The Winslow mail., 1900-12-20

seVen-up, and talk
Il followed this enumeration with in
terest. AS a choice of evils l said,
resigned1y, I think l should prefer the
last. Talk, please
81. Filkins answered my sigh with
another, indicative of an equal amount
OF forbearance. What abcut?' he
asked
Miss Sparks, said I, boldly.
y. Filkins bridled resenttu!ly at
that. 4 don't know as das to- he said.
Oh, yes, go on l coaxed. Miss
Sparks did not forbid her name as
subject of discussion, did she:
No said the thin boy, she always
tells me to use my own discretion in
her absence. I've been doing that for
the. past three years; and I've got so
L can size folks up pretty we'll by this
time. [ guess you're to be trusted
j. Filkins cast off great cloud of
his uncanny atmosphere with that
tribute to my character, and l beamed
upon him effulgently. 'Of course am
to be trusted said 1. Go on, please.
Tell me whatever you think it wise TO
reveal about Miss Sparks. Where is
she now?'
She's gone to the otner end of
Sachem, he said, 'to say good-by to
Tony Sanders
Unknown to me though Miss Sparks
was. I felt my heart-strings grow taut
with Jealous fears at that, and | said
quickly: Tony Sanders? Who is Tony
Sanders?'
He's her last said J. Filkins, with
imperturbable gravity.
Her last what?' persisted.
Her last young man. returned j.
Filkins. But he, too, has proved un-
worthy and Miss Sparks ha5 gone to
the depot to see him off
II was fairly on edge with unre
strained curiosity by that time. and
reached across the narrow table which
stood between the thin boy and myself
and clutched him fiercely by the arm.
Now, see here, young man. said 1,
I've had enough of this monkey busi-
ness. Get down to facts. Tell me,
fair and square, just what you mean
-. Filkins whimpered. Leggo my
arm,' he said, and 1 will. It's just
this way: Miss Henrietta is mighty
rich woman. She's got thousands and
thousands of dollars put away in the
bank, and she owns this house and
hundreds of acres down in Texas, and
coal mines in Pottsville, and she's got
loads of jewelry and silver knives and
forks and spoons, not to mention
satin dresses and things Of that kind.
Miss Henrietta's folks are all mighty
stuck up. They've been naggin' at
her ever since she was no higher than
that table to marry a rich man
somebody that was her equal; but
Miss Henrietta won't do anything of
the kind. II don't care about the
rich men, J. Filkins,'' says she to me
one aay after another, just as sure as
the sun comes up. II don't want to
have anything to do with rich men.
When l marry / shall marry a poor
man, somebody who needs me and my
money to help him win a battle for
good in the world. There are so many
men. J. Filkins," says she, 'who are
only had the opportunity. It's all
nonsense" says she, and L just wish
you could see her when she says that,
she looks so tall and handsome and
grand. cts all nonsense, says she.
'to say that anybody with stout
heart and a strong will can overcome
apparently surmount-able obstacles
and escape the confines of the most
vicious environment" Those are
her words, exactly. Their vicious
environment. Environment, ]. Fill
kins," says she, 'is everything. Just
think what you were when l took you
out of your loathsome environment"
81. Filkins paused and looked at me,
obviously. And what were you?' 1
asked, anXiously.
Nobody said he. weakly. Miss
Henrietta found me in a poorhouse
near Philadelphia three years ago and
she took me out of my environment and
brought me here and sent me to school
and said, please heaven, she'd make a
man out of me. ''Some day, J. Filkins,"
says she, Il am going to marry poor
man and help him along in the world,
but until I do, you shall be my chief
care" And I remember I cried when
Miss Henrietta said that
-. Filkins' monotonous tones quav-
cred suspiciously. What did you cry
for?' l asked.
Because l c-c-couldn't marry her.
m-m-myself,' said he, 'w-w-which
c-c-couldn't very well d-ddo, n-n-now
c-c-could 10
in spite of j. Filllins' evident per-
turbation Of spirit | smiled as studied
his diminutive proportions which in
dicated corresponding tender years
No. said /, you couldn't, am sorry to
say. But go on. Tell me more about
Miss Sparks
She's still looking for the poor man
that needs her. said j. Filkins. She's
found plenty of them that seemed to
| need her. but when it came to the pinch
none of them seemed 10 be of the right
stamp. They're not worthy. | guess
we must have given upward of a hun
dred young men a trial during the
| three years I've been with Miss Henri
eta, and every last one of them has
/ turned out wanting when weighed in
| the balance with Miss Henrietta's re-
| quirements. We've tried natural born
| preachers, who wanted money to boost
them up to a place where they could
preach good sermons 10 appreciative
audiences. teachers who wanted a
chance to teach. singers who wanted a
| chance 10 sing, ana artists who wanted