Gilpin observer., 1920-12-02
Olga's Bootlegger
BY WILL T. AMEs

years the Old Man had run what he
called blue ribbon shows. Drinking
on the road he could not abide and
would not tolerate.
mo man stays with this outfit" he
was prone to say, 'who can't do all
his getting drunk in his own town and
in five months of the year."
He was red-headed Old Man, and
hot and quick and drastic where
liquor was concerned. He would set
| star performer or cage sweeper adrift
1000 miles from home with equal
promptness on the first noticeable sign
Of drink.
Naturally, the All-America had
reputation in the circus world and
| for years 1t had carried scarcely more
booze fighters than preachers on its
| journeyings. But now of all times,
with the eighteenth amendment in
force and liquor when Obtainable at
all only purchasable at prices presum-
ably far beyond the pocketbook of
circus hand, 1t was palpably obvious
that little stream Of 1t was trickling
among the All-America's personnel.
At Allenburg, on Tuesday little
Mike Garrity. the silently efficient as
sistant wagon master. appeared sud-
denly to Gleddin, the doorkeeper, just
as the first of the afternoon crowd
was beginning to drift in, and In
formed him that he didn't like the
shape Of Gleddin's nose, the color Of
his eyes, the size of his mouth or the
way he combed his hair. He had kept
still about 1t for three years, he an
nounced stridently, but now he pro-
posed to do what he could to change
least, and retire the eyes from public
observation behind bumps. He was
proceeding to take off his coat with
! view to putting his plan into instant
effect when the "Old Man" himself ap-
peared around the fly. 1t took sec
ond incredulous look at Mike to con-
vince the Old Man of the truth. Then
he took Mike by the back of the neck
and the seat of his trousers and ran
him clean off the lot, for good Two
hours later raZorback almost bit the
ear off a hOstler behind No. 2 horse
tent in the course of conflict which
neither party could afterward explain.
At Cordova next day, Murray, the
head animal man, had to let one of his
best keepers go, having found the man
trying to get into n cat cage in a
highly befuddled state, and there was
suspicious unsteadiness in the ham
ding of properties by two of the ring
roustabouts during the evening per-
formance. At Port Hnrbor, on Thurs
day, half the commissary gang was
palpably drunk at noon time and loud
were the complaints over the wretched
dinner that resulted. The "Old Man"
was furious. He fired drunks and half
drunks right and left and read the
riot act all over the lot.
1t was on Friday morning that Olga
Harron, senior Of the Fordyce sisters,
slack wire performers, opened her eyes
to the murky first dawn Of the railroad
yard at Clarkington and peeped out Of
the car window just in time to see a
familiar straw-hatted figure in nifty
! greenish suit, slip stealthily into the
shadow of shed scarce an arms
length from Olga's berth. 1t was none
else but Ranny Boyd. the candy
butcher; and Olga. whose heart always
did funny little jumps when she en-
cOuntered Ranny unexpectedly, was
on the point of sending still little
Hist" through the screened window
at him. when she discovered that he
was not alone. A lanky. wide-hatted
canvasman who had Joined the show
at Cordova. plainly had been waiting
there for Ranny, for they were whis-
pering together. Olga heard Ranny
say something about "twelve pints-
eight twenty-seven-be almighty care
full" Then he was gone. keeping
close to the car and passing directly
under Olga's window.
The girl went suddenly sick. Ranny
Boyd had seemed such frank, clean
young fellow! Olga, to whom types
of cynical sophistlcation were as COM
mon as fleas In dog troupe, had be-
lieved Ranny meant II when he said
he didn't believe II was necessary for
candy butcher to short-change or to
sell fake packages. and that he pre-
ferred to make his living on the level.
And here he was clearly enough mixed
up In this low-lived bootlegging Well,
he wasn't anything to her. anyhow -
and the "Old ann" wouldn't be long
In finding out where the trouble lay.
And then, good night. Mr. Boyd. And
Olga, to prove to herself how little
Ranny Boyd and his crookedness
meant in her young life, turned over
on her face and cried into her pillow
until the car porteress began to beat
her reveille gong.
Ranny Boyd was all smiles when he
almost ran into Olga Just outside the
entrance to the Scofiin's tent, whence
the girl was hurrying for breakfast.