The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1906-08-09

he amt much fur style, Billy
ain't," Uncle Peter explained when
that person had gone upon his errand,
he amt mite gaudy, but he's got
friendly feelings"
The dazed scion of the Livingstons
had thereupon made a conscientious
tour OF his clubs in public hanson,
solely for the purpose OF relating this
curious adventure to those best quail.
fed to marvel at it.
The old mans arrival had been quite
unexpected. Not only had he sent no
word OF his coming, but he seemed,
indeed, not to know what his reasons
had been for doing thing so unusual
Thought I'd Just drop in on you all
and say 'howdy,'" had been his first
aVoWal, which was lucid as far as it
went. Later he involved himself in
explanations that were both obscure
and conflicting. Once it was that he
had felt a sudden great longing for
the life of 2 gay city. Then it was
that he would have been content in
Montana City, but that he had under.
taken the winter in New York out of
consideration for Billy Brue.
"Just think of it," he said to Per.
cival, that poor fellow amt ever
been east of Denver before now It
want good for him to be holed up
out there in them hills all his life.
He hadn't got any chance to improve
his mind"
He'd better improve his whiskers
first thing he does," suggested Per-
cival. Hell be gold-bricked if he
wears em scrambled that way around
this place."
But in neither of these explanations
did the curious old man impress Per-
cival as being wholly ingenious.
Then he remarked casually one day
that he had lately met Higbee, who
was on his way to San Francisco.
II only had few minutes with him
while they changed engines at Green
River, but he told me all about you
folks-what fine time you was hav-
in, yachts and card parties, and all
like that. Higbee said man ought
to come to New York every now and
then, jest to keep from getting rusty"
Back of this Percival imagined fol-
time that he had discovered Uncle
Peters true reason for descending
upon them. Higbee would have re-
called him with wild tales Of the New
York designations, and Uncle Peter
had come promptly on to pull him up
Percival could hear the story as Hig-
bee would word it, with the improving
moral incident of his own son
snatched as brand from the TENDER
loin,'' to live life of impecunious use
fulness in far Chicago. But, when he
tried to hold this belief, and to prove
it from his observations, he was bound
to admit it's falsity. For Uncle Peter
had shown no inclination to act the
part of an evangel from the virtuous
west. He had delivered no homilies,
no warnings as to the fate of people
who incontinently "cut loosc:'' He
had evinced not the least sign of any
disposition even to criticise.
On the contrary, indeed, he appeared
to Joy immensely in Percival's way of
life. He manifested willingness and
capacity for unbending in boon CON-
partnership that were both of them
quite amazing to his accomplished
grandson. BY degrees, and by virtue
of being never at all censorious, he
familiarized himself with the young
mans habits and diversions. He lis
tened delightedly to the tales of his
large gambling losses, Oh the bouts at
poker, the fruitless venture in Texas
oil land, the disastrous corner in
wheat, engineered by Burman, and the
uniformly unsuccessful efforts to
'breal1 the bank" in Forty-fourth
street, He never tired of hearing
whatever adventures Percival chose
10 relate; and, finding that he really
enjoyed them, the young man came to
confde freely in him, and to associate
with him without restraint.
Uncle Peter begged to be introduced
at the temple Of chance, and spent a
number Of late evenings there with his
popular grandson. He also frequently
made himself one of the poker coterie,
and relished keenly the stock jokes as
tc his grandson's proneness to lose.
Your pa" he would say, ''never
could learn to stay out of Jackpot
unless he. had Jacks or better; he
come in and draw four cards to an ace
any time, and then call it hard luck
when he didn't draw out. And he just
loved straights open in the middle;
said anybody could fill them that's
open at both ends; but, after all l
guess that's the only way to have fun
at the game. If a man amt got the
sperrit to everyday aces-up when he
gets 'em, he might as we'll be clerkin'
in bank for all the fun he'll have out
of the game"
The old mans endurance of late sup
pers and later hours, and his unsus-
pected disposition to "cut loose be-
came twin marvels to Percival He
could not avoid contrasting this be-
havior with his past preaching. After
l 4 e