The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-04-28
fee and some dry toast. Do you under

fee and some dry toast Do you under
stand?"
yes, boss" and like a center-rush he
| darted through a jungle of walters clus-
| tered around the kitchen door, tripped
| one, climbed over another, and Wriggled
| under a third.
While waiting his return looked at
! my neighbor across the table He had
| the savage air of a hungry man who has
waited long. From time to time he
would roar: Here, waiter. where's that
| mackerel and cornbread2" But nobody
I paid him the least attention. In about
| two minutes my waiter returned AMI,
| instead of my steak and coffee, placed
I before me some broiled Inackerel, corn
| bread. and a pot of tea.
| l am an old campaigner. I made no re-
| mark I fell to. This restaurant was
| evidently a lottery, and 1 had drawn a
mackerel Why kick?
| My-neighbor across the table started
| when he saw nay breakfast, and his eyes
| bulged out of his head There was a
slight swallowing motion in his throat,
but he was speechless. He had nothing
| to swallow, poor man, unless it was his
! curses.
left the st. Charles restaurant and
went forth to view the carnival scenes
| upon the streets. The decorations con-
sisted of cheap hangings of cloth III the
|
garnished with rows OF gentlemen ex-
| pectorating upon the Sidewalks; many or
| these gentlemen were sober. Fairies fit
| ted up and down canal street lodging
| salivary cataracts. Most of these beau
! tiful creatures were in fancy dress and
| masked. But from the Woody heads,
| the brunette necks, andsthe bEAdied snln
| bones and splay-feet of the short-skirted
| ones, it was evident that these beautiful
! creatures were lady Africans. They had
the true carnival spirit, for when they
met respectable white woman they
would guy her, slap her with bladders,
and sometimes drive her into a shop To-
escape their persecution
| The formal festival began with the ar
escorted to the city hall and the keys
of the city given to Rex by the mayor.
| The next night the grand Mardi-Gras
pageant took place, and there were va
| riouS accessory associations, such as the
'Mystlc Grew of Comus." the Grew of
Proteus, the Twelfth Night Revelers, -
the Grew of Nercus," the knight OF
| Momus," and others. Some of these
! clubs are said to spend much money on
| their floats, but if SO the result is not so
/ striking. There was an air of cheap
ness about the whole affair. The floatS
were made of papier mache, Dutch metal
| gliding was freely used, and the hanglngs
and draperfes were of cheap paper muslin
and cambria. To me the most remarka-
j BILE thirg about the New Orleans carnival
parade is that any one should think it
1 had lost my friend Hic1up at mas
| ouerade ball Needless to say / found
/ him at another one But there was a
shadow on his countenance. ] soon found
out its cause when he made a feeble at
tempt to hand over to me the negro
| Woman'S ponderouS key.
Here, old man. said he, heres your
| kew
l gazed at him sternly. "Ifickup,'' said
| l. keep your key. You cannot toiSt Your
responsibilities upon me in this shame
! less manner. You won the bed; you
were the tenant of the black lady; you
| became responsible for the Key. I was
! hair sofa by your courtesy. Now l see
| that you have carried off the black lady s
key do not envy you. l am convinced
that she is a voodoo woman, and will do
you some grieVous harm. Hickup, you
ccme from the effete East. Do you know
any thing about Voodoo sorcery and the
I VCodOO WOmen?"
| Hickup admitted that he had heard
seine dreadful tales regarding them. I
! imme diately proceeded to tell him few
| more. / did my best to curdle Hickup' s
| blood. When ran out of genuine vo6oo
| l invented few tales which, 1 Halter
m, self, we've almost equal to the straight
vcodoo goods.
| New Orleans, weighed down as he was.
mentally and physically, by the fatal
| voodoo key. He could not leave it any
! could not throw it away; 1t was too
| noisy Twice he had endeavored to lose
it on the street but had been pursued
! by polite bystanders, who restored 1t to
| him. We took the west-bound Sunset ex-
| press Hickup left the key on the ticket
counter, but a negro porter brought it
to him and got quarter for his honesty.
! We soon left New Orleans and the
greatest show on earth far behind u.s.
1 asked Hickup il he was not disappoint-
| ed with the Mardi Gras pageant He asi-
| mitted that he was. So was l. But
! then all things in this world fail to come
up to expectations Every one Is secretly
disappointed in Niagara. The pyramids
! seem smaller than one had anticipated.
| The Mississippi is not so wide as it ought
/ to be at New Orleans And we all OF
! us know that the circus is not so good