Red River prospector. (Red River, Taos County, N.M.) 1900-190?, 1907-05-23

er late. There was nc good reason
why he shouldn't; for all Binks had to
do was to put in his time from break
fast until dinner, yawning, l%ounging
and smoking.
He glanced over his mail. His eye
was attracted by a dainty note in a
feminine hand.
who the deuce he p%ondered, as
he selected the letter.
Curiously opening the envelope he
glanced at the heading, a blush flushed
rel his face, then, quickly, he look
ed at the ending. the blush deepened,
Binks became %noticeably nervous
AS he carefully read the letter he
looked around the oom to assure him
self no one was watching him. Binks
was a most bashful young bachelor.
He acted as though it were his first
real love letter; his consciousness,
his bushes, all pointed one way.
Conklin. who was also lounging in
the breakfast room at the club, watch
ed Binks with a peculiar interest.
There was a rivalry between the two
men, founded on a certain tie in golf,
which caused them to take a sneering
interest in one another.
"A love letter, CHI" unused Conklin
to himself. as he watched the light
ming flushes on Binks' face. Wonder
who the devil would love a man like
that, some nurse-maid or clerk, IN
wager. He's in love, though, from the
looks of things; wonder who it can
be?"
Just then Binks looked quickly up
from his letter and caught Conklin's
eyes riveted on him. Conklin shifted
his gaze, Binks thrust the letter in
his breast pocket and made a trivial
remark about the weather,
After breakfast, the two played bill
lizards for an hour. Binks was excited,
Conklin was curious, but he derived
no information. Several times he
limited at love and each time Binks
flushed.
That afternoon Conklin received an
unexpected note I'm a feminine hand
writing. He read it eagerly, blushing
as deeply as his fellow clubman had
that morning. But Binks was not
there to see him and he was glad of
it. However, there were two or three
other fellows in the room and they
watched Conklin's behavior with inter.
est.
IT seemed that suddenly the whole
tenor of the Roxmore club had chang
ed. They were all bachelors and most
of them young; usually they gathered
together of an evening and drank and
played cards. But the evening after
Binks received his letter, there were
but four or FIVE "old-stagers" on hand
for their game.
The younger fellows had all gone
out, or locked themselves in their
rooms. Surely, something was the
matter, but no one could explain it,
nobody even tried, they were all pre-.
occupied and seemed to have some
thing weighing on their minds.
Young Spears acted as foolish and
bashful as a girl of 16; he hardly ate
at all, and had the club been in its
usual state, everybody would have no
ticed his extraordinary behavior and
tormented him by asking fool ques.
tons. But nobody seemed to notice
anything, except a few of the "old.
stagers" and even they lapsed into alb
sent-mindedness, at times.
There was something the matter
with the whole Roxmore club, but each
man was too absorbed in affairs of his
own to notice it.
The mail was eagerly watched by
them all and invariably each man
searched out a quiet corner in which
to read his letters, and then sat alone
and unused for an hour or so.
Old Oliphant, who was the oldest
bachelor in the club, was the only
man who noticed the strange behavi-
our of all the younger fellows. Oil
plant had been voted in but a month
ago; he was a "man-about-town," a
clever old fellow, as gossipy and gar
rulous as any of the younger fellows
could desire. He was VIGOROUSLY a
"good-fellow;" it was his chief aim in
life, and he distinguished himself in
his pursuit. Nobody knew where he
got his money, but he never seemed
to lack it. He had a little Office in the
city and spent four hours a day there.
Nobody knew what he did. but any
time the fellows dropped in on him at
work they were always greeted with
cigars and bottles and never stopped
to think what he did i'm that Office.
Old Oliphant was the only man who
noticed the sad state of affairs at the
Roxmore club, and even he did not
comment upon them; but, occasional
~, when quite alone, he would break
out into a startling fit of laughter, and
then resume his usual, calm demeanor.
He served in the guise of confden.
tial friend to all the younger men,
and that was how it happened that
about a week after this sudden change
at Roxmore three of the fellows took
him aside at different times and pray
ed his advice On subjects close to their
hearts. Oliphant freely gave each OF
them his advice, and he smiled to
himself, as he thought of how similar
his advice had been in each case. The
three men were Binks, Conklin and
young Spears.
n