Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-06-23
THE ADVENTURES OF JABEZ BUNKER yB By ELLIS BARKER BuTHER

was a badly frightened man. Mr..
Trebbs gave Mr.. Bunker description
of an ice-mine from Mr.. Stockton's
story. He was ready, at the least sign
of soothing, to make a joke OF the
whole thing, but Mr.. Bunker did not
scott. He listened intently until MIR.
Trebbs finished.
II vum! he exclaimed. II shouldn't
wonder IL there was a lot of them ice
mines. IL a Teller only knew where 10
look for them. Now, you take out
there in Iowa near Oroduna. There's
a strip of coral out there runs across
the Mississippi river and back
through the country and across the
Iowa river, and all that was the bottom
of the ocean once, or there Wouidn
be any coral there, would there! ANA
suppose an iceberg was hoatin on
that ocean just when the land begun
to rise. And suppose the iceberg set
tied into the soft ocean mud ana
STAYED there. There'd be another ice
mine right there. If l owned ina.
farm of mine / swan to goodness q
test it to see If there was an ice,mine
under it. But / don't own it. ! sold II.
TOO badw said Mr.. Tebbs. huskiiy.
"Ain't it?" agreed Mr.. Bunker. HOW
much capital do you need!
Mr.. Trebbs drew a deep breath.
IF had couple Of hundred dollars
spare cash." he said h nSI sho,
folks what the mine is. I'd get capi'ai
easy enough then"
"Ain't you even got two hundred
dollars?" asked Mr.. Bunker with sur
prise. Mr.. Trebbs dressed like man
who had more than two hundred dol
lars.
well, you see," said Mr.. Trebbs
hesitatingly, with his eyes on Mr.
Buker's face, my wife only gives me
a little-only twenty dollars week
because we parted when went to the
Fiji Islands, and I've been saving up
to buy the lot
what LOTT" asked Mr. Bunker.
'aThe lot over in Jersey" said Mr..
Trehbs, the lot the ice-mine Is on.
And to build the house"
What house?" Mr.. Bunker asked.
going to build" explained Mr.. Trebbs.
aThe house the men were digging the
foundation-tren for when they
ran into the ice. They were digging
down and they struck ice.
You look sick" said MT; BUNKER
suddenly, for Mr.. Trebbs did look sick.
you'd better go upstairs and lay
down awhile, and maybe you can tell
me all about 1t some other time.
Mr.. Trebbs was vastly relieved when
Mr.. Bunker said this and went away.
He had been in panic every moment
and regretted that he had even thought
of working a confidence game He re-
solved to have nothing more to do
with it.
Mr. Bunker, climbing the stairs.
HES got big thing and he knows
he has, and he is scared to death for
fear somebody will get it away from
him. And reckon I will"
While Mr.. Bunker sat in his rock
ing chair in his room, gently swing
ing to and fro and planning some
means by which he could bunco Mr..
Trebbs out of his ice-mine, Mrs.
Bunker sat near him in her own rock
ing chair, knitting steadily and now
Mr.. Bunker. She was wondering
whether she had courage to ask the
dear old soul to spend more money
for charity than she had ever asked
him to spend for anything. In his
hall bedroom Mr.. Trebbs was sitting
on the edge of his unfolded folding
bed with his head in his hands try
ing to avoid temptation-not because
he wished to be guiltless, but be-
cause he was afraid he would make
an awful botch of temptations result
If he tried his hand at it.
mo! / can't do it!' he moaned at
last. Il don't dare!
Just about then Mrs. Bunker tap
ped on Mr.. Trebb's door.
who is there?" asked Mr.. Trebbs.
ute?
Mr.. Trebbs opened the door. With
out ceremony Mrs. Bunker entered
the room and closed the door behind
her.
'I don't know whether you've been
thinking over what I said or not"
said Mrs. Bunker. but I've been. I've
been settip' upstairs alongside Of ia
bez and tryin' to get up spunk enough
to ask him to buy your ice-mine and
give it to me to give to them poor
folks in the tenements, but every
time / thought l had my spunk up 1
sort of got scared of asking him, be-
cause I amt no hand at tellin' about
things l amt seen. If I want Jabez
to buy me a dress it amt no use for
me to try and tell him what it is like;
/ got to take him to see it. And good
ness knows I'm a lot better hand at
describing a dress than 1 am at de-
scribing an ice-mine, when l amt
hardly got a notion what an ice-mine
is. Have you thought how much you
on account of Jabez buyin' it for char.
ity?"
'.N-no," faltered Mr. Trebbs
well, would 1t be a thousand dol
lars you'd throw off, or five thousand
or ten thousand?" insisted Mrs
Bunker Would you throw off five
thousand dollars@'
The perspiration stood out on Mr..
Trebbs' forehead.
"Yes-yesm," he stammered.
well I do call that real nice and
generous of you" said Mrs. Bunker
heartily. "Tt amt every man would
do as much for the poor tenement
folks. I'll tell Jabez-"
She was going, but at the door she