Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1917-03-16

habit called upon his daughter for
verificatiOn. ''Didn't /, Palomag
Miss Paloma's answer was unexpect-
ed, and came with equal emphasis:
mo, you didn't, father. The miserable
thing lost money
Blaze was only momentarily dis
mayed Then he joined his visitors
laughter. ''How can man get along
without the cooperation of his own
household" he inquired naively. MAY
be ii was next year I was thinking
about" Thereafter he confined him
self TO statements which required no
confederation.
Dave had long since learned that to
hold Blaze Jones TO strict account
ability with fact was to rob his So
ciety of its greatest charm. A slavish
accuracy in figures, an arid lack of
imagination. reduces conversation TO
the insipidness of fiat wine, and
Blaze's talk was never dull. He was q
keen. shrewd, practical man, but some
where in his being there was con-
cealed tremendous, lopsided sense
of humor which took the form of a
bewildering imagery. An attentive au
dience was enough for him, and, once
his fancy was in full swing, there was
no limit to his outrageous exaggera-
tons. A light of credulity in hear
er's eye filed him with prodigious
mirth, and it is doubtful if his listen
ers ever derived fraction of the
amusement from his fabrications that
he himself enjoyed. PalOma's spirit
of contradiction was the only fly in
his ointment; now that his daughter
vas old enough to keep books on
him, much of the story-teller's JOY was
denied him.
OF course his prOclivities occasion
ally led to misapprehensions chance
acquaintance who recognized him as
an artful romancer were liable TO con
slider him generally untruthful But
even in this misconceptiOn Blaze took
/ a quiet delight, secure i'll the knOwl.
edge that all who knew him we'll re-
garded him as rock of integrity. AS
were quite as sensational as those of
his manufacture.
When. after supper, Blaze had
hitched pair of driving mules to his
blackboard, preparatory to showing his
guest the glories of Jonesville, Dave
said:
'PalOma's getting mighty pretty"
shes as pretty as a blue-bonnet
flower" he father agreed. And she
runs me around something scandalOus
| amt got the freedom of peon.'
Blaze sighed and shook his shaggy
head. you know me, Dave I never
used to be scared of nobody. Well, it's
different now. She rides me with a
Spanish bit, and my soul amt my
own" With sudden tightening of his
gloom, he added: "Say, you're going tC
stay right here with US as long as
you're in town; / want you to see how
l cringe."
In spite of Blaze's plaintive tone II
proud of Paloma and well content with
/ his serfdom.
Jonesville proved to be a typical
| Texas town of the modern variety, and
altogether. different to the pictured
frontier village. All in all. the effect
was much like that of a prosperous
orderly northern farming town To its
happy founder it seemed well-nigh per.
feet, and its destiny reused his mad.
dest enthusiasm. He pointed out the
theater, with is glaring orange lights
and discordant electric piano; he con.
Quoted Law to the First National
bank, of which Blaze was a proud but
somewhat ornamental director; then
to the sugar mill, the Ice plant and
other points of equally novel interest
Everywhere he went Jones was
hailed by friends, for everybody
seemed to know him and to want to
shake his hand.
"Some town and some body of men
eh?" he inquired, finally, and Dave
agreed:
yes. She's got grand framework
Blaze She'll be most as hi as Fort
Worth when you fatten her up"
Jones waved his buggy whip in a
wide circle that took in the miles OF
level prairie on all sides We've got
the whole blamed state to, grow in.
And, Dave, haven't got an enemy in
the place! 1t wasn't many years ago
that certain people allowed I'd never
TO be that nobody dared ride with
me-except Paloma, and she used 10
Sleep with shotgun at her bedside"
You sure have been a responsible
ity to her."
"But I'm as safe now as if / was in