The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1908-04-30

frenZle0 cleerS OF u sport cTuZel
crowd. He sends a man less fortunate
" endowed physically than himself
into few moments of unhappy obliv
ion and then grins at you with Grass
satisfaction when you cheer hin-not
for himself or because his name means
anything. but simply for what he has
done.
This Babbington comes out of no
| where" Desbro continued. "a grace
less. coarse fibered clod, with giants
strength and the broad ideas of a goat.
hungry for notoriety Of the sort his
great muscles can command. and you
pamper his cheap cravings with unc-
| ton. You sit in the stands and shout
yourselves hoarse while he is battering
some poor fellow in the arena, and you
will go further You will desire the
capture of this athletic lion in spite Of
the fact that he is IA social impossi-
bility, and you will be crowding around
trying to put your fraternity pins on
his coat Bah!
81 talked with the man, looked into
his great, oxlike eyes-dead. devoid of
the spark of real life
The unfinished sentence broke abrupt
ly, and every eye in the room followed
Desbro's startled glance to the door,
way, where, turning his cane in bis
hands and staring at the speaker with
an expression wholly. indescribable.
stood Babbington. For moment there
was the dead silence of utter embar-
rassment; then one by one the men
turned to the tables, while Babbington
cleared his throat and spoke.
81 came to see if possibly hadn't
misunderstood you,' he said, turning
to Desbro "That name you mention
ed was Morton, wasn't it?''
Desbro, redder than any man had
ever seen him. nodded without speak
ing.
81 thought possibly hadn't under
STOOD" Babbington explained. backing
awkwardly out of the door. "and did
know a man named Horton
A few moments later Desbro passed
, the door of the billiard room. wearing
, the raincoat and slouch hat which he
invariably wore on the evening walks
which were as much part Of his ex-
. istence as his meals.
No man pretended to know the object
, of these nightly walks of Desbro's. To
all inquiries he responded that they
gave him q chance te~think wftaes.e -
! terruptlOn."
At the gate Desbro paused to light 9
> cigarette, and the fare Of the match
as he shielded it from the snappy Oc
. tober wind brought his thin features
= into prominence against the darkness
= Babbington, standing under tree not
. a dozen yards away, turned as the sui
: phur sputtered and saw His great
! hand cinched instinctiyely into fist
- and he had already taken step for
ward when Desbro turned and started
- quickly down the street
Babbington waited Il few moments
>, then stepped lightly on to the Sidewalk
!. and followed quietly at first and theI
"a without caution as Desbro paid no at
a tention to the footballs behind him. HI
glanced now and then at the recedinl
lights and then increased the length o.
his strides as Desbros phrases throb
bed through his mind.
"Socia! impossibility! he muttered
gritting his teeth over the phrase. III
teach the little whelp!'
His eyes never left the little sparl
which marked the Others position. bu
every time he started 10 close the gal
between them something checked him
His thoughts refused to run to any bu
a given point-a fierce desire to get hi
hands upon the man WHO had held hi
ignorance up to rcDmful OF mel
while he stood and listened helplessly
As he had stood under the tree in from
of the house he had felt only sens
of impotency. of shame, Il gulpirS feel
ing of disappointment which was no
easy to understand, siehening realiZa
ton that some of Desho's words ha'
rung true.
Block after block the man in from
walked. turning now to the right an
now to the left, SOMETIMES waikin
rapidly and again idlmg along at
snails pace. They passed through th
business streets. ionelr and deserte
under the harsh glare Of the arc lights
Here Desbro paused to talk with pi
licenan with whom he seemed to b
on excellent terms. and. turned suddel
ly cold at the sight OF the patrolmal
Babbington crossed the street an
nearly lost his man. who wheele
! abruptly into dark side street.
Babbington was conscious that
We struggle had commenced within hil
= and that the first heat of anger wa
to passing. He grew ashamed of h
growing calmness. fearful lest the coo
q! ing influence of the walk rob him {
the merited retaliation which he kne
to his massive arms could administer.
ne Desbro stopped abruptly to light a;
On other cigarette, and his pursucr halte
in the midst Of stride. For an u
IL slant he paused irresoute. divided b
Is tween the lingering desire to close b
en- fingers on Desbro's neck and Il sudde
ne impulse to run, to get away from e
e. erything, back to the life where oth'
IS, men had lived and talked like himsel
n, The hotter sensation triunlphed. ar
Of Babbington had taken three quic
;. 1.-the steps toward his victim when, S
op lent as the shadows from which the
ir- sprang, a little knot Of men thre
I'M themselves at Desbro.
The shock of the attack not on
In drove from Babbington's mind evel
es vestige of his own wrath. but bere
We him for IN instant of the power of N
OF ton. He heard Desbro give low e