Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1908-04-08

scOuIo never quite ngure out what had
been the cause of the strange sensa-
ton or why everything had suddenly
turned black. Maybe it had been too
free nse of his pipe and the cooking"
lamp.
Chinatown accepted the news as
matter of coures. That any one should
doubt that the spirit of Chang Jen
Yuan had not flown was never dreamed
of. Had not the devil doctors of the
colony said SOL? Had they not
Strengthened the road for the depart
ing spirit? So Chang Jen Yuan had
been borne away to one of those half
dozen barren rooms in the remote re-
-cesses of Chinatown which were used
for the sole purpose of dying in, each
one being used with a view of having
the departing unfortunate as far away
from the company headquarters as
possible, and thus eschew bad luck for
the family in proportion to the dis
lance.
1t may have been the slamming of
the door, but something woke the Of
ficially and economically dead man
instantly the watcher had departed.
And it may be that the long sleep, the
reaction from the opening and the
sea-pregnant wind from the south
combined to renew his strength in that
mysterious way so often observed in
those sick as was he. He felt stronger
than he had for weeks, and he recog-
nized the need of large jar of tea
and a few bowls of rice. The inter
mittent hunger of the opium-user
was upon him. So he made his way
out through the unillumined Railways
of the Doyers street tenement and
down to the street. So keen was his
animalistic instinct that his actual
relation towards his fellows occurred
to him not at all till he slid into a
corner seat at his favorite restaurant
nearby and shouted for the foods Of
his desire, pledging his credit in the
same breath.
Il am honored, worshipful," began
the proprietor in his stereotyped an
sswer from where he was waiting on
another table, his back turned to
Chang. Just then he turned his head
and saw who was ordering. There
chow main and a splash of tea mingled
with the thud of fat man falling over
backward in a sudden effort to get
turned around, bow, and fall on his
knees at the same time. The guests
at the other table looked. One was
the consulting expert of the board of
condemnation. Instantly, amid a
clatter of falling stools, five person
ages much superior to the poor Chi
look in ordinary were on their knees
humping the floor with their heads.
The nimble wit of the old geo
mancer was too quick for the chi-look.
At least, if he had never seen living,
walking, talking member of the holy
band of Heavenly Ancestors he had
read in the ancient books the stories
of men who had, and he knew from
that how to behave. Thrusting his
hand inside his jacket he came for
ward with rare genuflections, and
drawing forth a crushed thing, blew in
one end of it, and laid on the plate
before the hungry Chang a red ant
holy paper fowl such as are Away:
served to the dead. In bowl ht
sprinkled handful of chopped papel
cubes and the rice was ready.
Then a torrid wave of Chinese an
ger swept over him, and he vented
shocking sentiments concerning tn,
gods, the ancestors and the lacks o
virtue of the worshipers before him
in fact, everything in general A
this instant two of the longs o
Walters on the Dead appeared, ant
Chang was reverently and prayerfull.
kicked into the street.
Next door, Tom Lee, the mayor, wai
holding a hasty consultation with tn
three doctors who had condemned thu
poor chi-look, the death-waiter VIII
had tended him, and the head of tn
Chang family company. The doctor
said he must be dead because the
had condemned him, the watch sal,
he was dead because when he had las
seen him he was not alive and tn
Chang chief was certain he was dea
because he had already paid the dealt
walters and had ordered the funera
A few minutes after an eager grou
scanned a small red strip of paper o
the municipal bulletin board, whic
officially and irrevocably pronounce
Chang Jen Yuan to be of earth n
more 1t might have added and go'
ern yourselves accordingly" but it di
not.
Meanwhile Chang had considere
until he had a plan. He rose an
started of. showered with prayer
and blessings and good luck sign
from every side. none of which h
needed.
At dawn next morning any one VII
had been abroad in the desolate It'd
flats beyond Astoria might have see
a tottering, bedraggled Chinese, bea
ING q small humble with q hunted loo