The sun., 1902-04-27


the stage TO dad and back again. cause
! wanted to see the show myself and see
the old man laugh too. ! couldn't see his
face very well but know that il he laughed
Ia Know IL somehow, IL seemed 20 mo
that If that man really did laugh everybody
else at the show would just turn right around
TO look at him
But he didn't move and he didn't clap,
and i lost half the show watching him for
nothing until pretty soon there was an
awful racket and smash behind the scenes
and big dummy in a yellow overcoat
shot head first across the back Of the stage
ana landed with an awful thump on the
other side. And in about two seconds
In walked little short fat man with a yellow
coat on, just like the dummys, and an
automobile cap. He let on that he was tho
dummy we had just seen and said that
he was full of gasolene after the explosion
Well, you'd thought everyo one in that theatre
Was going TO bust laughing and in a minute
after everybody else had got their laugh
started heard a yell downstairs. There
was dad with his head so far back that
could see his eyes and the end Of his whis-
kers going up and down and he was slapping
the arms Of his chair with both hands
Then / yelled and everybody down
stairs was looking at dad and everybody
upstairs was looking at me. You couldn't
stop the old man after that. He let out
enough laugh for whole year and I'd
have swiped another 80 cents just 70 have
had ma with me there 10 see him.
After the show he forgot all about going
70 cheap restaurants 10 save money for
Nova Scotia, but braced right into swell
place next 70 the theatre to eat | was
hungry too. so | sneaked into the same place
so l could keep an eye on dad and got a
table way back where / could see the side of
his face. No waiter came at me for a long
time, but two Of 'em jumped right at dad
and bowed.
sEiru, ha b,d so,oatbins, ,.o,io,,,;.L A..
drink with round red thing In it, think
| he grinned again, after he put that down,
but amt sure. Then he had some raw
clans and pretty soon great big platter
| OF something with n silver cover on top and
a silver pail with some ice and n bottle In
IL. He looked pleasant enough TO have
his picture taken. / s'pose he was still
thinking of the fat man in the yellow coat
| Then waiter came TO me but didn't
| bow and kinder threw bill of fare at me
BY ,golly, it's lucky l saw that before
| told EN- what l wanted TO eat or I'd been
in a fx sure and had to let on TO dad that
was there.
Il had planned to have some OF those
raw CLAIMS anyhow. but they were so cents
| all by themselves. What do you think
ice cream, and just looked to see il they
had strawberry, and saw that ice cream
was 25--iust little dab, | suppose, too.
! You see i had just a quarter and had got
| 70 save TWO Cdridres 10 get nome over In
| Brooklyn.
$50 | looked and looked. and finally saw
| American cheese, Is cents / told the
waiter to give me some American cheese
| and he said, Is that ALI?
| That made me huify, and said, That
Is all this evening" just as il | owned that
| whole place, and he went Off. On his way
| TO get that cheese he stopped and whispered
To all the other walters and they all looked
| at me and grinned
/ oil / str VhaN oh.
| as could, taking little bites and watching
| dad and wondering what he had and how
| IL would taste. i don't like cheese, any
how. BY and by got through intended
! to sit there, but there was a lot of folks
| there and the waiter kept asking me if |
wanted anything else guess he asked
me ten times and began TO wish | wasn't
| there. Pretty soon he gave me n check
for IS cents and ! gave him my quarter
| He seemed to think that's all there was
| 70 it, so | got up and hung round the corner
| for my ten cents. That waiter forgot all
about 1t. so finally asked for it. He gave
it 10 me. but seemed kind of surprised.
Then slipped out and waited across
| the street for dad II seemed like an hour
| before he came out. He took the first car
| that came along and we got on the same
| boat
Then the funniest thing happened YOU
ever heard OF. There weren't any wagons
on that boat and nobody In the middle mar,
go In there all alone and begin saying over
| some OF the funny things they had said
| at the show. Then he whistled some rag
time and kept kicking up and dancing
back and forth across the boat like they
| did in the show
Il though ! would bust then, but the
best Of all was when dad took n run and fell
down head first on purpose just like
| fellow sliding for base. He was prac-
tising doing what the dummy in the yellow
cont did Then tho hnnf htITnUsl into ba
slip and dad went right past me. | heard
him kinder talking to himself and saying
he guessed he could I've funny and cheerful
round the house II he tried.
Il heard dad and ma talking in their
room that night, hut couldn't hear what
they said. only I heard 'em both laugh
and was ticlled Ia death. iiut dads whole
plan was ruined In the morning.
MA and me got to the table first a. usual
| and waited for dad. We heard him whist
ling In the other room, trying "a work mp
gradual. ] suppose. 20 b"ing real lively.
Ma looked pleased a. pie. In "A minute
dad came through the hall and Just ~
! he reached the dining room he gave yell
| and Tell fiat.
IL was the dummy trick and I ruared
Ma gave me a cur and Fneolrd right down
on the hDoT side uf dad and suid Oh, John,
are YOU hurt
'Sh. couldn't have said worse thing
Her gam" vac - laugh when dad tried so
hard az that "a h" funny, but NJ" hadn't
tipIed her -. heoaus" h" wanted ~ sur-
prizs her ~ when sh' arkrd n hr was
hurt be- just naid so solemn ah ana u~l
and went a. the taillr.
IL wAs ID. gluinm.-t breakfast We ever
had ana "yefytling ! pW Boz my mouth
tasted lao chr'-r
NOsOi ITOIN ar IiHIi.
me, 80 Nj the Nr~ crop lu.t noldo, rn