Evening star., 1912-09-08

side talk with the cadde the subject He's bright,
wise lookin halt grown young smoke and answers to
the name of Milton Smith.
Milton, says l. "on the level nowthe boss pretty
rank at this golf thing amt he?"
"Yassuh,S says Milton. "Ah spec he is
Ever worse?' says |.
He admits he ain t, often.
And he's too bad, eh, to get out and play in the
class with the of these old dufers? says l.
Milton ant anxious to cast asparagus the
play of certain party who payn him
week reg lar for two hours work day; but by hard
pumpin got enough out of him SO | could frame up
genral view of the situation And that about it.
Old Hickory, who'd always been topnotcher in any
thing he'd ever tackled up against proposition
now where he didn't rank one-two-sixteen. And l
could guess, too, just how deep that must cut him.
A LSO this gave the key to his queer actions that
mornin', when he'd stood around for more'n half
hour, waitn' idle while the other old sports, in
punches of and fours, had started off, and him
never ben asked to join in They seemed to be gettin
lot of fun out of it too oshin each other and maxim
side bets on the length of their drives, and SO
hearty husky lot of old gents they looked to be- and
when it come to compilations I've that wild
cherry bark tint here in ownyou know, the kind that
looks like it was burned in permanent,-and I'd Won
dered how you got it. | know Palm Beach
Nassau in winter, Pine Springs or Lakewood durin'
April May and June and either the White Mountains
believe me, it some high!
1t just the sort of thing Mr. Ellins needs too,
and of course there wa mt any question but what he
could afford it. At luncheon limited much, and the
hint struck a chord
"Yes, suppose so" says Old Hickory, sighn' deep
and starin absentminded into his soup. "And these
chaps will hang on most of the the seventies and
eighties Perhaps they satisfied with this sort of
existence too; but couldn't be. Golf may be all right
to fool away halliday with and then; but it isn't
a big enough game for to live for entirely. Look
these men here Has-beens! I've known most of 'em
in my time, and forgotten 'em. There's old Rutter
over there. Why we bought him out and closed up his
smeters back in '95! hen there's Parkoe in the
He quit somewhere in 1902 or 19O4,-heart
trouble, believe. His sons running the business
now Jeson, here just at the left pulled out about
the time. Couldn't stand the strain. Well, they're
still top of the sod. But what do they amount to-
Why, they can still play golf. Bah! Not for me- Son!
I'm built differently Just the same, I'd give thousand
dolars-yes, fve-if could stand up in front of that
bunch just once, and show 'em could hit the ball.
And you could have the solid set to that rugged
jaw of Old Hckorys you'd known just how hard he
meant it.
Say says gettn sudden wild thought Suppose
you could, just once?'
"Then I'd call it quits and take the consequences,
says he grim and determined.
WE'LL didn't spring my scheme then. In fact
want wise enough to the game to know whether could
pull it off not First had to have another talk with
Milton And Milton dug up ideas that helped.
Next had to the greens keeper, who deals in golf
clubs side line. At first he didn't think he could
doctor up club the way we'd sketched it out; but
when took chance of promsn him twenty from
Mr. Ellns he said maybe he might. Sure enough, he
did too We had the club by nine o'clock that night
and I'll bet that in the whole hstry of golf there never
was built like it before.
Havin started in, was bound to put the thing
SO by six A. NJ. next mornn had dug Mr.. Elins out
of the hay, and for hour and half him and me
and Milton rehearsed the act behind the hotel
where nobody could watch | was dom the heavy
coachin.
"Now remember Mr. Ellins, says l. you amt tryin'
to knock the cover off Just hit it clean. You got to
hit it. You too, if you just follow Aliton's direc
tions close. Now-weght your right foot draw back
slow. swing clear through; and, whatever else you for
get, keep on the ball! There You looked up
then. Say, this amt baseball, you know. Natty amt
there pitchn high twisters There's the ball on the
ground Now once more! Yes, and you let go of that
right knee then. If you dggn trench that would
be elegant form; but you amt buryn the ball, you
know. You're tryn' to swat it. Again! That's the