The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1906-08-17
The Love Affair Of 4 Freak.

The Love Affair Of Freak
ny MARY ROBERTS RiNETIART.
Wilkinson was tired cf being It freak
he WAS tined of selling his own photo
graphs, marked "tl1c taiicSt man on
EARTH" he was tired Of sccoud-clas
boarding horses and ofjoiting over th'
country in the circus train; lie was tir,C
of drawing a large salary which he haC
no opportunity to eAp>nd. And so or>
day the show went off without him. anC
Wilkinson started out to establish ioi
himself normal existence and q perma
nent abiding place.
His seven feet seven inches had brought
him money in the past, money wLich ht
had no opportunity to squaudcr. ant
which now lay subject to call lin his bank
but that same seven feet seven inches pro,
missed to prevent his earning any more
No one took him seriously; his tq1ests fo1
employment were met faCctiousiy, and he
began torcal;z. why The midgcts and ;ilc
ossiicd man and the fat lady grow Old
and die i'll the show business; there is no
other niche in life into which hey fit
Wilkinson was not discouraged, now
ever. Some place, somewhere. there
must be a niche large enough for him.
And so, aftcra time, he found at least an
opening. The general manager at W'uI1-
dcrleys was progressive beyond th>
usual run q! general managers. Having
made bit by substituting pretty gitls
for the wax models in the show VIII
dows, lie rose another round in the csti-
nation Of the firm by engaging Wnkin-
son to stand III front Of til" main cu-
trance, top-hattcd, an-hootcd a"d white
breeched, to open and close carriage
doors and assist their fair occupants to
alight.
Being 4 good looking fellow. on mag
niGcd scale, The experiment WIS an IN
want StISSSS i'tll tEitCl At lil'lilLlt ~ ~
the manager grew thoughtful. Tho giant
WAS great drawing card-outsidc the
store; mothers brought their children to
stand and Eaze, and small boys block
AIDED the traffic on the street. Rut it
was outside the store. The next day
Wilkinson was transferred to the main
aisle, where, III immaculate froCk coat
and patent feathers, he directed hcsitat-
ing customers to their proper depart
ments.
There could he no doubt of the husiress
policy of this move. The ladies' hosiery
and the i.wclry counter
both beirg near he door and Wilkinson :
stand, asked for an extra wrapper czech,
and the store put on special tic III the
nccIwear just across, and called ii the
Wilkinson.
Little Miss Arthurs, the head Of the
je welry, who was barely five feet, gazed
with cnyious admiration at Wilkinson's
stalwart figure, and began secretly TO
read advertisements of short people made
tail, while Shorty" Jennings, in the
neckwear, was apoplectic with envy.
SO far, Wilkinson had achieved tac per
manency; the home, however, seemed as
far Oft as ever He was extremely diff
dent in the presence Of ladies, and diff
dcnce in man of his height magn;fed it
self into naughty reserve. But Lis DO
mestic warnings were stronger than
ever. He confided as much to Miss Ar
thurs one day, when he had bought &
pair of silver cuff buttons, and she was
putting them into his detachable cuffs.
I'm fixing upa fat" he said, apropos
of nothing q found alittle place in one
of the new apartment houses, six rooms
and Il bath. There's a rice kitchen, too,
but what's the use of kitchen with no
one to use ii :"
Miss Arthurs flushed and glanced m
easily toward the neckwcar, where little
Jennings WAS glazing through a hutter-
ing row of green and burnt orange ties.
why don't you fad some one 10 use
it, MIR. Wilkinson" she asked, working
the button ncrvously into place. "You'ye
got a nice position, I'm sure"
"Who'd have me ?" he questioned pa
tbetitally. I'm still freak If have
left the circus. There are times yet When
Ircach in my pocket for my photograph,
and the smell of tanbark makes me sick.
"Whcn WAS kid, young enough 10
bawl fer things, WAS as big as my
father-I guess never was baby. No
body thinks of me as mani III giant,
that's all When l meet any of the poo
pie from home, they never come ~ and
ask ME how | am getting along and what
I'm doing. No, they walk up and ";ak
aud clap me on the elbow, and say,
Well, Jim, still growing, are you ?"
He sighed heavily, and slipped his cuff
into place.
'Tm exactly like mountain range"
he said sadly. "We'vc each got one d.
mension. height Talk about lonely
peaks,'
He stalkcd off then, and Miss Arthurs
looked after him pityingly.
From that time, perhaps due to her III.
huencc, the attitude of the store people
grew gradually more cordial. There was
no familiarity, of course-yuu have to hc
very wei acquainted with IN elephant
before you care to slap him OH the lack
and say, "Iicllo, old lellow.'
But even a casual acquaintance with
an elephant will permit peanuts. So it
was with Wilkinson, and in return for
these advances he corfded to a chosen
few that the fiat was practically fur
1lished, even going into details cf Norris
chairs and Smyrna rugs with Miss Ar
thurs.
ats a home, anyhow" he finished,
land I've been folded up like q camp
chair in the berth of the circus sleeper so
long that it's good just to have decent
place to sleep"
business at the iewelry counter contin-
ued to increase, and Miss Arthurs asked
for another saleSwoman. Perhaps it
was an accident, perhaps design, but
there was a small sensation when the
new clerk appeared. She was quite the
tallest woman any OF The clerks had ever
seen, and when the manager. who was
short and extremely corpulent, brought
her around the corner and past Wiikin-
son, little Jennings withdrew behind his
counter in an aaonv of n,irth