Evening star., 1905-08-26
| REAL BA-AD MAN

quite young man with a peachy. cher
ubic countenance, was talking about HIM
self in an open suburban car the other
evening. He was telling his pal and seat
mate-who was of the same general type
what an lawfully dissipated devil'' he was.
The pair had seats about amidships of the
for the evening air.
This wicked, vice-stained young person
he was all Of twenty years Of age-with the
cherubic frontispiece was sad dog and
rake and roue. and other terrible things
too numerous to mention. to hear him tell
it. And he told it in a tone that all the rest
OF the people in The car couldn't help but
hear. Horse racing? Well. what he didn't
know about the ponies was very few in
deed.
He had everybody on earth Just about
sewed in gunnysack when 1t came to get
ting the kee-rect information about the
gee-gees. Hitting the pipe? Oh, years ago.
Could handle yen-hok and cook dope pills
better'n any Chink that ever lived in an
underground San Francisco The old req
eye? Aw, he was on the water-wagon for
a spell. Had been up against the old stun
for four years steady-hadn't been to bed
sober single night In all that time, honest
1ntun, he hadnt-and he'd found that there
was nothing in it. Was going to keep
clutch on the sprinkling cart for few
months. anyhow, just to see how it felt to
be good.
Poker? The youth with the cberubic
countenance could only smile indulgently
when 1t came to talking about poker. II
he had a dollar for every time he'd bluffed
professional short-card players out of their
eye-teeth with nothing but eight-high in
his mitt-well. he'd be riding on white
steam yacht Of his own, all right, and that
was no frivolous fantasy.
Faro bank? Huh! All the dealers around
orfH jryC{ r1.>,J
before crate fire when they saw him COM
ing. and just refused to dish the cards out
or the box for him. Why? Oh, well, he'd
put 'em out of business so often that they
were afraid Of his play, that's all.
And the ladies? Oh. he guessed he could
hold his oWn-he guessed he could go some
when 1t came to the ladies. Didn't claim to
be the boss of all the killers, but he didn't t
Ihlnk ne was altogether out of the picture.
Ferdie and Ferdie could gamble on that
There might be few of 'em who could
sidestep his winning ways by making an
early start. but If there were he hadn't met
up with 'em, that's all.
All IN all. 1t appeared from this cherubc
youths conversation that he was a real
horrid thing and a speeder from the speed
way, and no mistake.
Seated beside and around the dissipated
devil with the pink cheeks were half a
dozen young married couples, all neighbors
and friends. who were open-carrding in a
party just for the fun of the thing. They
listened they couldn't help themselves)
shudderingly to the cherub-cheeked youths
account Of his wayward career for a long
time, and then they began to look at each
other and grin.
Then the pauses in the swift youths
conversation were filled in with such re-
marks as these from the surrounding seats:
isn't he just the horriblest thing!''
why, the wicked, crime-steeped, hoary-
headed sinner"
would you believe that such frightful
evil existed in the world?'
and he so young!''
Now, isn't he just the ba-a-adest?"
isn't this sporting life terrific?'
Who'd a thunk there were such bIase
high-rollers in Washington in the summer
timer"
what mad. merry. riotous life he must
lead!'
"Oh, the fascinating reprobater'
But maybe he was always good to
father"
Does his conscience ever ache him. l
wonderT'
why, the feverish. passionate gambler"
How does he stand such horrible
pace?'
All of these and many others.
The young married folks In the surround
ing seats never glanced at the sin-steeped
young man at all. They appeared to be
when he turned about and glared at them.
His ferocity of expression didn't appear to
shrivel any of the folks, however. and SO
he gave vicious punch at the button be-
side him. The car came to a stop at
crossroads out in the woods.
"a lot O. pikers!' hoarsely mumbled the
vice-stained thing, as he stepped off the
car with his seatmate, and the tumultuous
hoot that the young married folks sent
after him must have awakened the sleep
ing birds in the forest.
Remark.-The real dissipated devil never
says a word,