The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1908-11-26

| Ia 10 LOT ODtuu III the QedlL0Iul
/. vicinity of Cactus City, Tex, for
the dry goods emporium Of Ma
varro & Platt, situated there, Is not to
be sneezed at.
Twenty thousand people in Cactus
City scatter their silver coin with lib
erai hands for the things that their
hearts desire. The bulk of this semi
precious metal goes to Navarro &
Piatt. Their huge brick building covers
enough ground to Craze a dozen head
, of sheep. You can buy of them a rat
tlesnake skin necktie, an automobile
or IN eighty-five dollar latest style Ia
; dy's tan coat in twenty different shades
. Navarro s. Piatt first introduced pen
MES west Of the Colorado river. They
had been ranchmen with business
, heads. who saw that thetworld did not
necessarily have to cease its reyolu-
tions after free grass went out.
Every spring Navarro, senior part
; ner. fifty-tive, half Spanish. cosmopoli-
. tan. able, polished, had "gone on" to
New York to buy goods. This year he
SHE'D at taking up the long trail. He
, was undoubtedly growing older, and
, he looked at his watch several times
day before the hour came for his
siesta.
p "John," he said to his junior part
ner, you shall go on this year to buy
the GOODS
Plat looked tired.
. I'm told" said he, "that New York
is plumb dead town, but I'll 60. /
can take whirl in San Antoine for
few days on my way and have some
!, fun
Two weeks later a man in a Texas
full dress suit-black frock coat, broad
brimmed soft white hat and lay down
: collar three-quarters of an inch high,
t with black, wrought iron necktie-en-
tered the wholesale cloak and suit es-
? tahishnent Of Zizzbaum & Son on
!. lower Broadway
Old Zizzbaum had the eye of an
osprey, tie memory Of an elephant and
, mind that unfolded from him in
/. three movements like the puzzle of the
, carpenters rule He rolled to the
! front like a brunette polar bear and
. shook Platt's hand.
]. "And how is the good Mr.. Navarro
in Texas:" he said. THE trip was too
: long for him this year. so? We vel
; come MIR Platt instead''
"a bullseFe'' said pfsftt. ~"and I'd
give forty acres of unifrigated Pecos
! connty land to know how you did it"
: 81 knew" grinned lizzhaum. 'just Us
> !. know that the rainfall in Ell Paso for
! the year was 2s.5 inches. er an increase
$ If fifteen inches. and that therefore Ma
! 7arro & Plat Will buy $4,000 stoch
: ii suits this spring instead of 10000
Is i'll Il dry year. But that will be to
J morrow. There is first Il cigar in my
: private Office that will remove from
!, your mouth the taste of the ones YOU
; sInuggIe acrcss the Rio Grande and
5 Iike-beaause they are smugged."
+ 1t Was late in the afternoon and busi
3 ness for the day had ended. Zizzbaun
{ left Plat With half smoked cigar an6
S tame out Of the private office to son
= Who Tas arranging his diamond scarf
:. pin hefare 4 mirror, ready to leave.
: "Ahay." he said. ''you will have t.
s take Mr.. Flatt around tonight ant
+ show him things. They are customer
: for ten years. Mr.. Navarro and W,
: played chess every moment of SPAR
: time when he came. That is good, bu
= Mr. Platt is a young man. and this i
:, his first visit to New York. He shoult
: aInuse easily"
s "tIl right said Abey, screwing th
s. guard tightly on his pin. "I'll take hin
~, No
! the head waiter ut the Hotel Astor an,
;: heard the phonograDh play Under th
= Old Apple Tree it'll be half past 1C
e and Mr.. Texas will be ready to roll u
: i'll his blanket, I've got a supper en-
$ gagement at Il 80, but he'll be all t
= The Mrs. WtinsloW before then"
{. The next morning at 10 platt walke
: into the store ready to do business
s He had bunch Of ~hyacinths pinne
= Oh his lapel. ZiZzbaum himself wai
e ed on him. Navarro & Platt were goo
: customers aud never failed to tax
5 their discount for cash.
= "And what dill YOU think of our Ii
L tie town." asked Zizzbaum, with th
= fatuots smile of tie Manhattanite
s Il shouldn't care to live in it." sal
s. the Texan. Your son and l knocke
:. around quite Il bit last night You'y
: got good water, but Cactus City is be
@s ter Lit up"
= We've got Il few lights on Broat
=. way. don't you think, Mr.. Platt?"
= And a good many shadows" sal
- = Plat. 81 think l like your horses bes
- haven't seen a crowbait since I'y
= been in town."
e zizz':aum led him upstairs to sho
:. the samples of suits
): ask Miss Asher to come" be sal
: 10 clerk.
. Miss Asher came, and Platt of N
= varty {. Platt felt for the first time Il
- wonderful bright light of romance ar
= glory descend upon him. He stood st
z rs Il granite cliff above the Canyon
y the Colorado, with his wide open ey
- fixed iren her, She noticed his lot
> and tillshed little. which was co
= frary 70 her custom
Miss Asher was the crack model
2 2 s.izzbaum & SON She was of the biol
= tine known rs medium" Her mea
s. urements even went the required :
25-4o standard little better. s.
~. had been al Zizzbaum's two years al
: knew her business. Her eye W
Is bright. but cool, and had she chosen
- M. ell her gaze against the optic
s t.:p raHsesl hasilisk that fabulous me