Evening star., 1909-02-14
THE NSOME ARD
By S. E. Kiser
Drawing by Irma Deremeaux

FOR several weeks after unlucky start in
the spirituaistic line things went fairly well
with us. DR.. Cogliostro, the wizard. sold COM
pound, pulled teeth, told fortunes, felt the
bumps on peoples heads, gave slelght OF hand
performances, and operated as a mesmerlst
using his daughter. Miss Trelawney, as his sub
iect when he couldn't get anybody else under
the influence. The kind of business he de
Clded when we got INTO town depended
on the way he felt or what he thought would
| take best with the inhabitants The receipts
were never big enough to make it necessary to
| carry anv of money IN satchels; but we
were able to ride on passenger trains and SIT
down when we ate. The Doc even paid me
sonnet hing account, and Clyt1e got some
new clothes which made her look stunning.
| One day picked up a paper that had long
story about the devil and Jim West. 1t told
how Jim had sold liquor to the farmer boys
| and turned his house into gambling den
where people were started on the road to ruin
| Jim West, it said had been man who feared
nothing on earth, and one dark, rainy night
while revels were going on as usual IN ms
house two men. called and asked to be taken
in AS soon as they had entered, awful groans
began to be heard all over the place, chains
ratified, blood stained cards t1oated through
the air, and before long the lights went out.
| Then Jim West and his wife saw that the two
strangers were Satan and one of his lnps. Not
only had Jim and his wife seen the visitors
| from the internal reg ions, but several OF the
boys who had been gambling and drinking IN
the place got good look at the evil ones and
noticed their horns and hoofs.
| After telling how the devil and his imp had
| vanished into thin air the article said Jim had
become a changed man. He had gwen up his
wicked wavs. joined church, and was gong
| cut to help convert sinners by giving them an
account of his narrow escape from the clutches
| of Old Nick.
X/HEN the wizard had read the article. he
w smoothed his plug hat with his sleeve
and said, You see Zachariah, how lmpor-
tant it is to be ready and willing at all times
to turn aside for the purpose OF doing good.
| 1t was lucky for YOU and me, as well as tor the
community which he was corruptlng that Jim
West had no bulldog. This is really great
argument against bulldogs Many man has
been turned from the path Of duty because a
bulldog happened to be standing in it As
the poet says:
/" Proud Brutus might not have been there
| To make great Cesar feel his steel.
| If some large bulldog from somewhere
Had darted out and nipped his heel.
| If You will be good enough not to squeeze
Miss Trelawneys hand again when you think
| am not looking. my appreciation OF Your
usefulness as my manager will be considerably
strengthened.
He smiled very kindly and rubbed his hat
Las he said it. Clytie's long lashes came down
over her soft, sad eyes and there was a little
| red spot on each OF her cheeks She and had
never found a chance to conflde IN each other !,
but had good reasons for believing she was
sick of the life she led, and I'd have been glad
if could have found some way to take her
/ fEom the Doc forever | was looking for the
| chance right along; but the wizard had a
mysterious way of always rising up between
| us whenever was about to fold her IN my arms
and tell her my innermost thoughts
! SEVERAL times We almost caught up with
Angel Willie's" troupe, or were nearly
overtaken by it. Sometimes the Monte
Cristo people were ahead, and sometimes We
We're; but we didn't quite get together The
| Doc wasn't very anxious to meet them, al
though he pretended to think there was no
reason why we shouldn't all be good friends
We had stopped off in little town where
the Doc thought he might sell some powders
that he had been fixing up at odd times during
the last few days. They were made OF flour.
with pinches of soda and boraX, and he said
child might take dozen of them without
being hurt half much as it would be by eat
ing stick of candy.
What are they good for" asked when he
and l We're doing them up into punches of d
dozen each.
"Zachariah,' he said, :" hope they are good
for about twenty dollars. | shall dispose of
them to the afflicted masses for the small sum
of fifty cents package"
But what will they cure?
a large ma jority of the ills that flesh is not
ba;r 20 SThey will SIeedi1y relieve IeoD1e wr an