The daily Alaskan., 1905-07-15
American PoIiteness

| n l0A eNiu Nuc <AAhNAhN~As I can give you little story that lndi. cates the contrary"
 "Do. by all means"
 "An acquaintance of mine biily Ford. from Chicago, who had made al great deal of money in pork-that is, his father had. and Billy inherited both the old mans money and the business came abroad to travel. He liked Paris and stayed here a good while One morning he saw in shop in the Rue deI la Paix a lady who at once captivated his fancy. She was tastefully dressed and bore the impress of refinement Having made her purchases, she went out to her carriage and drove away. Billy went to the man who had waited on her, asked who she was and recelv- ed the information that she was the Countess NJ. and belonged to one of the oldest families in France.
 Billy travelled an over Europe, went home. where he supcrintCndcd the kill ing of more hogs; addcd a new fortune to the one he already had and in five years was again tn Paris. He had nev- CT forgotten the face he had seen In the shop in the Rue 6c Ia Talk, and no sooner was he settled at his hotel than be began to walk in the Champs. Plysees. drive in the Bols de Boulogne, sit in his box at the opcra-all tn the hope of again seeing the face and fig ure that had captivatcd him. Not that he had any idea of indulging his fancy; he had the good sense to know that countess, even In republic. especially a countess able to ride in her carriage, must be far above pork packer, He only wanted to see her again.
 "one day when Billy was walking on the street he saw woman coming leading little child. AS she drew nearer he noticed that her clothes were worn and those of the child were In no better condition. As she passed him tn her sad, wan face he seemed Co see the Countess NJ. Ii so five years and trou. ble must have altered her, for Billy needed to confirm his discovery. He crossed the street, walked rapidly back on the other side, reCrOSscd and passed her again. This time an doubt was re moved. She was indeed the woman he had seen In the shop,
 Tt was plain to Billy that she had met some misfortune; that her clrcUm- stances were altered. He burned Co re- store some of her former comforts, at least to relieve her present necessities. But howg He had not even her ac- ouaintance. And if he had how could he offer her moneyy
 She had not gone far before she en- tered shop in the window of which hung hair made up In every variety. Billy waited for awhile outside, then entered the shop and inquired for a wig. though what he wanted one for was not apparent, his head being GOV cred by hls own luXuriant hair. In an adjoining room the woman who had en- tered before him was standing with her hair unlOOsened, and the shopman was inspecting 1t. It was fine sight thick and so long that it fell far below her waist. The hair dealer was dancing about her with an infinite variety Of gestures and words. all of which be- spoke the pollteneSs of the Frenchman.
 MagnIhquer he said. 50 thick, so longl I will give you a napoleon
 "Oh, m'sieu, need 3 napoleons, This sum must have or be turned out of my apartments. Can you not give ? napoleonsT
 "'Twol It grieves me to be obliged to pay only what my business permits. I will give you a napoleon, but l fear l shall lose money at that prlce.'
 ''The man stood firm. The woman yielded and told him to cut of her hair. Billy Ford, without having even the politeness to ask permission. as this haggllng Frenchman would have done, walked Into the room and said in the best French he could muster:
 ~'would you sell your hair to me, madamr
 eff you think 1t worth more than a napoleon
 "I am quite sure it is worth more than that said Billy. At any rate, I will give you more than that l will buy your hair on condition that you leave the price to me. it being under stood that 1t Is to be more than a na- poleon'
 ''The sad eyes looked into Billy's ln- quiringly. As you please, monsieur she said. lowering them.
 Billy called for a pair of scissors and. gently taking up the end Of a thin strand, cut off few inches, care fully rolled 1t on his finger and put 1t In his pOcketbook. at the same time taking out some notes and handing them to the lady.
 -M'sleu,' she said, SuSpecting char ity, 1t may give you a wrong impres- sion for me to look to see what you have given me. but fear it is too | much
 ''She unrolled the notes. There were | Ave of them. for 100 francs each"
 The narrator paused as though he had come to the end of the story.
 "But why leave Od at such an Inter esting pointr' asked the listener. "RecauSe I only know the final eli