Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1908-11-14


to come TO a place in the country
where twas quiet Did know of such
a place round here? Well, course 1
wrote back that twas nice and quiet
right at our house. There want no
lie in that, was there, Sol?''
NO" says Il should say
'twouldn't be shaving the truth too
close if you'd said there was more
quietness than anything else down on
the Neck road
Well he goes on, not noticing the
sarcasm, Il wrote and never got a
word back Me and Hubby had given
up hearing. And then, yesterday
morning, they come-both of 'em.
Nice lookin' young fellers as ever you
see, they are; dressed just like the
chaps in the clothes advertisements in
the back of the magazines. The big
gest one-they're both half as tall as
that mast, seems so-he took up his
hat and says, kind of lazy and grand,
like a steamboat capt'n:
mfr. Scudder?' he says.
That's my name,' says I. 1 was
kind of suspicious; there's been so
many sewing-machine agents and such
round town this spring. And yet I'd
ought to have known he want no sew
ing-machine agent.
".Ah!' he says. You've been ex-
pecting US, then. Has the luggage
Gomez
What in time did 1 know about his
luggage as he called it?
No. says 1. "Tain't.'
"'Oh, well, never mind he says, just
as If ton or two of baggage didn't
count anyway. Can you give us two
sleeping rooms, two baths, a setting
room, and room for my man.
Two baths?' says I. Can't you
take a bath by yourself? You seem
to be having lots of funny jokes with
me- Would you mind saying what your
name is and what you want?'
He looked me over sort of odd.
Beg pardon, he said. L thought you
were expecting us. Here's my card
Il looked at it, and there was the
name Edward Van Brunt,' printed on
it. Then 1 begun to get my bearings,
as you might say.
OH l says. I see.'
$50 glad, I'm sure, he says. Now
can you give us the sleeping rooms,
the baths, and the room for my man p
Hump. says 1, lookin' back at the
house behind me; if me and Hubby
bunked in the henhouse and the chore
boy in the cellar, maybe we could ac-
commodate you, that is, all but the
baths. You'd have to take turns with
the washtub for them 1 says.
He laughed. He was so everlasting
cool about things that it sort of riled
me up.
Perhaps you'd like to hire the
whole shebang?' says 1, sarcastic,
pointing to the house
He looked at it. 1t looked sort of
cheerful, with the syringa over the
door and the morning -glories hiding
where the whitewash was off.
"'Good ideal he says. I would
well, that was too many for me!
1 went into the house and fetched out
Hubby Ann-she's my wife. There
amt many women in this town can
beat her when it comes to managing
and business, if 1 do say it.
How long would you want the
house for?' says Hubby, when 1 told
her what was going on.
"a month"; says Van Brunt, turn
ing to the other city Teller. Hey, Mar
tin?' T'other chap nodded.
All right says Van Brunt. How
much?'
Thinks 1, I'll scare you, my fine fell
ler.' And so 1 says, A month? Well,
1 don't know. Maybe, to accommo-
date, / might let you have it for two
hundred 1 sort of edged off then,
thinking sure he'd be mad; but he
wa'n't-not him. Two hundred it
is he says, and fished out little
blank book and one of them pocket
pens.
Names Scudder? he asks.
Yes, says l. Nathan Scudder.
One T in Nathan
And 1 don't know as you'll believe
it, Sol,' says Nate, finishing up, 'but
that Teller made out a check for two
hundred and passed it over to me like
twas a postage stamp. What do you
| think of that?"
l didn't know what to think of it.
| On general principles I'd say that a
man who wanted to board with Nate
and Hubby Ann Scudder was crazy
anyhow; but of course these fellers
| didn't know.
TT beats me, Nate" 1 says. What
| do you think?'
Blessed if 1 know" says Scudder,
| with another of them long breaths-
.-All I'm sure of is that they're up
| home, with the parlor blinds open and
| the carpet fading, and me and Hubby S
| living in the barn. She's doing the
| cookin' for 'em till this man of theirs
comes. Land knows what kind of
man he is, too And that check was