The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-07-29
Bill! Jones and Dick Judd.

Bill Jones, the sailor was naturally sur
prised when, just as he had turned q
6umsy handspring and landed on his back,
soon after getting ashore on the Island
of Tapajack, half a dozen black skinned.
thick Tipped savages piled themselves on
his PROSTATE form and bound him hand
and foot. The handspring had been under
taken a. an expression Of Joy, Is may be
learned by anybody who Win read 7she
story called John Smith L. the seventh
Of q series Of nineteen short imaginative
histories conceived and written by viii
g. Gidley and published under the title OF
"A Dicker in Souls and Other Stories
(The NJ. W. Eazen Company. To be
interrupted thus in an expression Of Joy
was calculated to be irritating as we'll as
surprising, and 1t did not astonish us to
learn that Bill Jones got hot in the collar
az soon as he became fully aware of what
had happened to him.
But this was not all. Bill Jones, SUR
prised and irritated to begin with. found
presently that still more was coming his
way. A sharp apprehension was added
to his unpleasant feelings. He himself
records, speaking Of these savages You
NAV iudee OF my sensations a moment
later when I saw one OF them begin riling'
tvips and broken bark in a sort Of open
fireplace between two crotched sticks.
while the rest OF the nearly naked savagcs
anu tilted down In a circle round a fiat stone
and began patiently sharpening their
aha rks' teeth YEA pons on It's rou gh surface
We can indeed Judge Of his sensations.
What he saw meant, Of course, nothing less
than that 1t was contemplated to roast
Biil Jones and to eat him. II was at the
precise moment when the thrill Of a COM
plete understanding Passed along his
nerves that he cried aloud, as his habit
was when he was In trouble, BY the great
John Smith,
He builded better than he knew. The
cannibals rolled over on the ground with
loud cries. The cannihal King cnme forth
from his tent or other plaoe Of conceal
ment and addressed TIL Jones in excel
lent Down East English. Il am King John
Smith" said he in effect. ACome along
to nv ralace and let me give you an ac-
count Of myself. Jones, you ray? Glad
to see you, Jones. I beg you to overlook
this indignity. II had known you we're
Bill Jones, II never should have happened"
with that be cut Bill Joness bonds and
led him away and refreshed him with rum
and personal history; and We know that the
reader will buy the book II he feels that
the history Is important and that he would
like to read It,
It seems to be pretty plain that John
Smith l." was not intended to be perfectly
true and credible chronicle, and we pre-
sumo that other tales in the book were
rather lightly meant. There Ia Room 49,"
! for instance. The very name implies
credulity and superstition, and prepares
us for Visions and matters unfounded In
fact. Not for q moment do We believe that
Richard Judd commercial traveller, was
hoous Focused as he says he was in this
story. What, indeed, does he tell us?
He declares that one Rham Chunder, q
malignant old juggler from Dude or Budj-
pootnah, turned cigars into serrents and
q quarter OF dollar into bat. We might
have believed 1t II the scene had been India
but We drew the line at Hillsdale Junction
Pa, in the Eagle Hotel.
Bed business for Judd, according to the
atorv. when that seasoned commercialist
nave the landlord Of the Eagle IS to turn
old Rham out OF Room II and put him into
the room Of evil number next door. Rham
tried to scare Judd OF with the snakes and
the bat, but Judd continued foolhardy.
His punishment was as bad al anything
that We have heard Of lately Old Rham
Get his darkest powers at work, with the
result that whom Judd woke up in the
morning, after . singularly disturbed and
feyerish night, be found himself In Room IS
in the Royal Lion Inn at Queensville Cross
ing In Canada. II Rham Chunder's re-
yen oeful hocus poc,is had stopped there II
IL possible that We could have forgiven 1t
IN time, but 1t went considerably further.
When Judd arose In his Canadian roomthe