Evening star., 1901-05-25
TOLD IN HIS HANDWRITING

"About month ago. said an oli-tims
postman who has plodded a route in the
northwest section for a good many years,
Il met married man on my beat-man of
forty or so-carrying a suit case and a
broad grin.
Going away7' I asked him-Tve been
carrying his mail for fifteen years or SO.
ep. he replied Took little hack at
the market yesterday, beat it, and I'm go
ing to take short run over to New York
Just want to order couple o. suits of
clothes and so on and he gave me sly
little look out of the slants of his eyes.
Only be gone about three days. and then
he jumped his car.
He had that look about him tha. a man
wears when he's just embarking on a little
whlzz, and I sort of envied him, you know.
On the following morning 1 delivered a
letter In his well-known handwriting to his
wife. The envelope contained the name of
a top-notch New York hotel. His wife
looked pleased to receive the letter. and 1
mad line of thinks about the devotion of
man, married twenty years or 50, who'd
sit right down Immediately upon his ar
rival at a New York hotel and write his
wife nice, fat letter.
But there was no letter on the following
day.
"On the next morning there was a letter
from him from the same hotel. The writing
aS a VII "epbly LSuTGu II out Wnen |
saw that writing that he must be -njoying
himself quite a little His wife must have
thought so, too, for there was a still harder
compression of her lips when she took the
letter and glanced at the Superscription
There was no letter from lim on the fol-
lowing morning, but the wife was waiting
IN the front door for me. l knew from that
that he hadn't got back, but, just to say
something, inquired Of her pleasantly,
Mr.. So-and-so back yet?'
NO, he's not' she snapped back a me-
her eyes quite a heap fiery, and [ didn't
pursue the topic but went my little way.
on the morning after that there was a
letter for her from him. The address was
all to the bad-pretty nigh undecipherabla
There was no letter from him on the
following morning, nor was the wife wait
ing for me at the front door, which caused
me to conclude that he'd got back and
that he was probably at that moment en-
gagged in making a few little explanations
that couldn't possibly explain.
Great, therefore. was my surprise when
found letter from him for his wife in
my bunch on the following morning. By
th1s time he was away overdue on his re-
turn from that three-day expedition. This
letter was also a sorry deterioration in the
style of penmanship of the man in New
York 1t looked like it had been written
with the aid of but one eye while the
other eye was closed to prevent too many
h1eroglyphs from bobbing up on the en-
Ve!ope Worse than that, however the en-
Velope bore the picture and the name of
one or New 4ork's big Turkish baths. His
Wite barely nodded her head In response to
my Good morning'-as if was responsible
Tor her husbands continued absence-and
when she saw that picture of the Turkish
PAIN pain tnere was again light in her eye
that caused me to desire to go right on
ABOUT my business. That feeling of envy
Id experienced when he started off was ali
gone. ' -A
two days, followed by a letter addressed
on an envelope of one of the famous all
miSht Broadway restaurants of New York
me superscription was hash and no mis-
take. Along the lower edge of the enve
lope for about half an inch was a damn
reddish mark that smelled a heap like a
Manhattan cocktail and 1 was pleased to
unouroen myself of this letter to the serv-
ant IN the basement area.
Hereupon ensued another hraalr of
three Gays this time, and then there came
a letter from his original New York hotaI
ple.ty Wen addressed. but showing unmis-
lahdp,e signs or nervousness The wife re-
ceiNeu thlS letter at the front door and
face ii on her
'On the following morning. who, T .s
seltlns on on my route from the post Of
nee met him on the 14th street car He
was just rampantly shaved and shined and
polished and brushed up but it wo,,ldn,t
uo ~ LOT d minute,not with me- particularly,
tnat had traced out the little history Of
ms absence from that bunch of superscrin
lions, lie looked piqued and nervous
Mornln, said 1. taking the seat along
side of him. Have good time?'
Bully. said he, not looking as If he
quite knew whether he had or not Then
he gave me look out of the tail of his
eye i-
g All of my letters home get throupb all
right?' he asked me.
" es.' l replied. and I couldn't helm
grinning to save myself. This caused him
to look alarmed.
Well, what's the matter?' he asked me,
solemnly, as If he didn't know
Oh. nothing said l. leaning over to
hlm' only II L We're you l wouldn't go
home If l were you I'd never go home
any more. I'd remain away from home in
definitely or permanently. I'd go up to
Cape Nome, or join one of those punches
that's going to make dash for the pole"
or something like that. But I'd never go
home for fact
1T was painful to see how gloomy he
looked.
"'Well, I guess that's right, all right
he said; but I've got to face the music
some time. haven't Il?
HE bravely got off at his street and
when I got around to his house 1 found
him in his front yard in his shirt sleeves
putting up bluff at fixing the geraniums
'sh-sh! he whispered. when 1 entered
her the salt air of New York caused me to
suffer all the time l was there with writ
er's cramp! How's that?'
Il made some comforting reply, but I
came away wondering over how many
married men. take their wives for infants
or jays
How the Oil Well Was Sailed.
From the New Orleans Tfmes-Democrat.
AS is not at all surprising just at this
time the onversation turned upon the re-
cent oil discoveries in Texas, and as there
were several prospectors, promoters and
spectators in the party there were numer-