The San Francisco call., 1905-04-02

IT IAIAdY VICTORY and the Marquis
fell of the east-bound overland at
Slavin's siding, where the con-
n Etructon gang. was building the
Rock Creek cutoff.
It was dark The cinders and the
sagebrush dust stung Jimmy, but after
q twitter from the bird cage assured
him that the Marquis was unhurt, he
sat up and stared at the vanishing
relr fights of the train. The small
son of Captain Victory Of the Third
street Mission barracks was accus-
toned to odd experiences of alley and
byway. The Marquis. too, had gath
cred a complacent philosophy from the
towns vagabondia and his dwelling
therein. He shook his feathers, hop
ped on q perch dismantled by the mis-
hap, and clirruped a friendly call to
his master. The Marquis should have
been asleep at 10 o'clock. but being a
canary Injured TO the lights, the noise
and haIleluJahs Of the army mission,
he was not. The Marquis water pan
had been dry, and Jimmy slipped from
his sleeping fathers side to refill it
in the adjoining tourist car, just as
the train slowed down at Slavin's for
instructions. The train lurched for
ward again as little Mr. Victory paused
in the vestibule. and both he and the
Marquis tumbled hurriedly and unno-
tced out upon the right of way So,
after gazing, somewhat bewildered, at
the rear red lights Of the car curv-
ing into a gaunt canyon under the bril-
. liant Wyoming starlight, Jimmy, with
the birdcage under his arm, walked
down the track past the graders
camp. Afar off he saw a light on the
lonely land.
Things were quiet at Virgins. The
one-lunger idled over the piano KEYS.
and when a cool breeze drifted through
the doors the One-lunger's eyes turned
TO the outer dark, for there, under the
night. the hills were-the most high,
the secret places that were for him
the promise Of life Tonight they
were high and far enough; so very far
that to the one-lunger the wind from
the canyons scarce stirred the air Of
The dance hall Alf Heyman. shirt
sleeved, indolent, caressed a stack Of
checks. with his long fingers at the
table where four railroaod graders
watched the deal, Idly monosyllabic.
yet alert before the gamekeeper.
The air indeed at Virgins was not
6oous Ine nights reek inherited the
days heaviness, for night or day the
house did not close, and from week to
week the thin drift Of smoke hung
about the huge kerosene lamps under
the rafters before II filtered out above
the green baize doors.
Before the mirror, Billy Be-Dam was
arranging q gay red neckscarf; he ran
his fingers through the hair that stood
up like q forest OF magnetized iron
filings across his round post Of a head
"a final flourish to his grooming-and
remarked, as one concluding an IRE
futable argument:
It's as I'm telun' you-if q mans
barlzeep, let him be a good barkeep;
and II religions the play, let him go
the limit But you sure can't mix re-
lig1on with the sort Of whisky that the
Deacon shoots across this slabi"
Deacon Wiggfn laid down the new
almanac he had been perusing and sur
veyed his establishment from the bar
10 the dance hall; from the shirt
sleeved gamekeeper TO the plano player
whose slim fingers strayed over the
keys with just the ghost of a bar
from Mendelssohn's Spring Song
stealing through the gray lands outer
silence.
II thought once Of bein' preacheh,"
unused the Deacon I've seen pow'ful
exhortfn' on worse whisky than these
bar goods. back IN Tennessee. II a
mans htten. he's htten; and IL he's
called. he's called I reckon rd been
good preacher, II I'd been f1tten. I'd
have sure preached The Word II I'd
been called
Religion is al right" said Slim
York "Onoe I went to church In La
redo. They had g picture painted
right on the wall OF q woman and a
little kid. and lot OF angels foattn'
round promiscuous. Just half a little