The Lexington advertiser., 1904-03-10
I " YOUNG q !
SCUNDLING'S
! EXPERIENCE
\>-S Oh

mdTUleS IOT Keeps he was Weli
conducted and industrious young maj
-punctual in his attendance at the Of
flee and with a good capacity for Dusl
ness. His salary was small and tht
his natural modesty to an extreme, bu
he lived within his means and even
put trife aside for rainy day. That
was Sounding
Plimson, the out-of-town order clerk
had come into possession of one
fifth ticket of the Honduras Lottery
company guaranteed by the Honduras
government He had invested two
dollars in this security, but as 1t was
nearing the end of the week and his
finances were at low ebb he proposed
to make up a pool of eight among his
fellow employees, which would bring
his and their interests to the modest
amount of rs cents each, which seemed
less like plunging. Sounding shook
his head at first when Plimson made
the proposal, but when it appeared
that his 25 cents was absolutely needed
to make up the pool he handed over
the coin with the remark that fool
and his money were soon parted.
'Oh, l don't know" said Plimson.
THAT ticket may rake off the capital
prize and that wouldn't seem SO fool
ish. Two hundred thousand dollars
isn't found growing on every bush"
You're mistaken" said Sounding.
''The bushes are full of 'em. There's
millions all around us inviting us to
gather 'em in-only they've got a little
string to 'em. | don't expect to get
that quarter back, but | guess | can
afford to lose it,
Make note of the number, any
way" said Plimson. Il may try to
switch 1t on you. If that isn't lucky
one there's no virtue in nines-four OF
'em, d'you see? Nine to begin with and
then eight and one, nine; seven and
two, nine, and five and four, nine.
ee?-9S17254"
Mine million chances to four that
you lose" said Sounding.
The drawing was to be three weeks
later and Sounding promptly forgot all
about it. He had plenty of other
things to think of, the chief in impor-
tance being Mabel. Matters were not
going well there. Mabel herself was
as sweet as ever and gave him no un-
easiness, but Mabers father was get
ting worse and worse. He had never
thought favorably Of Sounding as a
suitor for his daughters hand, main
tanning that the young man was what
he termed stick-in-the-mud. Il don't
hold it out against him that he's pool"
he said. Il was poor myself once
poorer than Jobs turkey-but wasn't
satisfied to plug along that way and
that chap seems to be. He may be
saving, but he's holding down the
same job at the same wages he was
three years ago, when he first came
incoming around. That doesn't look
we'll"
So he took a decidedly unfriendly
attitude toward poor Sounding, who
was doing the very best he could, and
went the length of telling him week,
after the lottery-ticket purchase that
he would better cease his visits to the
house until his prospects looked lit
tie rosier-and Sounding dejectedly
acquiesced.
Sounding was sitting in his rooms
one evening meditating upon his un-
happy lot when the insidious demon of
chance suddenly whispered in his ear
and he straightway extracted from his
pocketbook a slip of paper on which
was written the figures 9817254 and |
looked at them with dawning inter-
est. What if the number should prove
to be the winning one! There really |
was a chance of it after all. Some |
number had to win. II it was swim
lie at least it would occur to the swim
llers that 1t would be we'll to allow
one Yankee to win, if only to en-
courage the others. He had heard that |
common card sharpers pursued that
hVh lhC IhuSlS
hat was a superstition, of course.
sat there for perhaps an
lour regarding that slip of paper, and
~ the time he put it back in his
pocket he had acquired what the vul-
,ar term "hunch.
In the course of a few days the
'hunch" developed into an absolute
.ertainy. Sounding had figured out
hat his share of the prize would be
Is, 900. Well he had that $1,000 as
rood as in the bank. 1t was all over
tut the drawing. AS beseemed such a
apitalist, his manner took on cer-
ain dignity and self-assurance which
,efore had been lacking. His face
rev brighter as he felt himself re-
ieved from the anxious thought of
for years on small means
nd his air more generally alert. A
arge part of his burden of modesty
Tipped from him and his courage rose
o such an extent that he decided to go
nd see Mabel.
He had enjoyed delicious half-hour
With her, tete-a-tete, in the familiar
ack parlor before her father entered.
however, instead of appear
ng embarrassed, greeted him him with
confident and cheerful bearing that
eemed to take the old gentleman
omewhat aback. Instead of the ex-
losion Mabel and Sounding expected
% merely said to the young man: "I'd
Ike to see you few moments when
ou can spare the time"
"All right" said Sounding. prompt-
Y. "I'll go with you now" And ne
Dllowed his prospective father-in-law
nto another room.
We'll" said Mabel's father, II
bought | told you to keep away"
Until had some better prospects," |
aid Sounding, still sustained by his ]