The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-05-10
THE EVENING STORY.
American PoIlteness.

You Americans said Nine G.
while sauntering through the Louvre
With John Townsend of New York,
are a generous people, lavish with
your money, but so different from us
french, who set great store by deli
cate ways of doing things"
H m" said the American. II think
can give you a little story that indi-
Gates the contrary"
DO, by all means
An acquaintance of mine, Billy
FORD, OF Chicago, who had made a
great deal of money in pOrk-thaE is
his father had, and Billy inherited
both the old mans money and the
Duslness-came abroad to travel. He
uked Paris and stayed here a good
Wn1le. one morning he saw in a shop
IN the Rue de la Paix q. lady who at
once captivated his fancy. She was
tastefully dressed and bore the i'm
press of refinement. Having made her
purchases, she went out to her car
rlage and drove away. Billy went to
the man who had waited on her, asked
who she was and received the infor-
nation that she was the Countess NJ.
ana belonged to one of the Oldest
Billy travelled all over Europe, went
nome, where he superintended the
killing OF more hogs; added a new for
tune to the one he already had and in
| I'VE years was again in Paris. He had
never forgotten the face he had seen
in the shop in the Rue de la Paix, and
no sooner was he settled at his hotel
than he began to walk in the Champs
Elysees, drive in the Bots de Boulogne,
sit in his box at the opera-aIl in the
hope of again seeing the face and fg-
ure that had captivated him. Not that
he had any idea. of indulging ris fancy;
he had any idea Of INDUCING his fancy;
countess even in a republic, especially
a countess able to ride in her carriage,
must be far above a pork packer. He
only wanted to see her again.
"One day when Billy was walking
on the street he saw a woman coming
nearer he noticed that her clothes
were worn and those of the child were
| in no better condition. As she passed
him in her sad, wan face he seemed to
/ see the Countess NJ. If so Ave years
and trouble must have altered her, for
/ Billy needed to confirm his discovery.
| He crossed the street walked rapidly
/ back on the other side, recrOssed and
passed her again. This time all doubt
4 was removed. She was indeed the
/ woman he had seen in the shop.
1T was plain to Billy that she had
/ met some misfortune; that her circun-
| stances were altered. He burned to
/ restore some of her former comforts
at least to relieve her present necessi-
/ ties. But how? He had not even her
/ acquaintance. And if he had how
could he offer her money?
she had not gone far before she en-
I
hung hair made up in every variety.
Billy waited for awhile outside then
/ entered the shop and inquired for j
1 wig, though what he wanted one for
was not apparent, his head being COW
/ cred by his 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 it. 1t was a fine sight,
/ thick and so long that it fell far below
/ her waist The hair dealer was dane
| ing about her with an infinite variety
| of gestures and words, all of which be-
/ spoke the politeness of the Frenchman.
- 'MagnffqueP he said. so thick, so
long 1 will give you a napoleon
:" oh, m'sieu, I need napoleons. This
sum 1 must have or be turned out Of
my apartments. Can you not give 2
| napoleOns?
Two! It grieves me to be obliged
to pay only what my business permits.
I will give you a napoleon, but 1afear
I shall lose money at that price
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
haggling Frenchman would have done,
walked into the room and said in the
best French he could muster:
Would you sell your hair to me,
madam
'-''i' I am quite sure it is worth more
than that said Billy. AT any rate,
will give you more than that. 1 will
buy your hair on condition that you
leave the price to me, it being under
stood that it is to be more than ma
poleon.'
THE sad eyes looked into Billy's in
quiringly. AS you please. monsieur,
she said. lowering them.
Billy called for a pair Of scissors
and, gently taking up the end of
thin strand, cut off a few inches, care
| fully rolled it on his finger and put it
in his pocketbook, at the same time
! taking out some notes and handing
them to the lady
| a. M sieu,' she said, suspecting
charity, it may give you wrong I'M
preston for me to look to see what
| you have given me, but I fear it is too
much
''She unrolled the notes. There were
five of them, for 100 francs each"
The narrator paused as though he
had come to the end Of the story.
But why leave off at such an inter
esting point?'' asked the listener.
/ Because I only know the final eli
max Whether the countess accepted
not doesn't matter Another transac-
| ton whereby Billy subsequently &C
/ CURED every hair on her head-indeed,
| herself-canceled the first Billy and
| his wife are now travelling in Egypt.
"You Americans are a queer peo-
pic" said Nine. G. meditatively. ''To
| think that a slayer of pigs could have
4 have given you an incident of
that politeness we most value in Amer
4 lea" F. A. mitchell
GLOBE SIGHTS.
TEror, the Atchisor- clohe1