The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1904-08-23

ct HAVE HEARD OF THE GAME OF POKER"
aroused his respect, and he took off
his hat to me and extended his hand
and said:
Pilgrim, l greet thee. Put it thar.
Welcome to the town of Big Hopes, 4
and whatever you desire you can
have"
1 thanked him in fittin' language and
with proper fervor and incidentally
observed that the color of a hog did
not matter OIL a dark night. He re-
piled by incidentally observin' that
wherever two redheaded women was
lgathered together human natur' was
made the better, and from that min
ute EDWARDS we seemed to be drawn
together.
At an early stage of the game he in
lvited me to join him in a ~convivial IN
terprise. l joined, and of course / Sc
lected natur's beverage. If h mayo
changed my glasses while l was not
lookin', and l think by the taste he did,
I was not in the least to blame. There
is an old sayin' that he who finds fault
with his drink shall go thirsty.
ueH Tie hight lit luilS COIle anu
my supper was finished a brass band
surrounded my tent and played THE
Last Rose of Summer in a way that
drought tears to my eyes. This was
followed by Maggie Murphy's Home"
and THE Girl l Left Behind Me-" and
[ was feelin' jubilant on the one hand
and sorrerful on the other when the
mayor come to call on me and drive
laway my sadness. For some time we
lset and regarded each other in a tender
way and passed quotations, and then
he said:
Venerable pilgrim, perhaps in thy
travels through the woolly west thou
hast heard of the game of poker?'
In a dim, underlined way 1 answered
after due reflection.
1T may have happened" he went on,
that at some time-some rainy evenin'
or gloomy noOnday-thou hast learned
the game and played it?'
Il think / have. but it was long, long
ago. l think 1 played it for solace and
mot for profit. Are there not such terms
in the game as ante one BETTER
flush and straight If / am think
i'm of football instead, I beg to be ex-
Icused."
Thou art entirely correct, pilgrim,
land now, If thou wouldst do me a IA
vor, let us have a game. 1t Is long
since I have put down an ante, and II
thou lowest me thou wilt seek to win
the twenty plunks in my vest pocket
1t was from a feelin' Of duty that
Il entered into the game, and duty was
luppermost in my mind as 1 held four
ten spots and raised his bets until he
was a stone broke man. He was not
a victim of envy or chagrin. On the
Icontrary, he clasped my hand and said
that we would stand in together, and
thereafter, for three days and nights,
we played partners, ard the luck run
our way.
When from their ignorance Of the
lgame there vas no longer any citizen
left to raise the ante on two pairs, L
lset up my stand on the public square
land disposed of my i~nvigorator in lib
Ieral quantities. The people may not
have needed it at the time, but the
mayor assured them that it would come
lin handy sooner or later, and they prof
lifted by his advice.
It was with q cheerful feelin' that I
Isaw the last of my stock Of $50 bottles
depart from me to enliven, i~nvigorate
:. land make a new man of the buyer. 1t
: may be stated here hat the compound
was favored with sarsaparilla and that
: I%sarsaparilla and ~benevolence allus go
: hand in hand. Sometimes N gets
ahead of tother, but not for long.
5 When I had got through with the
: sale of my invigorator, there did no
!. seem to be much currency left in the
: town to do business on, and I was for
takin' my departure. The mayor, how
2 ever, assured me that the performance
was not yet half ove n he found a
man with a hshtin' dog who was ready
o Ito put up $25 on his canine.
I am not one who delights I'm con.
= ficts and turmoils, but there are occa.
Isions when ones natural feelin's must
be set aside. This was one OF 'em. ]
could not disappoint the enthusiastic
people who had closed their public