The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-05-13
TEE EVENING STORY
Weary Willie Did 1t.
(By June Gahan.)


country home to the city Miss Laura
Bell left behind her protegee. 1t was
| old Granny White, whom she had lit
orally taken charge of four years Le-
| fore.
Granny was old, but she was not
helpless. She lived alone, but she
preferred to. She had small income
and she puttered about with a garden
and gathered herbs and berries to sell,
| and in one way and another she got
| along fairly well.
| At her almost daily visits, Miss
| Laura was provided with a pie, a GUS
charity, but good will. When a wo-
man gets old and is left alone she
would rather have the company OF a
| girl than woman of her own age.
| With a girl there is a breeze of OPIUM
| ism. There is a pleasant past and a
| hopeful future to talk about. Her
| face reminds the old of happy days,
| and her laugh is a tonic to old blood.
The young girl and old granny
grew to be great chums, and the part
| ing was fairly saturated with tears and
punctuated with sobs. They found a
| few rays of hope, however. The city
was only 20 miles away, and Miss
Laura could come out and spend the
| day. Meanwhile the old woman was
to be very careful and not get her
feet wet nor to forget to lock the
doors, and in eating fish to look out
| for the bones. If she did get bone in
| her throat she must run down to the
gate at once and borrow a pair oe
pincers of the first person that passed.
On the other hand, Miss Laura
| would think of her the first thing in
| the morning and the last thing at
night and she would bring lace caps
and a kimono for her when she came
down. She gave her solemn promise
not to engage herself to any X2ung
| man until she had brought him down
| and submitted him for inspection. The
| list of questions that old granny was
| to ask was made out and carefully laid
on the clock shelf with a potato as
paper weight. When the crucial mo-
| ment arrived that list would be taken
! down, and with it in her hand, and
her steel-bowed spectacles on her nose,
| old granny would begin:
Now, young man, do you really
| love Laura ?''
'Have you ever loved any one
| else?'
Have any of your relatives ever
| been in PRISON."
DO you believe every single word
of the Bible?''
IF you marry Laura are you going
to run out nights?'
Are you going to jaw around be-
cause dinner don't happen to be ready
on timer"
If the lover answered all these
questions satisfactorily he was to be
chalk-marked 80. K.' on the back.
Three months had passed before
Miss Laura took the train one day to
run down to see her protesee. No low
er to answer the questions on that list
was with her. When she got off at
the station she found some changes.
The old station agent had been re-
placed by new man. The boy that
used to drive passengers to their des-
tina ton in the country had sought an
other job. She also became aware
that very nice young man had trav-
eled down from the city by the same
train, and was evidently bound for
the same farmhouse. When she in
quired of the agent as to the convey
ance she was told that new boy was
on the job.
When the young man inquired he
was told the same thing.
The agent was a conservative, mid
d1e-aged man, who had no fund of
humor in his makeup.
The fifteen-year- boy who drove
the old span of has-beens before a
two-seated what-not, had no serious
ness about him. He talked too much.
He whistled too much. He boosted
too much. He felt that he knew it
all. Hence, the agent was down on
him. Hence, the agent was looking to
humiliate him in the dust. When the
boy came dashing up with his old rat
tle-trap of rig the agent handed him
two quarters and said:
1.-The girl is to stop at Old Granny
and the young man is going on to Jim
Fox's. Both are deaf and dumb, and
there'n be no chance for you to show
off your smartneSS.
deaf and dumb-whew!" replied
the boy.
That's what I said
I'm sorry for them. They can't
hear me whistle that new opera I
picked up the other day"
There was no need for Miss Laura
Bell to say anything as she climbed
into the back seat of the trap. There
was no need for Brice Ashton to say
anything as he climbed upon the
front seat with the boy. The two pas
sengers were quietly wondering about
each other, as was natural Mr.. Ash
ton wondered if it would be his luck
to be introduced to such a girl, and
Miss Laura wondered (perhaps) how
many questions on that list the young
man could answer satisfactorily.
There was silence for half a mile,
and then the fresh young boy could
stand it no longer.
Say" he said to the nigh-horse,
"ain't this a situation?''
And to the off-horse he said:
1.-TWO dummies at one trip. Gal can't
talk or hear-young Teller in the same
fix She's going to old granny's, but
how is she going to make the old wom-
an understand? He's going to Jim
Fox's, but hows he going to make
Jim understand?
Miss Laura caught on, and Mr.. Ash
ton caught on but what were they to
do but maintain silence and let the boy
go on with.
5''Girl is a mighty good locker, and
there are no flies on the young Teller.
Both from the city. 1t would be
mighty funny if they fell in love with
each other"
Mr. Ashton raised his hand to give
the boy a box on the ear, and he
opened his mouth to tell him to shut
up but still, small voice babe him |
not to interfere OF course, no still, |
nf a
but he desisted.
The agent said they couldn't hear.