The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1906-06-09
FRED WEATHERBY'S
DOUBLE.
By J. A. TIFF ANY.

them together. But that was
what made it all the more annoy
ing for Fred Wetherhy-our
Wetherby.
Whenever he picked up a morn
ing paper he expected TO find his
name figuring there as the hero CT
some yillainous brawl, as the
leader of some desperate gang Of
hobos or as the most wanted man
al police headquarters-'and
then" he would say, when talking
about it, "these papers seem to
take a positive delight in rubbing
it in, by coming out the next day
with a repetition Of the story, and
adding that The Fred Wetherby
referred to is not the distin-
guished journalist Of that Dame.' y"
Il really believe pye seen and
heard the last of that fellow"
Wetherby said 10 me one evening,
over an after-dinner cigar. Il ran
across him this morning, and he
had the impudence 10 strike me
Tor a dime-the price Of drink.
:" "Td be glad 20 give you 10000
dimes, confound youP l said, ii
you'd be good enough TO 90 away
and hang yourself. Three days in
the week see my name in print
through some Of your blackguard-
ism, and the other three days the
papers make il worse by their apo.
logies'
80 Say, mister, says Wetherby,
SIS dat a gog
els what a gog ] asked.
"'A t'ousand dollars TO hang
myselfT
"'Yes il is ! said.
Gimme a hundred, boss, and
s'elp me, shinny up de pike, and
de cops Of dis burg II never clap
deir blinkers on me agin.'
People like you, answered,
never stay away. They always
come back
81 tex my dyin' aifydavey niv'
er TO fash me mug in de town
agin, longest day ! lives, an y
give me a hunderd boss Ain'i
got no special use fer this pariic
ular layout Of bricks and mortar
Say, guy, Pm a bad lot; but meb
be II youse hid had my draggin' uf
you wouldn't ha' bin a helluyasits
better. I didn't pinch yer name
Dey tagged me wid it, fore ] WI
old enough to squeal. But II III
wort a hundred TO see de last o
me, Pm yer man; and yer kin slit
me windpipe any time yer catches
me here agin, after two hours
an no kick comm FUN nob'dy.'
swell, | suppose was a fool
but ! gave the blackguard the hun
dred dollars; and he actually
cried. Said he was going TO max
a fresh start, and he'd remenbel
me to his dying day.
'Good.by,' I said. I've no hare
feelings. wish you luck. Maybe !
NY folks had been like yours
should have been a bigger black
guard than you.
"'You couldn't be dat, guv'nor,
be said-probably with a touch o
that pride that apes humility"
wetherby's disreputable name
sake kept his word, and for th'
next few years Fred enjoyed him
self in the undisturbed pursuit Q
his work and the possession Of IN
good name-no longer blazone'
forth in the local press as the pei
petrator Of atrocious outrage
against the peace and good moi
ais Of the community.
Then came the Spanish wal
and. although he had only bee
hurried about a year, Wetherb
enlisted in the ranks. for the pul
pose Of obtaining material for hi
literary labors.
For some time we heard notl
ing about him, and then came th
shocking news that be had bee
.illed by a stray bullet receive
while engaged in scouting duty.
The war had been over five year
and TO me, as TO many others wh
had known him even more int
mately than /, Fred Wetherb
had become but a name, a plea
ant memory, growing gradual