Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1905-11-03
By JOSEPH G., LINCOLN

S"" 'f!'of uciler. came TO him by rN.
press at Irregular intervals. It WAS
also reported, probably by unreliable
total abstainers, that during these
i, "sampling" seasons his temper was not
OF III" best
The forenoon trade at tire billiard
room was never very lively, and this
lorcio0ll VIZ; no eEceDtiOli Al
past IL the man of business was ,}oZ,
ing i'm "a chair hy the stove. and the
'>watr!H.og.. having found il chilly
outside aud ventnring in, was doing
near hlnl. The beil attached 10 the
door rang vigorously. and the man
aWoke With start. THE visitor was
Captain Fri
Now. tire captain was perhaps the
las, person whom the proprietor of the
bllisaf! room expected to see but a
stranger never would have guessed it.
Iii faet The stranger might reasonably
have supposed that the visitor was
MI. Sann1crs' dearest Iiend ant, that
bis cal was a pleasure long looked for
ward to.
! WHY, capn. exclaimed Web. How
are YOU: Put her there! IN glad to
see You lookin' so Well said to
Squealer the other day. ST, .Squealer
l never see man hold his age like
San'H Iiedge: III be blessed if he
looks day over forty says Take
OF your coat. won't you!'
tf,tsiAw ,1.n oil t,,;,
have lost sight Of Webs extended
halr' Certainty the hand was large
enough to be seen. but he did not take
II. He did. however. accept the invi.
;ifion to remove his coat and. slipping
ont of the faded brown pea Jacket
throw II on Il Se1tee at the side of the
room. Ills face was stern and his
mahller quiet. ana, in 5; ite OF Mr.
Saunders fa1tering reference to his
Youthful appearance. this morning he
looked at least more than a day past
forty
But, if Captain Fri WAS more than
usually quiet ana reserved. Web was
unchanged, and if he noticed that the
handShake was declined said nothing
about it. His smile was sweetness it.
self RS he observed: We'll. c,p'll
mighty mod,rat weather were havin.
for this time of year. amt it: What's
new down Your Way: That's right
have Il chair
The captain had no doubt anticipated
,hiS cordial invitation. for lie seated
himself before il WAS given and, cross
Ing his legs, EXTENDED his dripping rab
be- boots toward tie fire The rain
WAS still fa.:ilg ;.l4d i beat against
thc windows OF the saloon ii4 gusts
'Wch. said Captain Fri. set down
Il minute. Want 10 talk 10 YOU.
"Why. sure exclaimed the genial
man of business. pulling UP another
chair. Have a cigli. wont YOU: You
don't come To see me very often. an.
feels thJHgh We ought to celebrate
H;l, ha. ha,,
NO. | guess not. thank you. was til"
answer. III smoke my pipe. if it's
all the same to YOU.
Mr.. Saunders didn't mind in the least
but thought he would have Il cigar
himself So he lit one and smoked in
silence as the captain filed his pipe.
Web knew that this was something
more than an ordinary social visit.
C;ptain Eri'S calls at the billiard room
We're few and far between. The cap
tain. for his part. knew what his COM
panion w:s ,hinniilY and the pair
.h.,i n.,,l ,fl ln, t1i,..,,1,r, tn4 SDnl,A
The pipe rev We'll. and the captain
sent Il blue cloud whiring toward the
ceiling Then he asked suddenly.
Web how much money has Este
Preston paid you altoyether:
Mr. Saunders started the least bit,
But the innocent surprise in his re-
ply was a treat to heal:
Elsie: Paid me-" he asked.
Yes How much has she paid you!"
II don't know what YOU mean.
"Yes, you do. She's been laNin you
money reg lar for mOren Il month. l
want to know how much it is
Now, Capn Hedge l don't know
what you're takin' about. Nobody's
paid me cent except them that's
owed me- Who did You say: Elsie
Preston? That's the schoolteacher,
amt it,
Web you're liar and always was.
but YOU nce,.n't lie TO me this mornln
cause it won't be healthy. don't feel
like hearn' it, You understand that
GO you:s
Mr.. Saunders thought it time to blus-
ter little lie rose to his feet threat
en;nglN.
"Cap'n Hedge he said. mo man II
call ne !; liar.
"TEe9eS Il precious few 1nat calls
you anything ci'c.
"N bu,re in cid man, or d
"Nvvrr you mind how old am.
minute az, You said didn't look
moren forty; maybe don't feel any
older either.