The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1909-02-05

Here was everything from Lexington
/, and Bunker Hill to FL Caney; every
thing from the Boston Tea Party "a
the unpleasantness between Kcnesaw
Lands and Standard Oil; everything
, that is the essence of this nation no
, matter how thoroughly that essence
was disguised elsewhere or how
freshly it reeked in Dallas. 1t would
be worth while to live out here on
the prairie in heat and in snow in
dust and in wet gumbo for fourteen
months; to know neighbors who were
nearer to you fifty miles away than
the folks up-ono-night-front in your
New York fiat. And you gulped a lit
tie and you said to yourself: by
George Washington, Abraham Lincoln
and the Fourth of July, | DO mean it,"
And out loud you said, raising your
hand: 81 do"
The mere incident that they drew
six thousand names out of the heap
after that and never found yours
among them is immatcrial and irrele-
want. You had found your citizenship.
After that you were eager and alive
to your country for a while. Your
eyes were free from me scales for
little These observations are merely
collection of memoranda of the
glimpses which came in that period
of illumination.
/ BILLY the Owl" and Crook Nose
Jake"
! First of ALL Dallas and the drawing
at Dallas were clean This was partly
due to Judge Witten, partly to the
Jacksons-of whom much more here
after-but most of all to the sort of
thing which made you stop and count
a hundred before you signed that af-
fidavit. There was a public conscience
at large in the Trip county opening.
Not everybody had it; to some it came
as an alien and disagreeable shock.
SO it came to Billy the Owl and
Crook Nose Jake, for instance. If
ever you encountered longbeaked in
dividual with a mole over his right
eyebrow, like a sinisterly elevated
second eyebrow, and soon thereafter
were jostled and lost your scarf-pin or
your pocketbook, you nave met Billy
the Owl In travelling across the
country with campaigning politicians |
have seen Billy the Owl Culled out of
crowds and hustled away by the po-
lice of a score of cities. He loves
crowds, especially holiday crowds. 1t
was without any perceptible shock
therefore that | recognized Billy the
Owl and a few retainers on the Dallas
train. One of the companions, though
did not know it until later, was Crook
Nose Jake. Their eyes fairly shone;
one could almost imagine that they
were drooling at the corners of their
mouths as they looked over the posi-
bilites of the harvest as 1t was mani
tested by the carload OF prosperous
merry countrymen about them. They
alighted at the Dallas station and be-
came part of the swirling torrent that
was making up the street to the regis
tration offices. Coming down against
the current was a fat, genial little man
who is here to be called Mac-the
agency which employs him deprecates
self exploitation by its operators. His
face was alight with pleasure when he
saw the Owl and his company He
fairly dove through the crowd at them,
hands extended in welcome.
Hello, Mae" said they, what you
doing here?"
Police" said Mac, broadly smiling
still.
is the graft good?" inquired the
Owl. This was merely perfunctory
question. Nobody could look at that
crowd without knowing how good the
graft might be.
Lots of chance for it, said Mac.
whats the best hotel here? asked
Jake.
The Dallas, right up at the top OF
the hill to the left" said Mac.
Good hotel?"
Zine, Live there myself" said Mac.
Then there came a sudden but mex
pressible change in his tone. Sorry
you fellows can't see it."
How you mean?" The Owl was
obviously a little dazed.
Because there's a train for Omaha
going out in ten minutes-and you're
going out on it"
The crooks looked stupidity at Mac
for full half minute. He meant II.
An impossible blank wall had risen
between them and the Promised Land
One by one, without the courtesy OF
a good-by, they picked up their bags
and turned their faces to the railroad
station, muttering bitter curses to one
another as they went.
Keeping Straight for Fear OF Mac
1t was also part of the scheme OF
things that homeseekers should go
away with pleasant memories of Dal-
las and without regrets for waste and
shame. The town wIs clean There
were some gambling tables, to be
sure; public sentiment demanded
them; but they were so carefully SUI
pervised that there was practically no
trimming" of drunkards or boys.
Philanthropists who desired to force
you to accept a complete set of collar
III Il