Los Angeles herald., 1906-11-25

! !" As / said before, sir says /, there's that
mistake in the spellin', an I never knowed the
deceased gent meself'
:" There amt no deceased gent he shouts,
vexed That's meant for me. I'm Mr.. Morgan,
an someone's done this on purpose TO annoy me,
an III make him smart for It'll don't care il it
costs me hundred dollars. Did you cut them
words on, or didn't your
81 told him fair an straight that didn't.
" IF I'd cut it ] should have spelt "died" prop
err ! begun; but he shut me up sharp.
He said he got up an come down few morn
ms arter I called on him afore an he seen a
lot of people starin' through his front railin's
pointin' an lardn' Reglar big crowd it was,
an CROWN bigger all the time Orribe annoy
in, he says ii was, an presently he sends out TO
see what's wrong, an there's that tombstone o.
mine with his name an the poetry on it stickn'
in the middle of his Aowerbed as if he'd bin
buried there.
Naturally, he pulled it up quick an took it
indoors. He said he suspected who'd done it, an
had KEEP a lookout for me so as - make in
quiries; an if / didn't tell him i'm 5lediately the
whole truth he should reckon I'd done il me
self an hand me over to the pleeee an do his
level best to give me beans.
"He thought I'd been paid by somebody to
carve his name an the rest Of 1t on the stone,
and wouldn't hardly believe me when l told him
i didn't have nothin' to do with it.
"I sold it, tells him. AN what happened to
it afterwards is no fault of mine says |.
"'Who did you sell it to? he said
"'Wel, SIR says to him. I'm poor man an
I'm bound to go in buster for self-help when I
gifts the chance. I'm willin' to tell the truth,
but / can't afford to tell it for nothin'.'
"He tries to hustle me, but I sat tight, an by
meby he says let have the plain facts an
he'll gimme five dollars for start an more later
on ii he wanted me witness, which most like
ly he would.
consequently collected the cash an give him
the facts.
"'You're certain it was that MANI" he says.
Il reckernise your description of him, an he's
the very man I suspected. | suppose you don't
know his name?
"'Yes, / do, Mister says l. while was
talkin' to him on his doorstep the postman come
with letter, an ] noticed the name on the en-
velope
can when mentioned the name he says,
quite right, it was the identical man, an my
KNOWN the name well as bein' able to de-
scribe the feller made me most valuable wit
ness Then he arst me for me own name an ad-
dress. Well, I give him the first / could think
of, an he wrote them down as solemn as If they
was real.
"1 shall go round an consult my lawyer now
at once he says, AN git him to call on this
scoundrel with me this evenn an if he don't
write an publish ample apology in the local
papers at his own expense, I'll prosecute him, an
you'll have to give evidence
81 said would.
"But arter left him it struck I'd bin a
bit of a mug. I ought to have scopped in more
than five dollars. ] seen that could have made
more by not givin' the other gent away, an
then gon' round an gettn' him to pay me fo
keepin' dark about him, l was fair wild will
meself the more I thought what a chance II
throw'd away.
"Then had what call a happy idea
81 turned back an went as fast as | could tc
the house of the gent who'd bought my tombstone
He was at home, but sent out word, go away
he'd got all the tombstones he wanted, he didn't
expect he should die more than once. So I sent
the gel in agen to say it about a serious mat,
ter an must see him private an p'tickler, an
he had me all alone into his parlor.
81 pulled long mug an said he'd got me into
a terrible mess, an went on to explain about the
large old gent with the rich brown hair an
beard.
"You didn't tell him you sold it to met? he
chips in, nervous.
"1'm not that sort of man, sir 1 says, re-
proachful. Pm poor, sir, but I'm no skunk
He orfered me ten dollars an then twenty to tell