The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1901-06-06
Senior Tuk-yOO.

ging hours, the anxious waiting Tor the
footsteps of the attendant who brings
the scanty meals, and the nameless
dread as night approaches, and fainter
grow the feeble rays OF light stray
CLING in through the gratings OF the
window.
Although year has passed since my
release. | shudder even now as my
memory wanders back to the time
when those horrors were no matter
of Imagination to me, but grim reality.
Amid the gloom of these recollec-
tions, however, there shines out
brightly one little CLEAN that still
leaves a grateful warmth in my heart.
1t is with a regretful longing that |
fancy seeing him now, my little prison
comrade, standing before me and
sweetly warbling his name: "Tuk-yoo
-tuk-yoo-tukyoo-o- God bless
him.
But forget-you have not the pleas
ure of his acquaintance (all the worse
for YOU, and an explanation is neces-
sary.
Over a year ago it was my fate to
be a captive in the hands OF the Fill
pino insurgents, and an unsuccessful
attempt at escape had brought uponme
the punishment of solitary cOnfne-
ment in an out-of-the-Way room of an
old Spanish convent. Hardly large
enough to pace up and down in, my
cell offered no other amusements than
staring at a blank wall outside the
window; or lying on a small iron bed
stead. gazing at the ceiling. contem-
plating the spiders at work weaving
their webs. Down below echoed the
never-ceasing ''tramp-tramp' and
"shuff1e-shuff1e" of the barefooted SEN
try, with an occasional "Alto," as he
challenged some passer-by. My God,
the torturing inactivity, Only a book,
or even a pencil, with which to scrib-
BILE on the walls-yes, even a child's
top 10 play with!
The misery of that first night will
never be forgotten. Sometimes l fell
into fitful dozes, only to awake again
with weight upon my chest, as if
some goblin of the darkness sat there.
At last | slept. Suddenly l awoke
with violent start. | seemed to have
heard the unearthly shrek Of some
demon of the spirit world, and spring
ing up into a sitting position, l lis
tened, my forehead wet with beads of
perspiration. Again came the voice,
fearfully loud and distinct, "Tuk-yoo,
tuk-yoo, tuk-yo-o, tuk-yo-o-o-oo,"
ending up with with low purr.
With long sigh of relief. reached
m
| may call it, was familiar; had heard
1t before Who in the Philippines has
not?
Striking light. | beheld the mid
night vocalist sitting on the table,
glazing at me with indignant eyes.
Evidently he regarded my presence in
this longdeserted room as an intrusion
upon his privacy.
In aspect he was far from pre-
possessing, seeming to be, in fact,
cross between a dragon and a croco-
die, and quite as terrible to look at,
poor fellow until you learned to know
him and he you. IFS one redeeming
feature was his size, which scarcely
exceeded that of mouse, and this
seemed in measure to mitigate the
ferocity of his appearance.
"Helloi" | cried; who are you?"
No answer; he only advanced step
or two and glared at me menacingly.
Either he failed to understand English
or my familiar tone displeased him.
Again | addressed him, this time in
Spanish, and with a pronounced air of
respect:
"Buenas noches, senior; will you
honor me with your name?"
N These words produced some effect.
His throat sweled until it seemed
ready to burst.
-yoo-tuk-y ooi" he shouted, ex-
plosively, with final whir that seemed
to say, That's my name; how do you
like it?"
An so we continued conversing until
my supply of matches was almost ex-
hausted, when, with loud goodnight
'tuk-yoo" and whisk of his scaly lit
tie whip of a tail, he disappeared.
Next morning, as | sat eating my
breakfast, wondering if l should ever
again see my little midnight visitor,
he suddenly appeared on the window
sill with a loud shout, which | inter
preted as Good morning"
"Ah, good morning, Senior Tuk-yoo,"
! cried; how do you find yourself this
morning. viii you join me at break
fast?"
No he wouldn't join me-had al
ready had his breakfast. he gave to
understand quite expressively in his
native dialect of "tuk-yoo." He seemed
now TO accept my presence with
equanimity; perhaps it was even with
a shade of interest that he listened to
my conversation, for the volley of
"tuk-yoos" that emanated from his
little yellow breast seemed distinctly
to say:
"Wc,l, you're not such a bad chap,
after FL, and, demme, l rather like
you. You're sociable, at all events,