The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-01-20

Charles L. Barrett Tells a Hard-Luck
story About His Son.

Charles E. Barrett, a real-estate lawyer,
was seated in the Denison Hotel with
group of friends. The petty mischances of
life were being talked of, when Barrett
interrupted. Talk about your harC lex
stories; my son here pointing to Fred Bar
rett, who was in the group could tell you
one that could outclass any of the exper-
fences of a strolling transformer. My
clientele demands that L make frequent
and long flying trips. and one Saturday aft
ernoon last year L learned that 1 must be
in Milwaukee on the following Monday.
Fred, at that time, was in the Culver Mill
tary Academy at Lake Maxinkuckee. L
wired Colonel Fleet, who has charge of the
institution, that was on my way to Mil
waukee, and to have Fred meet me at the
Palmer House at o'clock that night. The
colonel called Fred into the office and gave
him about enough money to pay his fare
to Chicago and told him that his father
would be at the Palmer House at o'clock
that night. When he arrived he strolled up
from the Polk street station, stopped at
a furnishing store, bought a neck-tie that
he liked and wended his way to the Palmer
House to wait for o'clock and me. He
waited till 10; he waited till r. and he
waited till o'clock in the morning. Then
he went up to the clerks desk. asked the
price of a room and was told that it was
81 He sized up so cents in change he had in
his pocket and walked down State street
where he got a bed for half dollar.
while Fred was waiting in the Palmer
House in Chicago, walking the streets and
tying up at a 50-cent hotel, 1 was sleeping
serenely in the Palmer House at Culver.
When L arrived there at o'clock and
didn't find Fred l Just supposed I had
asked a breach Of the rules of the school
and went to bed. The next morning / got
up very early, went out on the lake, fished
awhile ana went up TO the school about
s o'clock, which is time for dress parade.
On my way L met Fred's roommate and
asked where he was. Why said he, he
went to Chicago to meet you 1 went at
once to Colonel Fleet and demanded an ex-
PLANTATION. When l learned that he had
been sent to Chicago with only enough
money to pay his fare l commenced to
have night sweatS in the day time. The
colonel commenced to telephone and
commenced to telegraph, but, of course,
it was of no avail in locating him There
was no train out of Culver till Monday
morning. But l learned there was train
leaving Hibbard, a little station four miles
east of Culver, at 10 o'clock. l tried to
secure a conveyance to take me there, but
turned in and hoofed 1t. The farther 1 got,
and the nearer my destination, the madden
l became, and when L really arrived at this
little station | was so angry that If you
would have touched me with a wet finger
I'd a sized like a hot flat-iron. The train
was two hours late, and L Immediately
commenced to telegraph again, and / fairly
decarbonized the wires with electrolysis.
OF course, l got pretty we'll acquainted
with the operator and all at once he held
up his hands as the receiver began to vi
brate and said, here comes a message
from your boy to Colonel Fleet / told
him to intercept it and Immediately wired
Fred to meet me in Chicago at 8 o'clock.
l found l couldn't wire him any money,
a
Fred got up in the morning with only
5 cents after paying his hotel bill. He went
to directory, looked up a number of my
business frineds, but found they all lived
chance of finding them at home, and if
he didn't he would be worse off than ever.
He remembered that in his wanderings he
had passed a saloon where there was a
lot of free lunch on counter in the rear,
so he resolved 10 wait till he could with
stand the pangs of hunger no longer and
then go in and partake literally of this
lunch. So about the middle of the after
noon he went in, laid down his cents on
the bar and called for a glass of beer.
After he had finished Ii he turned to walk
toward the lunch counter and discovered
that while he had been drinking his beer
the negro porter was removing the lunch
and was then carrying away the last plate
full. When / arrived that night it is need
less to say Fred was at the train to meet
me, and he said he was never so glad to
see anybody in his life We went up town
and he told me his troubles over big
thick steak, and. of course, he was soon
paying basis.
During the narrative Fred Barrett lis
tened TO his fathers story with indiffer-
ence, but at the conclusion he said Pop
you forgot the most pathetic part of that
story" What's that asked his parent
why, as L was going out of that saloon
where the negro took the lunch away while
l was drinking my beer, there was a blind
fiddler out on the sidewalk playing Home