Weekly Caledonian. (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1919-1920, 1919-04-09

to the Poor Purse Place and never
came back.
1t was the day when Herb Truman
showed up in the village.
For Herbert Truman did one
day turn up again in Paris. The
door opened one summers morning
and big-bodied, loose jointed rather
dilapidated individual Shuffled into
the office dressed in faded green
GETAWAY coat with two buttons rid
iculously high in the back, and Il pain
of gray trousers badly bagged at the
knees. He wore a derby hat, Il
bosom shirt without collar and big
shoes in which were Sits to ease
his cOrns. A weeks growth of very
white Stubble was on an over-pink
jowl and he was given to wheeling.
as Jack Purse in? does he
work here now" asked this seedy in
: dividual Of Myrtle Corey, our little
Marguerite Clark proofreadcr.
| M EIliC WoN puHHIcu.
Jack Purse! There's only one
, Purse around here and that's wo-
man, Aunt Mary Purse, who's leav-
ing us today. don't know whether
her husbands name was Jack or not. p"
81 been away for quite spell"
apologized the derelict. "But Mary
Purse was Jack Purses wife re-
member that, well enough. Is Jack
workin' Somewheres else?"
"Golly," exclaimed Myrtle, "-he's
dead. Been dead ever so many
years; long before my time"
wDead?" The man repeated it in
q cracked voice. 1t didn't appear
that he quite comprehended. There
was an awkward pause.
"Do you want me to call Aunt
Mary"
/ ayes, I'd like to see Mary,
again"
Myrtle went out into the back room
but came back in Il moment alone.
"The foreman says Aunt Mary
came to work this morning but was
MT feeling well and went hcmc,
about an hour ago"
event homc?"
"Out to the Poor Purse Place on
Cobb Hill"
"The poor Purse place? Did they
used to call it the Wheeler place."
81 believe So"
81 think | been there. Maybe Ill
go out. come back here to sec thc
Purses. used to know 'em years
ago." he said whimsically, somehow
child-like.
He was moving toward the door
when Sam Hold came in. He cast Il
curious glance at the visitor. Then
something stirred in Sans memory.
"Good morning." he declared. at
seems to me I remember your face
but can't recall your name"
"Truman'S my name, Herbert
Truman! my folks used to own
the Truman Carriage Works years
ago."
GOOD Lord" cried Sam as he in
ventoried again the poor derelict on
the sea of human life.
He visited with us the balance Of
the forenoon and we learned that he
had spent much of the intervening '
time in Missouri and Kansas. He
kept making constant references to
"my son,"-so we inferred that he
had been married. But what had be-
come of the wife or boy we couldn't
a very connected story.
quite make out. nor could he tell :
"Poor old Herb! declared Sam
passing me in the back room. "Life
has done for him. As the young
folks say nowadays, he's q little bit
Off his nut"
81 think" said Herb finally in his
childish voice, that I'll 60 out and
call on few folks" and he men
toned several names. But we had to
tell him that the people he had come
to see, with the exception of Mary +
Purse, were all moved away, scatter
ed, OF dead.
"There's been quite lot O.
changes" he said philosophically.
Mibb Henderson?-is she here?"
We looked at him and wondered
if he realized he had once been mar
ried to Mabel and what he had done
to her one night in the far western
city.
"No," we told him, "Halvey Hen
derson died, you remember, Mrs.
Henderson went off with her daugh-
ter and we never knew what became
of her."
"And you don't know where she
is now"
"No. Not the slightest idea" !
81 think" he said,-these items
making no impression upon him., t.!
I'll go out and visit Mary Purse. l
used to like Mary Purse. She'll be
glad to see me-" |
We brushed him off and knocked
the dents out of his derby hat and
Sam sent out and bought him col
lar and tie so he could look his best
to visit Mary. He submitted calmly
to the dolling up and claimed he was
grateful when Sam gave him two
dollars. Then he shuffled out of the
nAico