The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-02-19


cooking pervaded the place. A mar
row iron bed. covered with a coarse
brown blanket, ran along one side Of
the room; the window was large, but,
looking full to the north, admitted no
ray of supshine and number Of
broken chairs and q cheap table COM
posed the furniture. Marshall was
too we'll trained in the etiquette of Bo-
hernia TO have any doubt as to what
he should do. He. seated himself on
the bed and glanced about him.
What a coy place you have he
remarked, with a smHe-''cozy" being
a euphemistic expression applied in
Bohemia 10 any room which is small
and overheated.
But where's the great worlx?" he
continued, glancing about him.
Il keep il next door, to be away from
the dust" said Webster III get it,
He disappeared, and Marshall, with
quick movement of his hand. felt the
mattress. Straw he calculated, and
eggshells in the coal hod-sure signs of
self-respecting poverty,
The door opened and Webster re-
turned bearing an unframed canvas.
In silence he placed it on chair and
then took his seat at the other end of
the bed, his eyes fixed on MarshalIs
face. The picture was not really of
large proportions, but seen under these
circumstances it appeared to fill the
room. 1t was a stormy marine piece,
atrociousIy i'll executed. In the dis
tance, outlined against lurid sunset,
a black vessel was being beaten against
some rocks, in the foreground the fig
ure of a drowned mariner was eX-
tended on the sand. while number
of birds. which from their size could
only have been a flock Of albatrOSSeS,
were scattered about in various parts
of the picture The drawings were in
accurate throughout, the color dirty
] a Il-s4l IL
ton feeble and uncertain.
All this Marshall perceived at a
glance, but he continued TO gaze, half
closing his eyes and making a tele-
scope with his hand.
81 want you TO be perfectly frank
with me- said Webster at last. IF
| you think it can't possibly get in,
want you to tell me so, and then. you
see. 1 needn't spend on my frame. So
his voice shook a little-"I hope you
will say just what you think" He
paused again moment The color
has sunk in some" he added wistfully.
( 1T viii look better when it's var
nished." And. bending forward, ne
rubbed the canvas tenderly with his
moistened finger.
Marshall, meanwhile, was going
through an inward debate. Would it
not be better TO tell the truth cour-
teously but decisively2 Would it not
be really the kindest thing TO do? To
! His mouth was opening for his first
| sentence when Webster. who had been
| looking at the floor. began to speak
again with a hurried rush of words.
Il want to tell you" he said, $50 you
| can understand about it. ] know l
haven't had much training, but I was
always very fond OF art. L worked in
! a photographers place at Bonneville.
] used to color the prints sometimes,
and / made some crayon portraits of
Il
up SOme-nOt much. There was a fell
| low came through the town. He said
| Paris was the place for art, and just
| then my mother got a little money left
her-her brother died-and she was just
wild for me to &c to Paris for year.
and so / came. Maybe it was selfish OF
me. for / left my mother all alone. and
she's pretty old, but l sorter felt had
/ to come Now I'm here, see the great
thing is to get into the Salon. That
man home said so, too
Il went last year, and there did seem
| to be some things not any better than
! mine"-he looked up for the first time
! land SO 1 thought I'd try. ] think a
man should have confidence in himself. y
| he ADDED after pause. clasping and
unclasping his thin hands nervOusly,
| and / didn't mean to say anything 10
! anyone. but I've kinder lost my grip.
| I guess I'm not quite well. for / felt
1 must speak TO you 1t viii be great
| thing for me il l get in-theyn think a
/ lot of me at home. | dare say they'll
make me teacher in the public schools
or something So / ask you TO tell
me. I respect your opinion a lot. Mr..
( Marshall"
The words on Marshalls lips un-
/ formed themselves. All his life he had
been popular. the admiration and lik-
! ing of his fellows was a necessity 10
| him. To hurt another-even to seem
i unkind-was impossible What Web
( ster said was true He also had seen
things as bad in the Salon. but he knew
| that influence had placed them there.
| Il think what YOU say about comb
| dence is the ticket" he said. your
| own feeling is the best guide. OF
| course. you know that there are lots ioi
| risks--we all have to take then-but