The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-09-06
One OF Them Rode n Sorrcl
Mule, hut Opinions Differed
as TO Which 1t Was.
BOGUS MONEY IN THE GAME
And Old Man Grccnlaw Turns
the Tables on Wintcrbottom
When He Learns II.


doorway Of his little saloon In Arkansas
CITY looking at man who was riding
along the lcyee aStrldc Of sorrcl mule.
Some gifts along an some don't. Some
gits habch'l, an some never gifts nothin'.
Some is prone to riches. like tho sparks
flies IN in tn air, like the Good Book
saws an others don't never pear 70 git
~ chanst o rish-' in tho world ''houtcr
the brler busts under en-, an then like
as not they don't never come down no
mo- ono minute they II he chockful
a. life an hope. an the ncXt they just
amt. or IL they c'nunuos to be it's
all the wuss 10 en-.
90 co'se they is some what's c'nsld'-
able alike. like them Entwistc twins I
vas telln' about t'other day, but they
is heap mo- what don't pear to have
no p'ints o r'semblants even when they
b'long 20 tho same family.
"There's Lem Waters. / mover sccn
nobody on earth s diffrcnt as he pears
TO he. He's Jim Watcrs's brother. but
they wouldn't nobody b'lievc Il II they
knowed Jim. inns a heap diff'rcnt I'm
Lem his own self. but he ant nowhere
niEh S din'rent I'm Lem as Lem Is I'm
Rim.
First OF Jim 'peared TO have got all
the luck they was in the Waters family
I'm the time he was first horned. Jim
had his triblatlons I'm time to time,
Ike everybody has, but 'pcarcd like he
prospered onto EN- like water often
ducks back. II any q the bows an
arrers o. outrageous fortune was fired
AZ him he'd alays manage some way TO
pluck honey outen 'em like the busy
bee q Scrpter.
-'Peared like It was nachl talent. one
time his house was sweep away into
food an him an his wife was lodged
I'D atop OF a big cottonwood 10y the
racin' waters an left there to perish
with hongcr beln s. they want nothin'
in the house to eat, like they hadn't
been 70 a week or mo- Jim bein' in hard
luck a; the time. Feared like the top
- that tree was the plumb bottom u
everything. : fur 5 Jim an Mis- Wa
ers was c'ncerned
Then they was a boat come along IN
a week or two an done took EN- III
jlst as they was gittin discouraged like,
an Jim got playin poker with the cap'n
OF her most proyidcntial. the cap'n hav-
in a interest into prosperous faro bank
in Little Rock an giyin' Jim a Job As
dealer soon : he found what Jim was
almighty slick about handin' guards
like he sho' was. An 'twa'n't no time
at all afp' Jim was rich an respectable
onCet mo-.
"That wouldn't "a been Lem. not ondrr
no circumstants. If he'd ever had a
house. what never hccrd how he ever
had one. an i'd been carried away into
a mood they wouldn't "a been no tree To-
EN- to git lodged into. An they'd "a
starved to death IN the top O It afo' the
boat come. An even alter that the
,apn wouldn't never "a gave Lem a job
with no sal'ry To it, bein's Lem hadn't
no nachl talent. Mo n likely he'd "A
used him 70 a roustahOut maxim him
pay his passage thataway, an Lem was
killed him afo they made landin' any
where's.
THAT was the way things alays was
with Lem He's ridln' a mule right
now. but I'll bet To- dollars he done Dor
ricd him I'm a cross eyed Niger,
'thoutcn he done stole II often somebody.
ic amt never had no prop'ty outsider
few dogs since ne growcd up.
"'Pcars like he's done been the spot
~ destiny I'm the cradle 10 the grave,
an they amt no health into him. If over
they was a pn' devil burrcted about 10y
the iron hand ~ impecunosty I'LL tho
Iron entered into his soul an the hand
nipped his aspirations into the bud with
the r'lentless fo'ce Of a wh!rlwnd, rip
pin him NJ the back like buzz saw
an freezin' his young Blood with dosp'ra-
ton an dismay, us him.
"They has been times when I've done
felt mo- r less ,orry To- him, an if they'd
a. been any use into il Ia "a gave :
much as TO bits TO To- give him fresh
start in tn, world. but ! kuowed
'twouldn't do no good. He wouldn't "a
knowed what to do with a. not never
havin' had no money to speak Of an
not ben' uothn' but uncarncd mere
ment nohow An h'sidcs that, it's lg'ia
my principles 10 to 'ncourago shit less
mes"
"How come thov WAS SIGH n dlffrcnco
atwcrn him an linn" asked Jake WIN
tcrbottom, who had seen the man "r
muleback and who had listened to tho
old mans story with much interest.
"Ain't no tcll'u," said the old mar
promptly "Tnov Was al'nv. thatnwtY
old Ephram Waters, what was pa 10