The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-08-17

that he thought perhaps the key
member. could accommodate HIM.
Well. I can't" said the key
ne :1;aS .. I'm locksT 1n ! am, "a sna
skeleton key. any time, or duplicate
key for crooked use, I'll be ready and
glad to help you out. But there's
nothing doing when it comes to gold
bricks. Not in this shopp
A small basement machine-shop
next attracted Jabez' attention, and
as it was on the opposite side of the
street, he crossed over and was
about to descend the steps when his
attention was. attracted by, display
IN a large window Immediately. be-
fore him. He was not attracted by
the material of the goods displayed,
was maple sugar. Behind the. plate
glass of the window, and piled in
giant pyramid, were hundreds of
bricks of maple sugar, each resem-
bling in shape a gold brick such as
Mr.. Bunker had twice had the pleas
a hs 81 Sign RuPPgG R Rn v Fl R51d M xas
PIE SUGAR. GUARANTEED
PURE" Mr.. Bunker let his glance
rest on the pile of sugar bricks
moment; then he went down the
stairs into the little machine-shop.
Two hours later-which is to say
q few minutes before the time for
dinner at the WINNER boarding
house-Mr. Bunker, weary and warm
| Gor it was one of the delicious Oc-
tober days), returned up the street
He had tried in vain to find a gold
brick, and he was greatly discour-
aged He stopped short before the
window with its pile of maple-sugar
"Ding me if I don'ti" he exclaimed,
and he walked into the store and
stood before the counter In the at
titude of possible customer.
The store, which was devoted to
general stock of groceries, was an
! exceedingly handsome place and far
| from being the unkempt, Uttered in
terror of such grocery as that run
/ by Hank Stebbins lat Oroduna, Iowa.
The clerks, of whom there seemed
q! to be six or seven, wore large white
aprons and weee seemly young men,
clean and bright. The furniture and
| fixtures glittered with varnish and
! nickel plate or shone in glow OF
highly polished brass. The room
was a double one with row of iron
pillars down the middle. and around
the pillars were stacked pyramids of
canned goods most tastefully ar
ranged. The great ieebox was OF
white enamel, and behind its beveled
| glass stood tub after tub of golden
| butter. The cashier in her little cage
was an attractive young woman. The
entire place was clean and sweet and
prosperous. as ~
Behind the counter at which Mr..
Bunker had ranged himself a man OF
some fifty years was standing. Like
the young clerks, this man wore
white apron and had pencil behind
his ear, but his air of authority sug-
gested that he was either the pro-
| prietor or the manager. He was
| slightly bald toward the crown of
his head, and his blond hair was cut
| quite short and brushed in two wings
in front. His forehead was neither
broad nor wide, which is saying 1t
was low and narrow, but his face,
which was reddish in hue-indicated
that he was honest and hot tempered.
4 AS matter of fact, Mr.. Hilk-for
| that was his name-had succeeded in
the grocery business through no
weight of brain but by clinging to
three little notices he had chosen
when his shoog was small aad min TRim.
things Clean" and Good goodsl"
stupid Brightness, Mr.. Hilk had built
up a grocery business that was the
most prosperous in his part of city,
and through his prosperity, he had
become an important man in the
| neighborhood -. Before Mr.. Hilk
and alongside Mr.. Bunker stood two
1 men.
: "The twenty-ffth of October, then
Hi1k," said one of the men
nAh,. Lhate to do i'll" said Mr.. Hilk.
"pd give a thousand dollars not to
| - n II I made snRRch
in my life, Mr.. Conner"
Now, don't get to feeling that way
about 1t, Hills," said the man. ad-
dressed as Conner. "You don't have
to say fifty words. = You know how
It Is. Just few words"
sand the worse you say them and
the foolisher they sound to you, the
bigger hit they're liable to make. +"
said the third man.
"He's right about that, Hilk. You
know-the honest, bashful grocerl
Well, that's what they'll say when
they see you turn red and starnmer,
and that's what we want them to
think. That's where we'll win"
Hes dead right, Hilk," said Mr..
Brent. "You don't need to worry a
bit about Coggerty being smooth
ta1ker. He is smooth talker, and
folks in this ward are getting TO
think he's just little bit too smooth.
They all know he's a crook. That's
where you'll win; you're the. honest
, is to get up and stammer and turn
red. Just show yourself and pre-
. tend to make speech. Well have
: plenty of fluent speakers at the
, meeting, but a candidate just must
show himself once in a while Voters
. like to see their candidates; they
like to know what they look like.
/ $50 you'll be on hand. Haney's
: Hall, about eight o'clock. October
, twenty-ffth. Go right up On the
t stage and take seat in the front
: row-see?"
He shook hands with Mr.. Hilk
"a, h. ae.r1