The San Francisco call., 1905-06-18

have the highest pitchers at that hotel
ever saw. Pinkie picked up one that
happened to be full and let it fly
through the window. The best part of
the deluge struck the bass drum but
midway it dropped a few drops on a
fife player who had side whiskers
foot long. | can see him yet. Very
carefully he deposited the fife on the
hotel steps and then began to wiring out
his whiskers, for all the world as I've
seen my mother wiring clothes.
Our window wasn't far from the
ground, and the next things we knew
the band leader. crawled right up on
the ledge. yelling, Did you
He got no further Pinkie saw him
coming and lifted the wash basin.
which was deep in proportion to the
pitcher, and he yelled back, You bet
did, and I'll throw the whole wash
stand at you if you don't take your
bunch of ear -splitters away from herev
don't know whether 1t was the size
of the basin or the fashion of Pinkie's
remarks. but the life and drum corps
disappeared round the corner, with the
first fife still shaking the water from
his whiskers.
"Pinkie's a resourceful chap. When
he has a bad days business he always
takes it out on the town somehow, and
It's real pleasure to fall in with him
under the circumstances Last year we
struck A. just when the county fair
was on. Not man in town would
talk business with us, so Pinkle and /
strayed out to the fair grounds. Never
saw such a scrubby bunch of stock at
county fair in all my life, but Pinkie
he just raved about that blooded stock.
Pretty soon he had half the farmers
with entries trailing him about the
pens. By and by he dropped a hint that
he represented a big New York de-
livery firm that wanted to buy strong
blooded horses for its vans Then every
farmer about the grounds was hard on
Pinkie's heels. When we went back to
town Pinkie had secured promise
from each farmer-given secretly. of
course-to deliver the pick of his
horses at the hotel that afternoon at
o'clock. At we boarded a train for
Harrisburg. No, Pinkie didn't cover
that territory any more They were
putting new man in there and he
knew it.
'One hot afternoon / was sitting on the
cool side of the Planters Hotel in ST.
Louis when a big Irishman came along
toting basket which was a cross be-
tween peach basket and clothes bas-
ket. 1t had cotton cover over it, thrown
sort of loosely and just as he passed me
he set the thing down, square in front of
my feet.
ueIi lie pulleQ out Ddndanna and
commenced mopping his head and COM
planning of the heat. | agreed with him
that it was ecord-breaking day. and
with this encouragement he said, speak
ing quite boastfully: I bet you couldn't
guess what is in that basket
1T was too hot to guess, and told him
so.
Well he said, obligingly, I don't
mind telling you it's man and a woman
He was an insurance solicitor died of
trying to work in the heat-no one ought
ter work in hot weather in ST. Louis
and it broke her up. SO she died the very
next day. Want to see emp
II thought the man was crazy. but
nevertheless l jerked my feet away from
that basket and replied, Not on your
life. Take 'em awayi -
9 oh, all right he answered, cheerful
ly. but being as they're two as pretty
urns as ever you'd get chance to see
thought mebbe you'd like to take look
at EN- before took 'em up to his moth
er's house
And then l found out that he worked
for a crematory and was delivering the
ashes of the deceased couple in hand
somely carved urns"