The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-09-03
BY K. L.. GRAY.

81
the street. was on a leisurely railroad
train that was going so slowly to-
Yards his home at Fuquay Springs
that the crew found time to hold the
engine standing on the track while
they beat up" an obstreperous pas
senger who after his ejectment from
the cars had seen fit to express his
urivate opinion of the conductor in
terms and with an emphasis that
took the countryside into his conf
dence.
Whereupon, as the train finally went
on it's way leaving said obstreperous
passenger still obstreperous and de-
cIaring from the middle Of the track
that if the train would only stop and
back he would lick" everybody on it,
Jackson fitted to the occasion one of
those rolling and thunderous defiances
Of Hector to Achilles upon the plains
of Troy.
Whereupon did I remark to Jackson
that when he died / would write 1T
down in his obituary that of all the
men in this world who had to do
fine work for Indifferent pay did he
possess the most expensive and most
useless equipment Of variegated
To which-with the smiling shadow
of the end upon his face that was
habitual to him-with the cheerful
note of jest that hid prophecy in his
voice-did he reply that he cared not
what was said 50 long as 1 hearsed
him not in dude" words.
And the train coming to F>uquay
ne got off and / saw him last with
his children around him on the couh-
try road waving his felt hat, sml!lH1
which he was so wildly convicted. =
quaint, impractical figure fearful
lest there on the country road, th1
soul that he guarded with a jealous
the common eye and, blushing, stand
before the world shamed in the know
Ledge of its whiteness and its beauty
That was n the latter part Of Juoe
ard Jackson was starting on holi-
SaT. he came back to work; in Aug
u.t ic zot a leave Of absence inGelli-
fte Ife.Was doubtful about tae holi-
CIV. $ nlucn as he reeded ana IS
much as he loved it: for he had al
indisrensarIe character Of his work
Ana, God knows, the lonSe" hohd2E
was not Of his Wishing who wanted
life ard knew that life needed him
And yet ore Who knew him refuses
eo-nehow. to b s.ddened at his de2tA:
art fro2? ary faith, which to e.,3vl
you'd include Jackson within ITS
b-atttudeg t7ere comes the thought
tat somehow will mystery work to
his perfection AID that in some CtneT
ircar1atiCn VIII tn = within him
which wes ever ss~etchicg tee walls
of this cna break OFT at length int"
the es.pre ssio,, Of tive tGutn and beauty
that his spirit cravej.
BIT JacEzCn cid rot want to be
.hearszd'' il dude words and he
would Hush TO kno~ that he had been
st1specteI Of nobility or of mo S"sty.
And so because it is q story M.
eTects the landmark OF q man, l WI
try to deal plainly with the h,S~9r::
Of Jackson as it WAS lived among g
Raleigh newspaper men 70" TIE -
nine wears \ word t. those ~" 60
who jackson WAS Will BE ~Gt': =
wher it is said tr@at he was the n
of the distinctive head lines ta2s.
more than half a dozen yeas -
the attention of the readers O
paper 10 what the type cont2i-
Every day Jackson shouted rs
sage to the thousands to read {
paper. He caught the attention IS
''puIler in grabs the arm of p~o-
speCtive purchaser. When the goods
in the window were stale he maGc
UP for the fault with an expression
that was ever fresh in it's appeal
When there were diamonds view
the proud prOnOuncement of their
guardian glittered like the gems
themselves He lived the news in the
paper in a hundred different moods
cried with it and made pictures of it.,
Had the type only been sentient, it
would have caught the spirit Of the
man who set it forth and made it
glow with blood and life, though
written by a clod. When there would
come over the wires some picturesque
bit of life wrapped in the insensate
rags of speech Jackson would almost
weep at the sacrilege. Sometimes he
paused and breathed the dead words
l1a nIEv tn16
what the writer had failed to tell in
his head lines.
The point Us that Jackson-mute
ngure at the end of the skein of wires
that bound the office to the life of
the day-lived the life that came to
his desk. To his taut nerves the mas
terful fingers of circumstance brought
exquisite pain while they wrought the
gamut of feeling. Frequently his
body wavered and his head dropped
his desk with the pain of it; but
he loved it though it kill him.
One day in the year 1898 Jackson
walked into the office of Mr. Joe
Daniels and wanted to know whether
or not the paper was in the market
for q short story writer. At the time
the paper was chiefly concerned with
getting a check writer whose name
Mas favorably known in the commu-
nifty. Jackson explained that he had
written many stories and had won not
g few prize story contests. Mr.. Dan
lels has frequently said since that the
proposition would have founded de-
tense of justifiable homicide, but he
restrained himself.
Jackson went out and it appeared
that the incident was over
Three weeks later Jackson was dis
r"Vered holding down" the telegraph
desk at nothing a week. He was
earning the business with w. e.
Christian as his teacher. AS Christian
mad other duties, his instruction con-
sisted largely in putting his scholar at
The desk and telling him to go ahead.
jackson learned the telegraph editing
business by falling into holes ana
nearing himself bump. He became
vary and, as he watched out for
trouble, he became efficient
after while the paper commenced
~ pay the man who had "squatted''
1 IT, It was a ridiculous salary. but
~. t5S l"ok heart of it with the optimism
never deserted him. Months