West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1908-09-03
THEAAsfItAF
BY o. HENRY.

~ crazy and broken themselves into
small strips called places. These
places make strange angles and curves
one street crosses itself time or two
An artist once discovered a valuable
possibility In this street Suppose n
collector with bill for paints. paper
aud canvas should In trayerslng this
route suddenly meet himself coming
back without a cent having been pnid
ON account
SO TO quaint old Greenwich village
tie nrt people soon came prowling
hunting for north windows and eight
celth century gables and Dutch attics
and low rents. Then they imported
some pewter mugs and a chatting dish
or two from Sixth avenue and became
colony"
At the top OF squatty three story
brick Sue and JOhnsy had their studio
Johnsy was familiar for Joanna. One
was from Maine. the other from Cal
fornia. They had met at the table
dhote OF an Eighth street ''Delmon-
ico's" aud, found their tastes In art
chlcory salad and bishop sleeves SO
congenial that the joint studio resulted
That was in May. In November a
cold, unseen stranger, whom the doc.
tors called Pneumonia. stalkcd about
the colony, touching one here and there
with his Icy finger. over OH the east
side this ravager strobe boldly, smit.
Ing his victims by scores. but his feet
,trod slowly through the maze OF the
, narrow and moss grown places.
Mr.. Pneumonia was not what you
would call chivalric old gentleman.
a mite OF little woman with blood
thinned by California Zephyrs was hard
Iy fair game for the red iisted. short
breathed old duffer. But Johnsy he
smote, and she lay, scarcely moving.
on her painted iron bcdstead. looking
through the small Dutch wlndowpanes
at the blank side OF the next brick
!. house
One morning the busy doctor invited
Sue into the hallway with a shaggy
gray eyebrow
"She has one chance I'm. let US say.
ten,' he said as he shook down tile
mercury in his clinical thermometer.
and that chance is for her to want
TO live. This way people have of lin
ing up on the side of the undertaken
makes the entire pharmaoopoela look
silly. Your little lady has made up
her mind that she's not going TO get
well. Has she anything on her mind 2"
"She-she wanted to paint the bay
of Naples some day" said Sue.
- Paint? Bosh! Has she anything on
her mind worth thinking about twice
man, for instanceT'
"a MANI" said Sue. with n jewsharp
twang in her voice. rs man WORTH
But. no. doctor, there is nothing of the
kind"
well. 1t is the weakness then" said
the doctor. IL viii do all that science.
so far as 1t may filter through my eff
forts, can accomplish. But whenever
my patient begins TO count the car
riages In her funeral procession sub
tract 30 per cent from the curative
power OF medicines. If you will get
her to ask one question about the new
winter styles i'm cloak sleeves will
promise you one In five chance for
her instead of one In ten"
After the doctor had gone Sue went
into the workroom and cried a Japa-
nese napkin to a pulp. Then she swag-
gered into Johnsy's room with her
drawing board, whlstllng ragtlme.
Johnsy lay, scarcely making ripple
under the bedclothes, with her face to-
ward the window. Sue stopped whis
Ting, thinking she was asleep.
She arranged her board and began a
pen and ink drawing TO illustrate a
magazine story. Young artists must
pave their way to art by drawing pie
lures for magazine stories that young
authors write TO pave their way to
literature.
AS Sue was sketching a pair of ele-
CANT horse show riding trousers and n
monocle on the figure of the hero, an
Idaho cowboy, she heard n low sound
several times repeated She went
quickly to the bedside.
Johnsy's eyes were open wide. She
was looking out the window and count
ing-eounting backward.
Twelve" she said. and a little later
eleven" and then "ten" and nine
snd then eight and Seven" almost
together.
Sue looked solicitously out the win.
dow. What was there to count? There
was only bare, dreary yard TO be
seen and the blank side of the brick
house twenty feet away. An old. old
Ivy vine gnarled and decayed at the
roots climbed halfway up the brick
wall. The cold breath Of autumn had
stricken It's leaves from the vine until
It's skeleton branches clung almost
bare to the crumbling bricks.
what Is It. dearY asked Sue.
"Slx." said Johnsy I'm almost n whis-
per. They're falling faster now
Three days ago there were almost a
hundred. It made my head ache 10
count them. But now It's easy Their,
goes another one. There are only ny,
left now"
Five what, dear1 Tell your Sudie
Leaves on the ivy vine When th,
last one falls ] must 20 too. Nv,
known that for three days Didn't TN,
doctor tell your
"Oh. / never heard Of such non
sense" complained Sue. with mag
nidcent scorn. What have old Tvs
leaves TO do with your getting well
And you used TO love that vine so. yot
naughty girl. Don't be a goosey. why
the doctor told me this morning tina
your chances for getting we'll real soor
were--lets sec exactly what he said
he said the chances were ten 20 one
Why, that's almost as good a change
as we Have In New York when we rid,
on the street cars or walk past n new
building. Try TO take some broth nov
and let Sudie go back to her drawing
so she can sell the editor man with /
and buy port wine for her sick chill,
aud pork chops for her greedy self"
You needn't get any more wine,
said Johnsy, keeping her eyes Fixed on