The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1911-10-04
The
ValnyAHaiir
By DONaL HaNlLT HAINES
corvManr sss Nv rnu FaAesoN rrr,,smsc co.

In the softer light OF late afternoon
lie limos OF Nalhy liarbOr assumed the
only soitness they ever acquired The
gaunt skeletons ~ the giant dredges
Hurried against he yelow.brown hills
Of the shore line. the hard blue OF the
water shaded off into more delicate
ttnls -cyen the eorrugatediron roofs
of the long strings Of empty ware
houses lost something Of their mid
lay harshness.
Rui the coming Of the Christening,
soft lights did not decrease The grave
yard quiet Of the great harbor The
distant rattle OF a drosky ms it bumped
and jolted over he rats and hollows
Of the road To the city sounded clearly,
and the clicking Of 3acon's heels as
he pounded them morosely against tho
concrete side of a milli0nd0llar pier,
echoed loudly over the still water
BacOns eyes roved from The silent
dredges 10 the silent hills. and back Ia
The empty piers aud The empty ware
houece We wrigglcd The muscles OF
his back uncomfortably beneath the
depressing domo OF silence
Lord he muitered in dull, mo
lolonous tone. Lord What a place
A troop Of cavalry clattered past tho
nd of the wharf, and before the dust
81 their passage had settled. squad
# infantry. their white Jackets and
lat. white hats standing out sharply,
oloddcd by. marched aimlessly from
me point TO another by bored,
e(hargic officer Bacon watched them
Tor moment and then got slowly to
his feet and stretched himself with
tremendous yawu He knocked the
ashes from his pipe and started re.
alling 1t thoughlfnly. His fingers
felt he lean sides of the pouch
anXiously
ITS Ave thousand miles to any more
Of that tobacco he mourned, only
five thousand little, insignificant
mlles,"
He walked slowly along the great
pier. the smok9 from his pine swirling
and eddyins behind him. lie Ieil
grateful for the movement of half
dozen dirty coolies near one of the
warehouses. and stopped to watch
hem When they disappeared he
sighed and walked on across The drearY
jwonile stretcH Of emptiness 10 the
itv proper Here, because there were
more places built for human hablta'
ion than At the harhor and no more
people TO flll item tho silence was
even more oppressive Bacon passed
between The long rows Of barrack-like
buildings. each exactly like the ono
next 10 it, from whose doors sleepy,
apathetic Japanese or Manchn shop-
keepers stared at him without interest
Dogs sleeping In the street, did not
raise their heads az be passed,
"If anything should happen here. y
mused Bacon really happen the
town would dle--just plain die, build
ings and all
He came ont into o gaunt, bare
stretch. labelled somewhere on the
grandiloquent plans Of the city as
square Beyond II stretched tle
oficially-built' section of the city
where some architect had been given
carte blanche and had tumbled TO-
gether all the different styles of arcbi
lecture of which manknd has dreamed
Bacen,threaded the empty streets unth
he came to squat, sturdy building, on
whose stumpy nagpole an American
aag dropped in he MINDLESS air
wizened clerk. 4 dry pen sticking
through the thin hair behind his ears
stood leaning Ianguidly against The
door.iamb He Inclined his body ilsiil}
as Bacon passed him, without remoy
ng his vacant stare from the distance
Bacon walked to tho little desk and
paved over the sparse pic OF enVc
tones smiling at The snperscriptior
Frederick Bacon. American Consul
Vany" He dropped into the chaif
and his straight figure drooned. Foi
moment he sat looking al The clerks
back. then his eve Travelled around nc
wallis of ne room resting finally upop
a framed parchment IN ~hich his'
name appeared 10 old En2lish letters
sufroa aded by much Latin. Az no
bottom Of the diploma was the green
seal Of Bacons university
Jones" said thc Young man sud
denly come here and sit down
Tho clerk strange looking man
with features which might belong
either to Orient or Oceiden traliod
across The room and perched On a
stool taking the pen from behind MS
ear and nibbing the point
There's heeu-- commenced ibc
olerk hii Baron silonced him with
look and gesture
I'm i'm no mood ho said 10 be
ioId Of the number Of MonEol traders
Who have been here trying 20 clafns
immunjiv as American citiIon5
must talk myself ont 10 someone,
tones and you're the only human
hojne in sight. tried il on na pfeitF
rranch eirl az the restaurant and
after I finished she asked me if u was
,rpe that he Indians in America he'd
feathers on their heads instead OF
aair,"
Jones sat perfectly still on his stool,
his leatherlike face as hat as a mask.
pncon leaned Lack in his chair ana
rut his geet on tie desk before him.
Where did you fret hear OF the
diplomatic service?' demanded Bacon
Jonas shool his head
II don't know" he confessed
Well continued Bacon I've heard
NJ # since ! was old enough 10 read ]
wanted to be in it its been My one
great. consuming amhition-and no"
I'7n inl Before got out mere,
ZONES I knew exactly what a diplomat
c-as lie vas q hawk.nosed inscrut
,hle man with a black mousiacne. ~
almost always wore evening CLONES
e-ith the red ribbon slanung acros
bis sbfrt-bosogn. From choice DC
smoke French-hnt he could be nlen'
M Portuguese or Arabic u t-e
sas,on offered Nobody ever sa~ ha
do ANYTHING but appear well on h2lss
bael, and make a good figure dancinf
with handsome womfn-but tle
Ia HH o.