The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-12-05
MADDEN GETS TIE SURPRISE AT LAST Man Who Was Never Moved
 By Anything B FINALLY SHOCKED
Elephant In Cafe, Hold Up, Dynamite Explosion and Wife Desertion
 Moves Him Not, But He
 Gets Jar All the Same.

Nothing" said Franklin Hadden, scan surprise me. Nothing at all After all that modern science has accomplished, am ready to believe anything, while positively refuse to be astonished at any sight or noise Nothing gentlemen. Is impossible; nothing should cause won der any more." So speaking, MT. Hadden shifted one foot on the bar rail and speared the cherry at the bottom of the little glass.
 Nothing could surprise astonish or upset you. hey7" quizzed Burke, the con- tractor, ignoring the olive in his own glass. Don't be too sure of that. Some thing will happen. some of these days, and you will jump out of your own alxfn.-
 Hadden sniclerd. but Burke and Du- martin. the little French tailor who had ordered absinthe. shook their heads. rye sail see, ve sal see." piped in Dumartin. You sail be yer much astonish; zhust vait and beholdi"
 The front door of the cafe burst from It's hinges and fell inward with a crash. A great. formless bulk, dark, colossal. terrible. wedged into the opening and then came inward. long gray trunk protruding ahead of its advance. It was a full grown elephant, and 1t was march, ing into the cafe as if into . hut among the Indian rice fields.
 Burke. with a groanfng quayer of Saints preserve usr' dived under a tahla. Dumartin. white as q sheet fell upon his knees and prayed. The bartender grow eled amid the wreck of his stock, and three men who had been drinking at the far end of the bar made one simultaneous dash into the lavatory.
 Hadden raised his glass and bowed to the elephant Glad to meet you, old boy" said he. What is your pleas ure7~
 Hoarse voices roared around the door, and rude hands of circus men forced the elephant outward. He resumed his march toward the winter quarters of his nenag- erie. and the bunch Inside the cafe came back to life and to buzzing conversa- ton
 T suppose,s said Hadden calmly, s-that the appearance of this elephant in a cafe was rather unnerving to you gentlemen You will notice. however, that was not astonished or confused. Whats every body drinkingr'
 Late in the evening Hadden kissed his pretty wife and remarked that he thought he would voyage over to the corner and see few of the boys. schoifman, over at the corner, had excellent beer, and in his place, Hadden was wont to meet his friends, Burke Dumartin, Surrey, the Englishman, and Eilman, the 1eweler.
 "Been surprised yet, Haddenr asked Burke. as they finished discussing the elephant.
 "Not in the least,~ laughed Hadden Ta CllA Younger, Tracy, Black Bart and the Dal- ton brothers were to walk in here and hold us all up, I wouldn't be ratt1ed. Nothing is impossible today, nothing should cause consternation."
 There were doors at each end of Scholl- mans place, and, even as Hadden spoke, both doors opened. Three masked men came through the rear door. two through the farther entrance. Each had a busi- ness-like revolver, and all i've of the weapons were leveled at the patrons of schollman's bar. Hands upl" growled one of the meskers and the hands were elevated rapidly.
 It was all over in 10 minutes: the rob bers, laden with wallets and watches. had departed, and Schollman was frantically phoning the police. Hadden was smok- ing, while his friends were shrieking about their losses.
 s.Such things" said Hadden, an1iably, ''are only to be expected. You noticed, gentlemen. that I was not agitatedH'
 But the crowd was too busy with indl- vidual and collective troubles to heed him and Hadden started home.
 The house was strangely dark and gloomy, but this did not surprise Had den, as his wife had evidently retired and turned off the gas to save waste When he entered his bedroom, however, he found no trace of his wife. He lit up the house and found unmistakable signs showing that his wife had fled, departed in a hurry, while a note made assurance that his wife had vanished with his col lege chum and oldest pal. John Fan ming, and that she had taken the bank roll with her.
 Lots of women are that way" re- marked TIadden, land am not sur prised My, my. but how sleepy am."
 Hadden slept comfortably tfll perhaps o'clock. Then there was fearful crash. and the housee mounted skyward in sec tons. Hadden rose with his residence, and was still going up when he met Du- martin coming down. The little French mans face showed white through the darkness of the night, and his eyes stared luminous with fear and horro.
 Don't get rattled, Dumy, old boy shouted Hadden. People are 80 careless with these high explosives that things like this are always happeningr' Dumar- tin vanished; Hadden reached the top of his arc, hurled downward, landed, and went to sleep.
 "Your escape" said the surgeon as he bent over Hadden's cot, twas the most wonderful thing ever heaerd of. By some strange freak of the explosion. two