The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-11-29
PLAYING WILBUR TO SHOW

don't even crack smile, but reaches
up and hands Mr.. Cobb the cordial
shake, just as though he'd been a pat
tern sized gent dressed accordin' to the
new fall styles.
Ali" says Pinckney. I'm very glad
TO meet any one from the west. What
state, Mr.. Cobb"
And inside of two minutes he's get
tin all the details of this Zylphina
hunt, from the ground up, includin' an
outline of Wilbur's past life.
Seems that Wilbur got his first start
in Maine; but way back before he
could remember much his folks had
moved to Kansas on a homestead
Then, when Wilbur tossIed out. he takes
up a quarter section near Hoxie. and
goes to corn farmin' for himself. raisin'
a few hogs as a side line. Barrin' bein'
caught in a cyclone or two. and gettin'
elected junior kazook of the Sheridan
County Grange, nothin' much happened
/ to Wilbur, until one day he took a
car ride as far west as Colby Junction.
That's where he meets up with Zyl-
pima. She was jugglin' stop-over ra
tionS at the railroad lunch counter.
Men must have been mighty scarce
around the junction. or else she wants
the most she can get for her money;
for, as she passes Wilbur a hunk of pet
rified pie and draws him one muddy,
with two Jumps on the saucer, she
throws in a smile that makes him feel
like he'd stepped on live third rail
Accordin' to his tell, he must have
hung around that counter all day, eat
in through the pie list from top TO
bottom and back again, until it's
wonder his system ever got over the
shock But Zylphina keeps tollin him
on with googoo eyes and giggles, sayin'
how 1t does her good to see man with
nice, hearty appetite, and before it
come time for him to take the train
back they'd got real well acquainted.
He finds out her first name and how
she's been a whole orphan since she
was goin' on ten.
After that Wilbur makes the trip to
Colby Junction regular every Sunday,
and they'd got to the point of talkin'
about settin' the day when she was to
become Mrs. Cobb. when Zylphina gets
word that an aunt of hers that kept
boardin' house in Fall River, Mass,
wants her to come east right away
Aunty has some kind of heart trouble
that may finish her any minute. and. as
Zylphina was the nearest relation she
had, there was a show of her bein heir
ess to the whole joint.
Course, Zylphna thinks she ought to
tear herself loose from the pie counter;
but before she quits the junction her
and W1lDur takes one last buggy ride,
with the reins wound around the whip
socket most of the way. She weeps on
Wilburs shirt front. and says no mat
ter how far Off she is. or how long she
has to wait for him to come, she'll al
ways be his'n on demand. And Will
bur says that just as soon as he can
make the corn and hog vineyard hump
itself a little more. he'll come.
So Zylphina packs a shoe box full OF
fried chicken. blows two months wages
into a yard of yellow railroad ticket.
and starts toward the cotton mills.
It's couple of months before Wilbur
gets any letter. and then 1t turns out
to be a hard-luck tale. at that. Zyl-
phina has found out what a lime tastes
like. She's discovered that the Fall
River aunt hasn't anything more the
matter with her heart than the aver
age landlady, and that what she's fell
heiress to Is only a chance to work
eighteen hours a day for her board. So
she's disinherited herself and is about
to make a bold jump for New York,
which she liked the looks of as she
came through, and she'll write more
later on.
1t was iater-about six months. wi
phina says she's happy, and hopes Will
bur is the same. She's got a real ele-
giant job as cashier in a heightened.