The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1908-10-20
CHAPTER vi.


"The one fault l have to find with
European life is the poor quality OF
tobacco used"
1t was eight o'clock, Thursday night
the night Of the dinner az Mullers.. j
was dressing when Max entered, with
miserable cheroot between his teeth
They say" he went on, that in
Russia they drink the finest; tea IN the
world, simply because It Is brought
overlandand not by sea. Unfortunate.
ly, tobacco-we Americans recognize
no leaf as tobacco unless 1t comes
from Cuba-Ahas to cross the sea. and
Is, In some unaccountable manner,
weakened in the transit. There are
worse cigars in Germany than in
France and / wouldn't have believed
1t possible, IT, had not gone to the
trouble.of proving Il. Fine countryl
For q week I've been trying to smoke
the German quality of the weed as a
preventive, but see / must give il up
on account Of my throat. My boy. |
have news for you "-tossing the che
root into the CRATE.
Fire away" said |, struggling with
a collar
Il have a box of Havanas over at
the custom house that l forgot to bail
out -. ~
"NoiPtsaid l joyfully. A Havana.
and one. of Scharfenstein's!
I've an idea that they would go
we'll with the dinner. So, IL YOU don't
mind. III trot over and get EN- g.
BE sure and get around to Muller's
at half-past eight then" said l.
"Tll-be there" He knew where to
find the place. y" i~i
Mnller's. fathskeller was the rendez-
vous Of students, officers and all those
persons of quality who liked music
with their meat The place was low
ceilinged. but roomy, and the ventila-
ton was excellent, considering. The
smoke never got so thick that one
couldn't see the way TO the door when
the students started in ito clean up
the place to use the happy idiom of
mine own country. There were mar,
BILE tables and floors and arches
and light, cane-bottomed chairs from
Kohn's. IL was at once Bohemian and
cosmopolitan, and, once inside. IL was
easy to imagine oneself In Vienna. A
Hungarian orchestra occupied an In.
closed platform, and every night the !
wall of the violin and the pom-pom of
the wooltipped hammers on the Hun.
garian piano might be heard.
II was essentially mans place of
entertainment; few women ever had
the courage or the inclination to enter.
In America 1t would have been the
fashion; but in the capital of Barscheit
the women ate in the restaurant above.
which was attached to the hotel and
depended upon the Volksgarten band
for their evenings diversion.
You had TO order your table hours
ahead-that is. IL you were civilian.
II you were lucky enough to be an Of
ficer. you were privileged to take any
vacant chair you saw. But heaven aid
you II you attempted to do this not be-
ing an officerl In Barscheit there vera
also many unwritten laws. and Won
were Obliged to observe these with All
the fidelity and attention that YOU gave
TO the enameled signs. Only the mill.
tary. had the right to request the or.
chestra to repeat a piece of music.
Sometimes the lieutenants. seized with
that gay humor known only to cubs
would force the orchestra in Mnuer,s
to play the Hungarian war song till
the ears cried out in pain. This was
always the case when any Austrians
happened to be present. But ordinari-
ly the crowds were good-natured bois.
ferrous, but orderly.
1t was here. then, that had ar
ranged to give my little dinner. The
orchestra had agreed--for liberal tin
Ito play THE Star-spangled Banner,
and there was case of Doppelkinns