The herald. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1905-1953, 1912-08-15
Blasted
Ambition

head of barrel and his head nodding
with drowslness. Colonel Harper, who
had come into town and left his mule
hitched in front Of the postofflce, came
along on his way to the drug store
and halted to say:
That yo', Abe? I declar' TO good
ness but l didn't know yo' at first
sight. Powerful hot day in town"
"Bless me. kurnel, bless mel" ex-
| claimed Abe in reply, as he slowly
| lowered his legs TO give the colonel
the benefit Of the barrel. 81 was jest
a-thinkin about yo'. kurnel-jest a.
thinkin' and a-pondering. How's con
| a-gettng on this weather."
Ought to he a little mo- rain, meb-
be. but con isn't looking tall bad"
"And nevis hold their own, i reok-
on to consider"
"Jest about hold their own, Abe;
| Jest about"
That's good, kurnel. II can't hold
my own I'm still glad TO see other
/ folks do It,. Things are looking up a
! bit for me, however. These yere
! Pike county scandaliZers seem to have
got tired of throwing me down and
jumping on my head and mebbe III
get q chance to draw a long breath.
Dawg gone folks who amt willing for
other folks to get along!"
"Scandalize amt right" said the
colonel as he moved his hat to mop
his forehead
"Of co'se II amt; OF co'se not. Can't
make a man better by scandalizins
him-can't possibly do II. Can't put
ambition into a mans soul by throw
ing him down every week or two. He's
got to be encouraged II yo' want him
to do his best. Have I been encour.
aged in this town, kurnel? Has Pike
county ever extended her hand to helJ
me climb up?"
Reckon not, Abe"
mo, sub; no, sub, 'cept by one soil.
tary human being, whose name is Kur.
mel Harper. You run to con and
nevis. and yo' work % men on yo'r
plantation the year round. but that
don't prevent you from seeing and
realizing all sorts of situations. First
| ly, L Went luc idNc wan do q pa
vate soldier. I came out the same
thing. Drat their pesky hides. but
they were making captains and ma
jahs and kurnels, while l was pouring
out my blood for love Of country-that
is, I was willing to pour, which ID
the same thing, take It."
"'Bout the same. Abe" paternally
replied the colonel, except that the
bullets don't hit yo."
"When the wah ended I run for Of
fee same as all the rest. They owed
me an office for having laid down my
life for my country. but what was my
reward? Kurnel Harper. reckon yo
can remember that I was knocked out
-h'isted 20 feet high-snowed under
till yo' couldn't see the top Of my hat,
That's the way Pike county encour
aged me to grab hold with both hands
and climb to the top!"
Eyes, 1 remember about that
unused the colonel, as he watched a
dog rolling over and over in the dusty
street.
"Then I turned to law" continued
Abe as he hitched the chair over ia
get brace for his feet on a post oil
the veranda. 'Kurnel Harper, nobody
on the face Of this big earth will ever
know how I pinched and saved and
starved and worked to get that Law
business down to a fine point. Did
anybody encourage met Not a critter
Not a pesky varmint had kind word
for me. II I'd known yo' during them
struggling times yo'd have been the
man to open yo'r wallet and hand me
out $50 or so, and tell me to pay II
back in my own good time. Yes, thai
would have been 20, kurnel."
Eyes, mebbe," doubtfully replied the
colonel.
"Wall, got to be lawyer. Their
what? I wanted practice. I finally
got a case and went into court with
It, but the pesky Jury was lying in am
bush to throw me down. Yes, sub
had the purtiest, incest, cleanest case
20 ever heard tell of, and that jury
was bound by law and evidence ia
bring in a verdict for me, but got the
cold flop instead. They brought my
client in guilty Of stealing a hawa
when he was 30 miles away at the
time, at the bedside Of his dyina
mother. Do yo' call that encouraging
young man, kurnel7 Was that Civ
ing me a show to climb up?
Cant skassly call It that, Abe, but
II remember right, they found fresh
pork in yo'r clients house."
"They found meat there, OF co'se
but was It the meat Of that yere hawa
or some other? They never stopped
to consider, kurnel-jest throwed the
verdict agin me in order to crush me
out. Same way in the second case
and the third and 10th. No mattel
how many witnesses I had or how
plain made my case, no Pike county
Jury would find for me. How many
times have yo' to flop young man
Kurnel Harper, to kill of his ambi
ton and take the fight out Of him%
"'Bout TO- times. reckon"
"Jest about TO- times, kurnel. Aftei
that 10th flop I realized that Pike
county was agin me as lawyer, and
I went into politics. There wal
Hoped agin."
| apr+ ~, ,von,t bava 20 oo 20 xuork