The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-06-23

DISTANCE AND THEN THE MEL
ANCHOLY FLUKE.
(Copyright. 1903, by Robert Howard
RusselI.)
once there va. a rhinestone Sport
who had an Ambition to b. called a
Good Fellow.
He had a Cousin Jim who vas known
il Rapid Circles as a Prince, so he de-
cided to trail along after Jim and get
in among the Rowdy-DOws.
Jim was full of Wise "ulk about the
Ponies Ever and anon he would care
IessIv fish out Of the Side-Pocket a large
wad Of the Green Kind with a Fifty
for q Wrapper and ell about sitting in
with u couple of Horsem Il and d Wine
Agent the Night before. He loved to
speak Of Hotels where a Swell Room
with Bath came to only 50 per Day Z
explained that he was getting a Rate.
Jim felt hi he was wasting his
Conversation any time hat he men
toned any Picayune Sum under d Thou
sand. He had nothing but Sporting
COrpuscles of the Crimson Variety NOV
ing about in his Arteries. He was ready
TO lay a Small Bet on any Proposition,
give or take, and when he put up his
Emo he never batted an Eye-LaSh. He
had the Confidence of many Of our most
celebrated Barkeeps and could give the
Hurry-Up to any welI-knOwn Gam.
No wonder hat pale-faced Herbert,
the wOuId-be High Roller, looked with
Awe upon Cousin Jim and inwardly
IOnged to butt into his Class.
For he perceived that he never could
stand Ace with the sure-enough Fell
lows until he had demonstrates that he
was a Good Fellow.
Jim slipped him a Tow-Line and took
him out into the Night-Air to pick up a
few Pointers.
Herbert learned that the first Rule
for being a Good Fellow was to move
rapidly up To the Poison Counter every
time an Order went in. Herbert weigh
ed about 100 Pounds and the Doctors
had told him to try a Milk Diet, but
he did no dare to renig, otherwise some
one might have suspected that he was
a cheap Varnish and a low-down Quit
ter. He was a Feather-Weight and an
Invalid but he wanted to be Game.
So ne stood in Lin with the copper
lined FOUNDERS who hal Bull Necks and
weighed about 220 On the HoOf and
made an awful Bluff at going along
with them. He knew that to a Eichy
would be a MisdemeanOr and to luck
altogether would be a Crime and might
block him out of the Good Fellow Di-
vision for all time to come.
Consequently he would stick. with his
Breast-Bone against the Railing and
continue to hoist until he was Pie
Eyed. hen some II would take him
out and boost him into a fOur-oared
Hack and send him Home.
Next Morning he would awake with
the Head spread out over two Pillows
and his only Joy in Life would be the
proud Remembrance that he had dem
onstrated his Desire to be a Good Eel
low.
He learned. also. that in order to be
the genuine 1t. he must go to the Track
and get on friendly Terms with Whis-
pering Ike. the Boy who holds the
Watch on the Morning GaIlOps and gets
4 Commission from all the POor-Houses.
In a Short Time he had a lot of Good
Stories about being nosed out and was
sleeping with the DOpe-Sheet under his
Pillow. Although he went 1900 Co the
Bad on the Meeting. he made the Per
sOnal Acquaintance of at least 4 dozen
Celebrities who wore Red Vests. car
RED FfeId-Glasses bet nothing but
Markers. therefore he had the glad
knowledge that slowly but surely he was
absorbing some of the Attributes which
distinguish the Good Fellow from other
Members OF the Brute Creation.
After all. the only cinch Method for
becoming q s~team-heated GdZabe Is -
exhibit Il tall Nerve in a cut-throat
Session OF the Game that made Con
gress famous Cousin Jim knew a lot
OF Gentlemen Players who We're devot-
ing their Attention 10 Poker because
they were getting too Fat 70 climb
Porches. As a Special Favor he fixed
il 50 Herbert COuId get i Place At the
Table
1t was 4 Proud Moment for the ANA
-eIr when he sat in that Distinguished
Company and began 10 pick up Hands
md then put them down again. The
Sheep that walked into Armour's Pack
su- House had the same kind Of a
Chance that Herbert had when he put
MS Elbows on the Green Cloth and
tried u keep from trembling.
He had been against the u~e-Call-two
Boarding House Game where they hand
back everything over 81 but h was not
accustomed 10 daIlying with Friends
who took out Pencils and began 10 fig
ure how much they could get on his
Clothes.
They were the kind that started in
TO play just alb Ut where he left of.
The only Reason they didn't kill him
with the Ante was because he looked
so Good 10 them that they wanted to
keep him in. Il was one of the Games