The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1902-04-29
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"About the meanest thing 1 ever did
said Bass McPheeters. who had served
as a volunteer through the Cuban cam
paign, was TO steal brandy off the
dead dagos. Every man Jack of them
had flask. / guess it was the worst
brandy ever distilled but it tasted
mighty good to me, and. as l say.
stole il and drank it and felt like a
ghoul all the time"
."Ah, you're thin-Skinned." growled
Heathcote, Harvard man who had
come TO be n Texas ranger because he
was plucked at West Point: IF you
want to feel real downright thirty
cents you ought to try peacemaking
between a woman and wife-beating
husband. l did. You remember it,.
don't you, Harris? The time I came
back from Langtry in an ambulance?
i made peace between them all right.
but what they did to me between
them was a plenty. Robbing dead
dagos is a Sabbath pastime compared
10 peacemaking and twice as remuner-
atlve."
Neither one of you knows what he's
talking about" drawled Lieutenant
Collins, who was doing his second year
on the frontier with his regiment, and
held the record as the only officer in
it who was not pulling wires for de-
tached service. zone of you is a thief
and the other a fool. but l can tell you
On experience that made me look like n
thief and feel like a fool for a long
time.
"You remember, Heathcotc while
was at the academy l was forever run
ming back to Cincinnati to spend day,
n week or a month, or whatever time I
could get on sick leave, bogus tele,
grams or other subterfuges. Well. they
were all bogus, but l had reason, or
thought had, for going there so often.
Woman? Yes. of course it was a wom-
an. That is, she was the making of n
fine and beautiful woman. She was a
mere girl then. just come eighteen, and
as gentle and generous soul as ever
lived. / might as well admit that |
had my heart set and my hopes built
on her and-lost. l didn't find out that
part, the loss part though, till my last
visit to Cincinnati, and as that's what
i started out to tell about, II just be
gin there.
"Well, / don't think Edith-that was
her name-I don't think she ever knew
how 1 felt toward her; you see 1 was
never forehanded with women, or she
wouldn't have invited me to her thea
tire party. l don't know exactly how
her mother sprung it. but anyhow We
hadn't been in Edith's house five min
ntes before everybody knew that she
was engaged to Herbert Humphreys. &
spruce little dandy with light-coloreC
eyes and clothes that would have made
Freddie Gerhard look like a costermon
ger. l didn't like him first, last nor any
time, but of course 1 was n preiudiceC
party.
well, l was assigned, that's what
YOU call 1t, 1 guess; / was assigned Il
Fannie Ziegler-you know the Zieglers
HeathcOte? Brewers. you know. anC
we went off TO the theatre in lot OF
carriages, the girls all talking abou
the coming wedding and what lovely
doings would be pulled off. and wha
a lovely ring that was Edith had. anC
me-you can just guess how / enjoyed
that theatre party. / don't remember
what the play was or who was i'm my
carriage besides Fannie or anythin.
about it except that one of the party
was girl cousin OF Edith's who haC
come from New Orleans to be leadin.
lady, or bridesmaid. or whatever it fl
mt the wedding.
Well, sir, she was q stunnerl
think If / hadn't been so faded OF