The Washington herald., 1915-11-21

like the aperture under drop-letters-here sign
He knew every city from Bangor to Sal
Francisco. thence north to Portland. theme,
S. 45-E. to given point in Florida. He hat
mastered every art. trade. game. business, pro
fessio6. and sport in the world. had been pres
emit at. or hurrying on his way to. every head-in,
event that had ever occurred between oceans
since he was five years Old You might oper
the atlas. place your finger at random upon tn,
name of town. and Jacks would tell you ths
front names of three prominent citizens before
you could close it again. He spoke patroniz
ingly and even disrespectfully of Broadway
Beacon Hill, Michigan. Euclid, and Fifth ave
nues, and the St. Louis. Four Courts Compared
with him as cosmopolite. the Wandering Jew
would have seemed mere hermit. He hac
learned everything the world could teach him
and he would tell you about it.
= hate to be reminded of Pollock's Course Of
Time. and so do you; but every time saw
Jacks | would think of the poets description
of another poet by the name of G. G. Byron
who Drank early; deeply drank-drank
draughts that common millions might have
quenched; then died of thirst because there
was no more to drink"
That fitted Jacks. except that. instead of
dying, he came to Paloma. which was about
the same thing. He was a telegrapher and
station and express-agent at seventy-6ve dol
lars month. Why young man who knew
everything and could do everything was con-
tent to serve in such an obscure capacity |
never could understand. although he let out
hint once. that it was as "a personal favor to
the president and stockholders of the S. P.
Ry. Co.
One more line of description, and | turn
JackSover to you. He wore bright blue clothes,
yellow shoes. and bow tie made of the same
cloth as bis shirt.
My rival No. was Bud Cunningham, whose
services had been engaged by a ranch near
Paloma to assist in compelling refractory cattle
to keep within the bounds of decorum and or
der. Bud was the only cowboy off the stage
that ever saw who looked like one on it. He
wore the sombrero. the chaps. and the hand
kerchief tied at the back Of his neck
Twice a week Bud rode in from the Val
Verde Ranch to sup at the Partisan Restaurant
He rode a many-high-handed Kentucky horse
at a tremendously fast lope. which animal he
would rein up so suddenly under the big mes
quite at the corner of the brush shelter that
his hoofs would plough canals yards long in
the loan. Jacks and were regular boarders of
the restaurant. Of course.
The front room of the Hinkle House was as
neat little parlor as there was in the black
waxy country. 1t was all willow rocking
chairs, and home-knit tides, and albums. and
conch shells in row. And little upright
piano in one corner.
Here Jacks and Bud and I-or sometimes
one or two of us. according to our sood-luck-
used to sit of evenings when the tide of trade
was over. and visit" Miss ,Hinkle.
Ileen was girl of ideas She was destined
for higher things (if there can be anything
higher) than taking in dollars all day through
a barbed-wire wicket. She had read and
listened and thought. Her looks would have
formed a career for a less ambitious girl; but.
rising superior to mere beauty. she must estab-
ish something in the nature of a salon-the
only one in Paloma.
LOh yOu uiuih uldl OlldAcSpcdIc was d
great writer2" she would ask, with such a
pretty little knit of her arched brows that the
late lgnatus Donnelly, himself. had he seen it,
could scarcely have saved his Bacon.
lleen was of the opinion, also, that Boston
IS more cultured than Chicago; that Rosa Bon
neur was one of the greatest of women painters:
hat Westerners are more spontaneous and
open-hearted than Fasteners; that London
must be very foggy city. and that California
must be quite lovely in the springtime. And
If many other opinions indicating keeping up
With the worlds best thought.
These, however. were but cleaned from
learsay and evidence: Ileen had theories of her
,wn. One, in particular. she disseminated to
Is untiringly. Flattery she detested. Frank
less and honesty of speech and action, she
declared, were the chief mental ornaments of
nan and woman. IF ever she could like any
me. it would be for those qualities.
I'm awfully weary" she said, one evening,