The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1915-01-22

cause of the Scarlet Death
The adjective had caught Hare-Lips
ear.
Hes always saying that" he said to
Edwin. What is scarlet?"
1.-The scarlet of the naples can
shake me like the cry of bugles going
by" the old man quoted.
ITS red" Edwin answered the
question. And you don't know it be-
cause you come from the Chauffeur
tribe. They never did know nothing,
none of them. Scarlet Is red-I know
| that"
Red is red, amt it," Hare-Lip
grumbled. Then what's the good Of
gettin cocky and calling it scarlet?"
Red is not the right word" was the
reply. "The plague was scarlet. The
whole face md body turned scarlet in
an hours time. Don't know? Didn't
l see enough of it? And | an telling
you it was scarlet because-well, be-
cause it was scarlet. There is no other
word for it.
Red is good enough for me-" Hare
Lip muttered obstinately. my dad
calls red re-, and he ought to know.
He says everybody died of the Red
! Death"
Your dad is a common fellow, de-
seconded from common fellow" Gran.
ser retorted heatedly. Don't | know
the beginnings of the Chauffeurs?
Your grandsire was a chauffeur,
servant, and without education. He
worked for other persons. But your
grandmother was of good stock, only
the children did not take after her.
Don't | remember when | first met
them, catching fish at Lake Temes.
CALI"
What is education?" Edwin. asked.
Calling red scarlet" Hare-Lip
sneered, then returned to the attack
on Granser MY dad told me, an
he got it from his dad afore he
croaked, that your wife was Santa
Rosan, an that she was sure no &C.
count. He said she was a hash-sling-
er before the Red Death, though
don't know what a hash-slinger is.
You can tell me. Edwin"
But Edwin shook his head in token
of ignorance.
1T is true, she was a waitress"
Granser acknowledged. But she was
good woman, and your mother was
her daughter. Women were very
scarce in the days after the Plague.
She was the only wife could find,
even If she was a hash-slinger, as
your father calls it. But it is not nice
to talk about our progenitors that
way"
dad says that the wife of the first
chauffeur was lady"
What's LADY," Hoo-Hoo de-
handed
"A lady's chauffeur squaw," was
the quick reply of Hare-Lip.
THE first chauffeur was Bill, a
common fellow, as l said before" the
old man expounded; but his wife
was lady, great lady. Before the
Scarlet Death she was the wife of
Van Warden. He was president of
the board of industrial magnates, and
was one Of the dozen men who ruled
America. He was worth one billion,
eight hundred millions of dollars
coins like you have there in your
pouch, Edwin. And then came the |
Scarlet Death, and his wife became |
the wife of Bill, the first chauffeur. |
He used to beat her, too. have seen
it myself"
Hoo-Hoo, lying on his stomach and |
idly digging his toes in the sand, cried
out and investigated, first, his toe
nail, and, next, the small hole he had |
dug. The other two boys Joined him,
excavating the sand rapidly with
their hands till there lay three skele-
tons exposed. Two were adults, the
third being that Of part-grown child.
The old man nudged along on the
ground and peered at the find.
Plague victims" he announced.
That's the way they died every
where in the last days. This must
have been family, running away
from the contagion and perishing
here on the Cliff house beach. They
what are you doing. Edwin"
This question was asked in sudden
dismay, as Edwin, using the back of
his hunting knife, began to knock out
the teeth from the jaws of tne OF the
skulls.
Going to string EN-" was the re-
sponse.
The three boys were nor hard at
it; and quite knocking and ham
mering arose. in which Granser bah
bled on unnoticed.
'You are true savages. Already
mas begun the custom of wearing hui
man teeth. In another generation
you will be perforating your noses
ind ears and wearing ornaments Of