Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1916-02-08

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K$J<S W. dkc q Ladu VI
A VV many adven.
R~H lures and va
AV ried enter.
DA'~ prises," l said
Nd S to Captain Pa.
tricio Malone
ii "Do you be.
~ neve that the
possible ele-
ment Of good luck or bad luck-h there
Is such a thing as luck-has Influenced
your career or persisted for or against
you to such an extent that you were
forced to attribute results to the op-
Grafton of the aforesaid good luck OF
bad luck?"
This question (of almost the dull In
science Of legal phraseology) was put
while we sat In Rousselin's little red
tiled cafe near Congo square, in New
Orleans.
Brown faced, white hated, finger
ringed captains Of adventure came Of.
ten to Rousselin's for the cognac.
They came from sea and land and
were chary of relating the things they
had seen-not because they were more
wonderful than the fantasies Of the
Ananiases Of print, but because they
were 30 different. And ! was a per-
petual wedding guest, always striving
to cast my buttonhole over the finger
Of one Of these mariners Of fortune.
This Captain Malone was Hiberno-
Iberian creole who had gone to and
fro In the earth and walked up and
down in it. He looked like any other
well dressed man Of thirty-f1ve whom
you might meet except that he was
hopelessly weather tanned and wore
on his chain an ancient ivory and gold
Peruvian charm against evil, which
has nothing at all to do with his
story.
my answer to your question" said
the captain. smiling, will be to tell
you the story Of Bad Luck Kearny.
That Is, If you don't mind hearing It"
My reply was to pound on the table
for Rousselin.
"Strolling along Tchoupttoulas street
one night" began Captain Malone. II
noticed, without especially taxing my
interest, a small man walking rapidly
toward me. BE stepped upon wood
en- cellar door, crashed through it and
disappeared. I rescued him from a
heap of soft coal below. He busted
himself briskly, swearing fuently In a
mechanical tone, as an underpaid &C.
tor recites the gypsy's curse. Graft
tude and the dust In his throat seem
ed to call for fluids to clear them away.
His desire for liquidation was ex-
pressed 80 heartily that went with
him to q cafe down the street, where
we had some vile vermouth and bit
ters.
Looking across that little table ]
had my first clear sight Of Francis
Kearny. He was about f1ve feet sew
en-, but as tough as cypress knee.
His hair was darkest red, his mouth
such a mere slit that you wondered
how the food Of his words came rush.
ing from 1t. His eyes were the bright
est and lightest blue and the hopeful.
est that I ever saw. He gave the dou'
BILE impression that he was at bay and
that you had better not crowd him fur
ther.
"tJust In from a gold hunting e1pe-
dition on the coast Of Costa Rica,' he
explained. Second mate Of banana
steamer told me the natives were pan.
ming out enough from the beach sands
to buy all the rum, red calico and par
lor melodeons in the world. The day
I got there a syndicate named Incor.
porated Jones gets government con
cession to all minerals from a given
point. For a next choice take coast
fever and count green and blue lizards
for six weeks In a grass hut. / had
to be notified when. was well, for the
reptiles were actually there.
"Then I shipped back as third cook
on a Norwegian tramp that blew up
her boiler tive miles below quarantine
I was due to bust through that cellar
door here tonight, so I hurried the rest
Of the way up the river, roustaboutine
on q lower coast packet that made q
landing for every fisherman that want.
ed 9. plug Of tobacco. And now I'm
here for what comes next And it'll
be along, it'll be along said this queer
Mr.. Kearny; itn be along on the
beams Of my bright but not very par
ticular STAR
"From the first the personality Of
Kearny charmed me. / saw In him
the bold heart, the restless nature and
the valiant front against the buffets
Of fate that make his countrymen such
valuable comrades In risk and adven-
ture. And just then I was wanting
such men. Moored at a fruit compa-
ny's pier I had 500 ton steamer
ready to sail the next day with cargo
Of sugar, lumber and corrugated iron
for port in-well, let us call the coun-
try Esperando-it has not been long
ago, and the name Of Patricio Malone
k still spoken there when its unset.
tied politics are discussed. Beneath
the sugar and IRON were packed q
thousand repeating rifles. In Aguaa
Friaa, the capital, Don Rafael valde.
via, minister Of war, Esperando's
greatest hearted and most able pa
triot, awaited my coming. No doubt
you have heard, with q smile, Of TIE
indgnincant wars and uprisinss n
those little tropic republics. They
Aake but faint clamor against the
lin Of great nations battles. But
down there under all the ridiculous
uniforms and petty diplomacy ana
Denseless countermarching and In
trigue, are to be found statesmen and
patriots. Don Rafael valdsvia was
one. His great ambition was to raise
nsperando into peace and honest pros
parity and the respect Of The serious
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