tansy masher and
substituting something else for 1t. big
key. to which was attached n large triangular
piece of tin 10y n stout wire ring, was
another feature OF the tavern. Its place
was on Il mil in post that supported the bar
room ceiling It was this key that mischiev-
Gus artist guests best loved to hang upon the
tansy masher nail and nothing excited the ire
OF the landlord more than to find 1t there. He
would pounce upon 1t as hawk might swoop
down on Il chicken. yank II OF the nail. accom-
panying the raid with loud and dire threats OF
vengeance upon the person who placed the key
there. and then hurl the key out OF a window.
il the window was raised, or through the win
dow hit was down-invariaby going out by
and by. picking the key up and returning 1t to
its proper place on the post.
When he camo down in the morning the
landlord always wore n high hat which GER
tainly had been in commission not less than
twenty years. This he kept on his head while
preparing and until after he had drunk his
matutnal rum and tansy Then he doffed it.
brushed it carefully with his sleeve. and took 1t
10 the other side of tho barroom. where n long
nail protruded from the wall. as high up az he
could reach. and on that nail he hung the re-
4. .
back end of the barroom, where he kept an
old narrow trimmed SLOUGH hat originally
gray. but TRANSFORMED by time and wear into
various hues and tints This hat he would
take down and put on. and then go out to in
spect the barn. the pGpen. the chickens. and
so on. This routine never varied. year in and
year out. except when the methodical landlord
was absent on his sporting trips.
Among the artists who used to ma ke that
rare ODD tavern their headquarters during the
vacation season years ago was young mia
dephian. who WAS the greatest wag ever
knew. and WHO was certainly the cieyerest per
| ever tried them on. He was an absolute
MUS in that i'm. so much 50 that more times res
Git Of work Of MS But hae scornel that great
| gilt OF his and made 1t serve him only as Il
I haT n made ei n on iorn I rn t.
| but he was in for high art. and high art alone.
n his trXesIIon ana STUCK TO u uH;i n" d ,hot
"To this young artist our grouty and cceen-
time came round when the landlords yearning
| Tor fishing trip overcamc him. and he went
away. His man all work. who had charge
| OF things during his absence. remarked. as the
| landlord drove away. with his on" and only
| rnony. the village blacksmith, II man lust as
| jolly and free hearted as the landlord was the
| Opposite: ,..r,
a three hnyscr, And maybe Pop won't be-
| thiubs'll git hIstcd.'
| ~ a., rnrtv boI m
| hour or So. the Phllateph'a artist. without
saying word to anybody; brought his cuI"rs
work. 1t WIS in the height OF the hayng time
| and all the usual tavern loungers were at work
curious onIookcrs. he man-of-aIl- work simply
taking everything for granted and Attending
to his affairs wtheNt 2 word ] knew that the
content to wait its development. The finish
INK Of its frs stage, enlightened me. He re-
moved the tHnsy mashcr from lis naiI and hen
rinE, al imati"a q the big Key; With il G,,
Of wire so exact and so natural in its relief
shading and its pose. that II had come in
the key should have reached for that picture
Of it in all good faith Then begah TO see into
@ @sPh aa h Ga sad sS Tn %m the
nmnzemcnt the painted imitation Of tho Key
and its fixtures had caused him; t9rrsaw its
After compIct TIM The picture Of the key on
thu t"nsy mssher nail arts, Who had said aid
1 u
| long nail on which the landlord had hung his
| high hat every morning every time for twenty
| years. and soon had in counterfeit projection
| from the nail hole mail IN pigment. so perfect
| in its deception that had to show the man of
| all work the fca nail before he would believe
| the other was only painted.
| Thunder! he exclaimed. seeing what the
| inevitable effect would be. 'Popli turn the
| house inside ont.
"'fhe nail done to his satisfaction the artist
| took down tho old faded sou"h hat from its
place Al the end of tn" room, and when he was
| through with that part OF his programme it
would have taken a nicer eye than had ever
| gaIed ON that hat in the original TO detect the
| dirercnc" between il and The imitation Of il
| that stood out l,ohly in the originals place
! The man-of-nll- work was actually frightened
by thus time oyer the prospect. The artist was
| not Earid UDrkcr. and il was dinner time
| when he put Tho last strokes Of the brush on
the picture. Of the hat. Then. for the first time.
| he made reference to what was on his mind
| He turned to thu man of all-wOrk and said;
| - Do you think It will fool him, John =
| 81 wouldn't be in here when he triCs EN-
| replied John, not for a farm. Popll 60 crazier
| than loon"
| lords trip would lie 'threr-dayscr. for il was
| nearly \ O'Clock on tn" night Uf the third day
| when he came back and there was abundant
| rvidcncc that tn" trp had boon a success. Hc
II lI