Red River prospector. (Red River, Taos County, N.M.) 1900-190?, 1907-02-07


aging editor, wheeling about in his
easy chair and surveying me sternly,
your work is getting rotten, absolute
ly rotten. What you need is a vaca-
ton. Take it. Get out and don't show
your face around here for two weeks"
Thus it came about that the next
day found me lolling comfortably on a
s%ettee, in a shady part of the park.
My five years work on the newspaper
had given me a wide acquaintanceship
within the city. Consequently, among
the passers-by, there were many
whose faces were familiar.
Presently two familiar figures came
within my field of vision. They were
a pair of girls whom 1 had encoun-
tered many times in my search for
news, named respectively Mag" and
Liz"
Being a trife familiar with their
especial brand of graft" 1 decided to
watch and see with what success they
should operate it. So 1 lit my pipe
and waited expectantly, nor did 1 have
long to wait.
Suddenly there came a wild shrek
and, in a moment, people were rushing
pell nell toward the spot where a mo-
ment ago l had sighted this gifted
pair.
1 smiled sardonically and sat still,
for 1 had seen the little play and its
inevitable denOuement enacted many
times. Mag" the smaller one, had
just keeled over in a fair imitation of
an epileptic fit while her sister Liz"
lent her aid by wringing her hands
and proclaiming in h-eartrending ac-
cents, 20, me sister. She's dyin'.
She's dyin'."
OF curse the whole exhibition
would not take over five minutes and,
as a finale, some sympathetic bystand-
er would pass around the hat for the
afflicted one. l yawned, as the little
circle disintegrated, and wondered
whether l ought to report Liz and
her c%onfrere to the police or give her
a dime and ask for a story. Fate de-
cided the question for me.
The crowd had miraculously disap-
peared, having evidently forgotten
Mag and her troubles, while the
precious pair wandered slowly along
in my direction, keeping a shifty eye
out meanwhile for a possible police
man.
1 pulled my hat down over my eyes
and pretended to sleep. Presently l
was rewarded by a whining voice.
please, mister, help a poor girl that's
got fits"
1 sat up and pushed back my hat.
why, hello, Liz" l said casually, "at
the old game 1 see. Why don't you
try something new?"
The girl, in whose hard and care
worn face there was not a trace of
fear, stared at me defiantly.
"Wot if we is?" she said sullenly,
folks like us has got to live some
way and the old gags is the best any
how. 1 tried a new one las week, and
it was all to the bum" Here she
stopped and looked at me su%spiciously
GO on Liz" said ! good naturally,
I'm not working this week and I'll
give my word of honor not to peach on
you. Sit down and tell me about it,"
The hunted look left the girls face
and she glanced at me gratefully as
she sat down.
thanks, Mr.. Wells" she said, q
taut you want no piker. Well, it was
like dis. Some O. de fly cops got wise
to our game an dey told us to quit ii
or get pinched, so we quit an KEEP in
de house fer a while. Things to eat
got kinder scarce aroun' tn joint so,
n night, l says to Mag I'm goin' to
duck out an see what's dom an ]
took a hike down to the Bow'ry.
81 wuz sneakin' along when, all of a
sudden, l rum into Marble Mary just
out from a tree months trip to tn.
islam. Mary she hooks into me an
wen tells her me bad luck, she puts
me wise to a new lay that she says is
a peach an a winner. On de way home
1 lays me plans to try it out mex day
Now dis is a kind Of a particular jol
so l calls on all me frien's fer help.
zone lends me a swell lid she's
sWiped somewhere, another hands me
a dress fer Mag an finally, we're bot
fixed up like duchesses and ready fei
parade.
Den l gets out a new shiny hand
bag, dat I COPIED from somebody o.
other, and I packs 1t full o. paper unit
it looked like tn property of Mrs. Var
Aston.
vivid dat in me mitt, me and Mas
hits de pike fer down town. w,
wuzn't amin fer no cheap Joint
neither, but fer Wanacooper's, tn
SWEETEST place in town. Course, W,
didn't know w'ether we could get il
OF not, but a faint heart amt produc
tive of anything to eat an anyhow W,
couldn't do no more than get trowet
out.
We'll, luck was wild us, fer dey wal
a big sale goin' on an tn bubbles an
carriages was lined up fer half a mile
an swells goin' in an out like bees II
a hive. Me an Mag waited a bit an
then slid in wild tn mob and nobod,
said a word.
I'VE wandered around a while, keep
In an eye open fer the store cop, ant
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