Waterbury Democrat., 1902-12-03

and some line drawings. The room
has not now the artistic atmosphere
1T had when it was the lair Of Har-
r1s, for it is comparatively clean, the
palettes are gone, and rugs cover the
All. the pipes and tobacco jars now
litter the big room we used in com
mon-the council chamber Of the
communicate / smoke there and
read as / lounge in the deep chairs.
It is all 1aiae, for Brady and Har-
ris deserted and left me in loneli-
ness and ulll..sputed possession.
At first we were hilariously happy.
We had long arguments, we dis
cussed the sinful ignorance of pub
fishers who refused to buy our
wares, we worked and showed each
other our work, which is strange,
for, as a rule, writer's are woefully
bashfu1 about showing their work
before it is printed. Afterward it is
different. We opened many bottles
at strange hours. and the popping
of corls punctuated many discus
sions. @.5
Brady and Harris went to work
in the early morning, leaving me to
sleep until noon, and many times
coming home at midnight =. found
them deep in argument over books
or pictures or telling each other
their hopes and aspirations.
The coming of Jones, copy reader,
marked an epoch. Jones furnished still
life. He would fall asleep under the
most distressing circumstances, and
in any position. lie invariably over
ell HI C+I fo,, Sc T.
ness. Finally he issued sweeping re-
quest for us to call him when we
thought he was oversleeping. For two
months our chiefest JOY consisted in
calling Jones. We called him when we
arose, and we called him when we went
to bed. Often we hurried home espe-
cially to call him. Jones stood it two
months. Then he slipped out between
calls and came no more.
For alrno two years we were happy,
except when the rent came due. Then
the first shadow fell. Brady COM
menced to have social aspirations. lie
was seen at bohemian" gatherings,
which advertised themselves as such.
He commenced to get into debt to his
tailor. and his verse changed III tone
Presently he deserted us when we
had a night free from work. Then he
began complaining of the havoc moths
had wrought in his dress suit, and he
feared the worst. Within two months
the attack reached its cut1ninatin
point. One night he came back to us
radiant; he wanted us to congratulate
him, and said he was the 5appicst man
on earth. Then he locked himself in
his room and wrote a poem.
Dutiful1y we CARRIED ourselves, at
tended the wedding, and robbed the
tobacco jar to adorn Brady's fat. Then
we disowned him. We lighted candles
at the head and at the foot of Brady's
deserted bed, and mourned him as one
lost. Brady came to see Us at rare
intervals, but refused the preferred
stein on the grounds his wife objected
to drinking.
Two months later Harris went away
on his vacation. He returned a changed
man. He called on Brady and his wife,
and when he returned he had an in
sane, idiotic look on his face. He
went into raptures over the happiness
which, he said, flooded Brady's life.
I listened to his heresy and watched
him sorrowfu1ly. After awhile when
Iwould search through Harris clothes,
I would find heavy letters, sealed and
scented. Those letters were perfumed
with violet. I hoped that would suf-
flee to dispel Harris illusion, but it
did not.
Matters stood that way for two
months more. One night in the middle
of June Harris came home early in the
evening. I was enjoying night free
from work, and was propped up in
chair full of pillows, and my pipe or
stool, gloating deep with Murger and
his students. I saw at once Harris had
something to tell. He assumed care
less air and finally, after many feints
and twists, fatty asked me to be best
man.
I said never a word: rose up,
dragged myself into street clothes, and
went away. I came back at four o'clock
in the morning. Harris says I was
bowling drunk. That is not true. I
was merely bowling over Harris
weakness.
Feeling hypocritica1 went down
country. and attended Harris we'd
ding. He married doll-faced country
girl who was proud of him. He made
a fool of himself when he carried his
personal property from suite %. He
almost cried and said: sect some
good fellow and keep the old place as
it is"
Since then I have lived alone Some
times Mr.. and Mrs. Brady and Mr.. and
Mrs. Harris come, and the women rave
over the place. They never seem to
think we could have been happy but
for them. Sometimes they invite me
to their apartments, but / never go.
| At first I went out of sense of polite
ness, but the women always were
dragging pretty girls around to meet
me and making opportunities to force
us to like each other. Sometimes
half believe even Brady and Harris con-
spired against me.
Sometimes when I write / look up at
/ the photograph she sent me one Chris
mas and think, perhaps, after all, if
| Harris OF Brady could have found a
girl like her their actions would not
aave been SO surprising Chicago Trib-
Inc.