The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-11-26

| to think how true was his aphorism
| about momentum and his inevitable rock
| pile, and how useless any attempt at re-
| form.
While We were crossing the. undulatine
| paved court. on. which the old inn front>
ed, seroff took my arm and remarked
| tentatively:
/ Now. YOU know, can't owe this place
more than Y on Is marks at the outside;
| do you think-do you think it would be
| worth while to. kick anybody for SO
I trif1ing a sum ?'s
/ They found it worth their while to
refuse you credit, in the presence of
| your guest. too,l on the strength of that
same trifing sum- said grimly.
+ so they did; damn them This last
expressive phrase he repeated under his
breath three separate and distinct times,
| by way of lending courage to the convic
| tion.
| When we came into the tap room the
| proprietor sat at one of the tables, knife
| and fork in hand and a napkin tucked
under his great, pendulous chin, waiting
! to be served.
Scroff walked up to him, and after two
| or three spasmodic eontractions of the
! larynx, piped out in a high-pitched. trem-
ulous voice:
| How much do I owe you, sir?'
To which the unperturbed autocrat I'M
winkingly remarked:
Twelve marks fifty
Scroff excitedly counted out 10 marks
There, sir! There's your money! he
said most impressively, land you may
! keep the change
The proprietor was so far from being
enraged by this would-be death dealing
stroke that he actually thanked him.
| with great servility.
And sir, I would further say-I would
/ further say, I no longer regard myself a
/ customer Of yours.
So saying, he buttoned his coat with
/ great gravity, inserted one hand in It's
/ breast, and placing the other across the
small Of his back, with head well erect.
strobe n1ajestical1y from the door.
/ A waiter with his back to hfrn, 1ean-
| ing over in the act Of writing out slip
/ for g. customer, seemed to remind him
that he had not yet acted out the part al
/ lotted to him. Slowly and with delibera-
| ton, without In any manner altering the
| dignity Of his pose, he raised one foot
| to convenient level, and placing 1t in
close opposition to the unsuspecting wait
I er's person, gave a vigorous shove.
+ The sanded floor and that last bottle
imposed upon him in the wine shop did
| the rest. The remaining foot shot out
J in search of its fellow, and describing
an arc worthy all possible admiration
he lay prone upon the floor one arm PIN
| Toned behind his back, the other still in
the breast of his coat. The fleabitten hat
cut a derisive caper about the floor and
| the thing was complete. The whole place
/ was so full Of stagnant, Teutonic aston
ishment that no one seemed to come to
in time to intercept us, and we retired
in comparatively good order.
| While I was brushing the sand from
his back around the corner from the
scene of his carnage, he TREMENDOUSLY IN
| CURED:
/ )>1Well. how did do it?"
I replied it was a masterpiece.
81 am glad you think So he said after
| a pause, because I feared you woulo
| think I had overdene it. And then again
it was more or less embarrassing, that
misstep; that, too, after vanquishing the
great, hulking brute as 1 did, with one
| hand behind me-"