Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1909-05-15

N do not obtain in the hcalthfuI
81 vicinity Of Cactus City, Tex, for
the dry goods emporium of Ma
varro & Platt, situated there, is not to
! be SnccZcd at
Twenty thousand people in Cactus
| City scatter their silver coin with lib
eral hands for the things that their
hearts desire. The bulk of this semi
precious metal goes to Navarro &
| Platt. Their huge brick building covers
| enough ground to Craze a dozen head
| of sheep. You can buy of them rat
tlesnake skin necktie, an automobile
or an eighty-livc dollar latest style la
| dy's tan coat in twenty different shades.
| Navarro & Platt first introduced pen
| nicS west of the Colorado river. They
had been ranchmcn with business
heads. who saw that the world did not
necessarily have to cease its revOlu-
tionS after free grass went out.
Every spring Navarro, senior part
ner, ttfty-fvc, half Spanish, cosmopol-
tan, able, polished, had gone On" to
New York to buy goods. This year he
SHED at taking up the long trail. He
was undoubtedly growing older, and
he looked at his watch several times a
day before the hour came for his
sieSta.
"John," he said to his junior part
ncr, you shall go on this year to buy
the goods"
platt looked tired.
I'm told" said he, that New York
is q plumb dead town, but I'll go.
can take a whirl in San Antoine for a
few days on my way and have some
fun"
Two weeks later a man in Il Texas
full dress suit-hlack frock coat, broad
brimmcd soft white hat and lay down
collar thrcc-quartcrs of an inch high,
with black. wrought iron nccktie-en-
tered the Wholesale cloak and suit eS-
tablishmcnt Of Zizzbaum & Son on
lower broadway.
Old XiZZbaum had the eye of an
osprey, the memory Of an elephant and
a mind that Unfoldcd from him in
three movements like the puzzle of the
carpenters rule. He rolled to the
front like a brunette polar bear and
shook Platt'S hand
"And how is the good Mr.. Navarro
in TeXas?" he said THE trip was too
long for him this year, 50? We wei
come Mr. Flatt instead"
"a bulls"yc," said platt, "and I'd
give forty acres of unirrigItcd Pecos
county land to know how YOU did it."
81 knew" grinned Zizzbaum, Just as
know that the rainfall in FL Paso for
the year VAS 2S5 inches. or an incr.ase
Of fifteen inches, and that therefore Ma
varro & platt VIII buy $4,000 stock
of suits this spring instead of $4,000,
as in Il dry year. But that will be to-
morrow. There is first Il cigar in my
private office that will remove from
your mouth the taste of the ones you
smuggle across the Rio Grande and
like because they are smuggIed."
1t was late in the afternoon and bust
left platt with half smoked cigar anl
came out OF the private office to son,
who was arranging his diamond scarf
pin before Il mirror, ready to leave.
"Abey," he said. you will have to
take Mr. Platt around tonight and
show him things. They are customers
loI ''h !t"IS' MI N"N'IIo ana we
pI"|eu che"S every moment Oh spare
time when he came. That is good, but
Mr.. Platt is a young man, and this is
MS hrSt visit TO New York. lie should
amuSe easily
All right said Abey, screwing the
guard tightly on his pin. "l'll take him
ON. After he's seen the Flatyon and
the head waiter at the Hotel Astor and
heard the phonograph play Under the
Old Apple Tree it'll he half past 10,
and Mr.. Texas will be ready to roll up
in his blanket. I've got supper en-
gagement at ll:3O, but he'll be all to
the Mrs. WinsloW before then"
The next morning at 10 Platt walked
into the store ready to do business.
He had bunch of hyacinths pinned
on his lapel. Zizzbaum himself wait
ed on him. Navarro 4 Platt were good
customers and never failed to take
their discount for cash.
And what did You think of our lit
tie town." asked Zizzbaum, with the
fatuoUs smile of the Manhattanitc.
Il shouldn't care to live in it," said
the Texan. Your son and | knocked
around quite a bit last night. You've
got good water, but Cactus City is bet
ter lit up"