davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

The model who posed for that pic
ture expired under the finishing
touches of the painters brush. No
one ever imagined so realistic death
agony"
The trained eye of the artist saw
more in the painting than any of the
crowd that stood spellbound before it,
There was an lndefatigable something
about it which compelled a sensation
of reyerential awe in the breast of
the average spectator, but the art in
stinct Immediately detected the cause.
ut represents a tragedy" he said
half aloud as he shifted his position
to one more favorable for a further
and more critical inspection.
1t was the portrait of a beautiful
woman in a semi-reclining pose
against a mass of family outlined
cushions. There was nothing in her
shapely, well-rounded limbs to indi-
cate disease, nothing in the surround
ings to manifest the approach of
death, yet 1t was apparent, even to
novice, that the woman was dying.
Her left arm, in the dark back
ground, was pressed close along her
body, while the right arm, in the fore
ground, was flung out listlessly, the
hand clutched tight as if to nerve her
self up to the consummation of some
supreme act which her will was bent
upon committing.
The lower limbs appeared cold in
the pallor of death, and one could al
most see the dread shadows slowly
creeping up toward the seat of life.
Masses of raven hair, tumbling in dis
order around her head, were dank
with perspiration, and upon a clammy
brow stood drops of sweat like clus-
tiers Of beads. The lips of half-open
mouth were colorless and cold, and
through the film gathering over her
eyes shone the Pickering brightness
of soul about to leave it's mortal
tenement. The gaze of the eyes was
on the line of vision and followed
the spectator whichever way he
turned, with so pathetic look of con-
centrated entreaty that more than
one strong man turned away in de-
eyes filed with tears of sympathy.
Overspreading heT pallid, death
Swallowed countenance was smile of
ineffable content, as pure and joyous
as that of a martyr who sees the
heavens opening to receive her racked
spirit and relieve her body from earth
ly torture.
Turning mechanically to his cata-
logue, the artist read: THE Death
of Venus. P. Metcalf."
Can that be our little American,
Put Metcalf?" he queried aloud in his
surprise.
Our little Put and no other" whis-
pered friend at his elbow, who add
ed: What do you now think of
American genius, Paul?"
Il take off my hat to it," replied
Landelle, suiting the action to the
words; but l see a fearful sacrifice
in its awakening"
you have interpreted the painting
correctly" said Chavanne, do you
know the story?"
How can / when have been
sketching in the land of the midnight
sun for the past six months?"
Julie Coomans was lie model who
posed for that painting, Paul." began
Chavanne you remember herr"
ALI" calculated Landelle, 81
noticed something familiar IN the
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05
REVERSED ORDER OF THINGS.
Sons Pants Are confiscated to Fit
the Father.

Sons Pants Are confiscated to Fit
the Father.
State Senator Bernard F. Martin
was reminded by the story of The
Man in the Street last Sunday about
the boy of twelve, with pants marked
sixteen, of the following:
Il had constituent, Wiegand by
name, little, thin, wisp of mankind.
who was the father of four big girls
and one small boy. Wiegand's in
come was small, and to make ends
meet the fathers trousers had to be
cut down to fit his boy. This work
the lads sisters did, although they did
not relish the task When the boy
grew so tall as to have reached the
long-trousers stage, the event was
celebrated by the purchase Of a brand
new pair with money the lad had
earned. After awhile the boy bought
another pair for himself. At this ne
Rod his sisters noticed the fathers
only trousers were shabby, so thew
confiscated the boys first longlegged
pair and gave them to Wiegand.
senior. When the old man appeared
in them, one of the girls said to the
others:
Amt it nice? We won't have to
do any altering for awhile, for Benny's
pants will now fit papa. New York
Times.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

face
than kind to his model who could not
come up to his concept; he sympa-
thized with her for her failure to re-
spond to his brush. He was so kind
and gentle-ah, yes, that is where
models make a mistake.
Late one afternoon, Julie went
home woebegone, and throwing her
self upon couch began to sob hyster-
ically. Her roommate drew the cause
of the trouble out of her piecemeal.
From her we learned it-but after
ward, Paul, after the-the sacrifice
you have suspected"
at seems that the American, that
afternoon, had thrown down his brush
in despair.
It's no use, child, l can never
paint my ideal with you for model
You are growing lovelier every day.
Instead of posing for the death of
Venus, you are a glorious model for
the birth of love- See for yourself
But can you not put in the proper
colors to represent death?' she asked,
with a timid look into his face, but he
was unconscious of her gaze.
'Pshaw! You do not comprehend,
child?' he replied. The reality must
be before the artist, or exist in his
mind. Looking at you destroys the
reality, the concept. No, l must give
it up and then give up ALL
Does failure mean much to your
queried the girl.
Much?' echoed Metcalf. IL means
everything l hold dear on earth. 1t
means the loss of her l love, my
promised wife, who expects me to sue
ceed.'
1.-The woman you love, your prom
Used wife?' repeated Julie, in a trem-
bling voice and paling lips, scarce
comprehending.
Certainly, my Charlotte. She
lives in New York City, and we are to
be married as soon as l shall have
finished this picture. have prom
Used to complete it and she is wait
ing for me to keep my word
Do you love her so very much?'
persisted the girl with dry lips.
"'Child would die for her sake. A
love weaker than that is nothing
"Then you will be very unhappy
should you fail?' she said gently.
MY whole life will be blighted,'
answered Metcalf
"'Well, then, you shall be happy,
said the girl, with bright smile, and
choking back a sob in her throat. You
shall paint the death of Venus from
the reality. Nay-do not look SO
doubtful. l have a plan. / am inter
ested in your success, for am l not
the model? never told you was an
actress, Yes, indeed, have studied
many parts. Now my plan is this: /
will come tomorrow prepared to enact
the role of dying Venus, but you
viii have to paint very fast, my friend.
You will promise me that, for it will
be a terrible strain upon me, you I'M
derstand.'
During that night jules compan-
ion awoke to find the girl kneeling by
the window, gazing up at the bright
stars. She was praying. This also,
we learned afterward, Paul, always
afterward, you notice. Her accents
were broken, but this much was
heard:
Dear God, forgive me for what l
mean to do. 1t is for his sake, and for
the sake of her across the water. She
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

to every other woman. He wanted to
become famous for her sake-to make
a bold stroke with new subject"
Yes, remember" interrupted
Landelle, lit was the death of Venus,
the title of this painting"
I will paint that subject or no 9th
err he kept saying. Where will you
get model?' he was asked, but he
did not know; he knew only one
thing, which was, that he was going
to rest his fame on that subject alone
Every day for two months, Julie posed
for him, but he got no farther along
than when he began; his Venus
wouldn't die, you know. He was more
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Speaking of ghosts" said the ner-
vous man. when Col. Hutchinson had
finished his tale about the Tonkawas
last survivor, Il never saw one, and
| don't believe in them, but / was
taken for ghost myself once. Luf-
kin had been in the pineries roughing
1t all summer and when he began to
urge me to come up and said that
could get a rig at Mont Marie at any
hour of the day or night / began to
banker for the solitudes myself. If
! had warned him of my coming it
might have been different, but l set
out suddenly, calculating on the rig
at any hour and at last found my
self standing in eight inches of snow
in the middle of starry night at
the desolate station Mont Marie. 1t
agent, IL there was one, had disap-
peared for the night. l don't blame
him. The wind was shrieking and
whipping through the trees, and the
dry snow flying up from the open
reaches, stung like salt in a sore.
saw low, rambling house with
smithy attached, and plodded over to
find out about the rig at any hour
After ten minutes pounding a wo-
man came to the attic window and
asked what / wanted. l told her
wished to get over to Lufkin's lodge
on Moose Lake, but she snapped,
rather shrilly, that I'd have to walk
it. Her husband had taken a party
of hunters over to Chappewa Island,
and it was only seven miles to Moose
Lake. Why not walk it, she said.
II left word to nave my kit carried
over the next morning. l don't know
where / got lost, but did, and after
about three hours trudging in the
snow, utterly exhausted and chilled to
the marrow, l saw light-several
lights blinking right merrily among
the trees. headed for these comfort
able beacons, and pretty soon found
myself rapping at log house door
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05
"THE DEAR OLD SLAVES"
But Few of the Old Style, Faithful
Negroes Now Left in Virginia.

But Few of the Old Style, Faithful
Negroes Now Left in Virginia.
That is very touching story which
comes from Radford concerning ex-
Gov. Tyler's old servant, Lewis Armis-
stead. When notified that he was
free he went about his business as
though nothing had happened. He
was at home as a slave, and he did
not propose to leave because he was
free. He was a member of the fam
lily and remained a member until
death removed him to his home up
yonder. He was devoted to "Marse
Jimmie" and his wife and children,
and they in turn were devoted to him.
fully and affectionately, and in his
declining years they took care of him
and made his life sweet.
We said in Sundays paper that
there was never such humane slav-
cry as negro slavery in the South, and
here is beautiful illustration. There
was very little slavery about it. It
was family service that the slaves
rendered and they received for their
service not only food and raiment and
shelter, but protection and the kind
est attention in health and sickness.
There are few of the dear old
slaves left, and it grieyes us as we see
them pass away. Gov. Tyler's Lewis
was a type of the old Virginia negro
gentleman. 1t was noble type; the
old Virginia negro gentleman was
every inch man. He had a strong
physique: he had stout heart; his
impulses were generous; his DISPOSE
ton was amiable; his manners were
perfect. God bless his memory. We
only wish that the type were pre-
served in the new generation of
Richmond (Va.) Times.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

trace of me. felt cold with fright,
and edged a Itle nearer to my bed
fellow to profit by the warmth Of his
body. There was no warmth. He
seemed quite cold. | got up and was
about to relight the candle, dreading
nameless things, when / heard foot
steps again approaching, and this
time a low murmured conversation.
1t must be Uncle Hiram's ghost
whispered one This letter says he's
dead
Lets call Winkler, said the
other voice. Then there was more
shutting of feet, and presently
heard heavier tread come along the
uncarpeted hall The letter came yis-
tiddy,' whispered the hoarse voice of
a man, and l lowed t'have it here
to-day but tn missus hollered fur fire.
wood an had t. stay an chop
Then there was some muttering
that ! couldn't make out and finally
the man asked Sally, air yo shore
you raaly seen him.? and then they
all trooped awaysas ii to reconnoiter.
/ was scared half to death by this
time, and struck a match, lighted the
candle and took a look at my bed
fellow His face was as gray as his
hickory shirt and his eyes were half
open in vacant stare. 1 shook him.
He was like stone l land my hand
upon his and it was as cold as snow!
He was dead! Then it dawned
upon me that was in real death
trap, and that l had gone to bed with
my unlucky predecessor. Doubtless
he had been murdered, thought, as
jumped into my clothes and blew
out the light In five minutes, just as
| heard the stairs creak again, had
raised the window and was poised for
the drop. landed in two feet of
drifted snow and made off as fast as
| could gallop through the now dark
ening night. l wandered around till
daylight began to show, and then 1
met logger who took me over to
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05
Nae Stream Of LIE.

o stream descending to the sea.
Thy messy banks between.
The flowrets blow, the grasses grow
The leafy trees are green.
In garden plots the children play.
The fields the laborers till,
And houses stand on either hand.
And thou descendest stin.
o life descending into death
Our waking eyes behold;
Parent and friend, thy lapse attend
Companions young and old.
strong purposes our minds possess.
Our hearts affections fill;
We toll and earn: we seek and Iearn
And thou descendest stnl.
o end to which our currents tend.
Inevitable sea,
To which we flow, what do we l,now
What shall we guess of thee?
A roar We hear upon thy shore.
AS we our course fulfill;
Scarce We divine a sun will shina
And be above us still.
Arthur Hugh Clough
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

A woman opened 1t and said, rather
gravely, l thought, Come in, uncle.
That was pretty good and / guessed
that 1t was salutation peculiar to the
region.
1.-THE warm air of the heated room
made me instantly sleepy and, turn
ing to the young woman who had let
me In, said: I'm dreadfully sleepy.
May / go to bed? She said yes, and
led me up a rickety stairway to low
rooted hallway, off which three or
four doors opened. Stopping outside
one she said quietly: In here 1
thanked her, stepped in, and noticed
that she softly closed the door. There
was a lighted candle on an old pine
table in one corner, and in the bed
a gray-haired, bearded and grizzly
old man. / fumbled out of my snow
wet garments, blew out the light and
orawled in between blankets beside
the sleeping form OF my host.
Presently | heard footsteps crealS-
ing up the shalxy stairs. They came
pattering along the hallway, passed
my door, went to the end or the mouse,
and returning went slowly down into
the sitting-room, whore a murmur Of
excited voices seemed to welcome
them. This was repeated so often
that grew almost insanely anxious.
Perhaps / was in den of thieves who
intended to murder me in my sleep.
had left my guns and all weapons
with the woman at Mont Marie.
had some money-about 5000. 1t
would be an easy matter to suffocate
me while slept, throw my body into
hole in the frozen river, and lose all
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

We worry and We worry
over fate,
W en- wen answer that conundrum
Soon or. late
WHAT'S the good 10 guess II It be
Smooth or rough2
What's the use? Wen know the answer
Soon enough,
We wonder and we wonder
In the dark,
And we can't. with all our guessing.
Raise a spark
Let us. then. enjoy our living.
Ere we fit
And the future. let us make the
Best of It.
Baltimore American
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05
GONE PHILOSOPHY.

We wonder sas we wonder
What's ahead
What Wen see, and how wen see It
When we're Dead
II it's worth the while. or worthless,
Foul or fair;
And we wonder how Wen know 1t
When we're there.
We ponder and we ponder
What's TO come;
And Of all the good about us
We are dumb.
When we all might be enjoying
What is here.
We are guessing II the futures
Full Of fear
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

AT a sale Of bachelors which was
held in connection with a Cleveland
church fair recently one young man
was auctioned off for 8 cents. He
probably looked like 80, though, when
the hammer fell.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

A great deal of money will be spent
for charitable purposes this winter.
As an entering wedge, ]. Pierpont Nor
gan has donated cent to Michigan
church relief fund.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Some one says that the rich man
drinks because he has nothing else to
do. and the poor man because he has
too much to do. And then there are
few or SO who drink just because
they like it.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

The superintendent of the Philadel-
phia public schools says that good
spoilers are born and not made, but
the fact remains that the child who is
taught to observe accurately seldom
spells words wrong.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

That sack of mail that was mysteri-
ously lost on a Cincinnati train con
tanned drafts and checks worth $22,-
600. besides love letters of immeasur-
able value.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

In the inadvert act of drinking
"1igger" Of whisky in a glass of soda
pop there was probably less intemper-
ance than in anything that Carrie Ma
ton ever did.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

The lead keel Of the new cup defend
or, now nearly finished, is said to be
a wonder; but it is only indirectly
that it win help to urge the boat
ahead.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

King Victor Emmanuel gave $40, 900
to charity in honor of the new baby.
And 1t was girl baby, too. All the
charitable institutions in victor's
Tealm are praying for boy next time.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

A Camden, N. j., preacher has de-
cided to resign from the ministry and
become an auctioneer He must have
had deacons who wanted to do some
of the talking.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

The first few times of practice of
the Hugoton brass band has pushed
the prairie dogs further back into the
short grass country.-Topeka State
Journal.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Arbitrating is better than striking,
but talking it over till both sides agree
is a far better way than either. Be.
sides, it should be quicker
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Lucky indeed is the first grandson
OF Senator Clark of Montana, born
Monday with a $1OOO,OOO gift from
grandpa in his mouth.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Oh, no, ping-pong is not dead. But
the dining room table doesn't have
to be cleared as promptly or as often
as it did last year.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Bishop Potter speaks of the saloon
as the poor mans club. Thanks,
Bishop, that gives us ecclesiastical
authority.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

MIR. Chamberlain has sailed for
South Africa to see for himself just
how much red he succeeded in splash
ing on the map
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Grip is raging in England. Let us
quarantine against it, for grip has
killed more people than plum pudding.
has.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

1t turns out that John l.. Sullivan
has been good fellow at consider
able expense to other people besides.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

What is to take the place OF ping
pong this winter?
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Mr.. Charles M. Schwab is still as
busy as he can be in getting the
absolute rest" on which his physician
insists.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

How would it do to punish the Sui
tan of Bacolod by making him keep
bachelors hall awhile?
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Perhaps when science has advanced
@ little farther we shall be able to
harness Mont Pelee and make 1t do
the greater part of the worlds work.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Spanish republicans do not appre-
ciate being ruled by boy and are SER
Sously thinking of starting something.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

The car has new nephew, which
seems to be about as near as he can
get to the thing he really wants.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

All that the French chamber of
deputies needs to make 1t complete is
couple of goal-posts. some gridiron
markings on the floor and a refsrsa
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Ohio is 100 years old. 1t will have
to be admitted that she is quite
'peart' for one of her age.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

And now they are meanly limiting
that King Leopold is used to being
half shot.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Perhaps the cheapest way to heat
she dining room this winter is to play
o lively game of ping-pong.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

A girl is justihable in lying about
her age; but not in lying about the
house while her mother does the
dishes.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

DO you love her so very muchFF per
sisted the girl, with dry lips.
face, but the features were so glori.
fed that / could not realize its iden-
tity."
Shortly after you went away, Julie
would not pose for any of us; the
American was the only one, you
know. He was particular about his
models. BY and by he wouldn't have
anybody but Julie. No-there was no
attachment, at least on his part He
was engaged to young lady in New
York, 1t seems, though we did NOT
know 1t at the time, and he was cold
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

What could be more appropriate
than to put the automobile scorcher
into the cooler?
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

Say, that increase of salaries isn't
going to stop with the railroads, is
it7
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05

The great white car is certainly up
against the girl proposition.
The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-05
THE DEATH OF VENUS.
BY CHARLES H. ROBINSON.

Copyright 1902, by Daily story Publishing Coz
Deming graphic. (Deming, N.M.) 1903-1948, 1903-04-08
SEEN FROM A WATER TANK
Short PATA6raphS Of Railway DOlAGs Gather.
Cd FrSA Varlsus sturess.

Frank Phillips, who has been en-
ployed at the freight hoube here, went
to San Marcial on the second to accept
a position as extra brakeman.
Mr.. Catagan, who left here some
time ago, has returned to his old posi-
ton as car foreman here.
C. r. Temple made a business trip to
FL Paso on the fourth returning on the
fifth.
Robert Miller, an employe of the
Fawood Lead Co., spent a couple OF
days the latter part Of last week un-
leading some machinery for the com.
pany at this point.
Fred Newman, of El Paso, passed
through here last Sunday enroute tC
Silver City.
Last Saturday hat which started
from station in Oregon and has beer
as far east as Ohio, and which bore
tags from nearly every express office
in the west, many of which bore anus.
ing bits Of poetry composed by the ex.
press agents along the line, arrived
in Deming. The hat was tagged t
Douglas from here and went over the
Southwestern.
Last Thursday a section of the rooi
of the Southern Pacific water tank
which happened to be loose was blown
of, reducing our observatory so thai
our items under this head are sport
this week.