The Devils Lake world and inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1915-1920, 1915-04-01
There WIN be some smoke, but that

There WIN be some smoke, but that
can go out of the windows"
Mrs. Bowser felt certain that some
disaster would happen If anything Of
the sort was attempted, but it was Ell
ther give in or have Il row, and she
gave in. The cook felt the same way,
but she wanted to keep her place for
the winter. Before going down cellar
Mr.. Bowser unwrapped the eXtinguish-
err and explained what it was charged
with and how it worked. lie also gave
a brief history Of the great Chicago
fire, which might have been prevented
by a cool man and an extinguisher.
Then the trio proceeded down cellar,
and he heaped up a lot of old newspa-
pers and gave a history of the Bos-
ton confagration, which could also
have been checked in Its infancy by
one squirt from a squirter.
Now, then" he continued as he
opened the cellar windows and got
ready to strike q match, 1--WE will make
this scene as realistic as possible. It
is midnight. 1 awake to smell smoke
and hear the faint cracking of the de-
structive flames. l bound out Of bed
without saying anything to anybody,
and as I come downstairs 1 find the
cellar ablaze. 1t is from the cooks
carelessness as she brought up coal for
morning. I seize the extinguisher
and come dashing down, and, though
it appears as if no human power could
Sfor tho oonA AZ r,,Otio~ tool-1o t. o~1
have it out In twenty seconds. I will
now light the papers and show you
how the thing works."
AS the papers were alight he rushed
upstairs after the extinguisher. A min
ute later he appeared with it strapped
to his back and the nozzle in his hand.
He had meant to keep very cool and
do the thing up beautifully. but he
grew excited over it, and as he was
met by a volume of smoke he lost his
head and his footing at the same time.
With a whoop and a yell he fell for
ward downstairs and rolled owe and
over to the cellar bottom. AS he rolled
the extingnisher tried to eXtinguish.
but instead Of the stream striking the
flames it played on Mr.. Bowser's head
and feet and body, on the ceiling above
and the walls around, on the women
who tried to rush forward and help
him up. The pile Of papers blazed, and
the smoke poured out of the windows,
and it wasn't thirty seconds before
some n was pounding at the front
door and yelling "Fire!" Mrs. Bowser
and the cook lodged the fire and the
extinguisher and fled upstairs, but it
was too late. A score of people crowd
ed in as soon as the door was opened,
and, without asking questions, they
dived down into the kitchen and
snatched up anything that could hold
water.
Mr.. Bowser had got up by this time
and had got control of the squirter,
but he couldn't get upstairs for the
people who were throwing down wa
ter. AS he yelled and shouted and
swore an engine came rafting up, a
hose nozzle was thrust into the open
window, and during the next five min
utes 300 barrels of the cold water gush-
ed into the cellar. Everything, includ-
ing Mr.. Bowser, was afoat and soaked
and chilled to the marrow when Mrs.
Bowser finally made the overzealous
populace understand the situation.
Then Mr.. Bowser was hauled out of
the window by a fireman, and while
Mrs. Bowser and the cat stood on the
steps above and the populace crowded
around the fireman held the fire Stats
tician up against the wall and called
him seventeen kinds Of a Buncomb
county fool and added that he ought
to be drowned like a rat in a tub.
Five minutes later Mr.. Bowser stood
in his WI front hall with the door
shut after him and the crowd dis.
persed. He was soaked and limpy and
smoke begrimed and half scared to
death, but he remembered his dignity.
well, the incipient conf1agration has
been ex%tinguished," observed Mrs. Bow.
ser as she looked him over.
1T is extinguished" he hoarsely re.
piled. Eyes, woman, the incipient con.
fagration has not only been extin.
guished, but you have been extinguish.
ed with it!'
"Then 1t was all my fault, was iii"
"A putup job on me from the start
to finish! Woman, I go upstairs to
change my clothes. Do not follow me
to offer explanations or assistance OF
to finish your work Of stabbing me in
the back. I know you at last-at last
~-and-and''-
And he pulled himself up step by
step, and he halted at every step to
point his fingers at her and nod his
head. He meant by that the most dire
revenge a human being can conjure
up, but she only sighed and wiped up
the puddles Of water left behind him.
E%phefneral.
Sister Sue-Has Tom Sumboy a bank
account. do, Won know? .,r n,