The Washington herald., 1920-10-13

AN O. HENRY STORY
SHOES
SHOES

'I'll throw in that postscript,
explained the consul, so Uncle
Obadiah won't take the offense at
the official tone of the letter. f,
Now, Billy, you get that corre-
spondence fixed up and send Pam
cho to the postoffice with IL. The
Ariadne takes the mail out to-
morrow IL they make up that
load of fruit today
The night program in Ceralio
never varied. The recreations OF
the people were soporific and nat.
They wandered about. barefoot
and aimless, speaking lowly and
smoking cigar or cigarette. Look
ing down on the dimly lighted
ways one seemed to see thread
ing maze of brunette ghosts tan
gled with a procession of insane
firefiies. In some houses the
drumming of lugubrious guitars
added to the depression of the
triste night. Giant treefrogs rat
tied in the foliage as loudly as
the end mans bones" in a min
strel troupe. BY 3 o'clock the
streets were almost deserted.
Nor at the consulate was there
often Il NndH6t VI YIN AN'O6h
would come there nightly. for Co
raIio's one cool place was the
HttIe seward porch of that OFF,
cial residence.
The brandy would be kept NOV
ing: and before midnight senti-
ment would begin to stir in the
heart of the self-eXiled consul.
Then he would relate to keogh
the story of his ended romance.
Each night Keogh would listen
patiently to the tale. and be ready
with untiring sympathy.
But don't you think for a min
ute"-thus Johnny would always
conclude his wOeful narrative
that I'm grieving about that
girl, Billy. I've forgotten her.
She never enters my mind. II
she were to enter that door right
now. my pulse wouldn't gain a
beat. That's all over long ago"
Don't ] know it," Keogh would
answer. "Of course you've for
gotten her. Proper thing to do.
Wasn't quite o. X. of her to lis
ten to the knocks that-er-Dink
Pawsop kept giving you"
Pink Dawson"'-a world Of
contempt would be in Johnny's
tones-"PoOr white trash. That's
what he was. Had 500 acres of
farming land. though; and that
counted. Maybe I'll have a chance
to get back at him some day.
The Dawsons weren't anybody.
Everybody in Alabama knows the
AtwOOds. Say, Billy-did you
know my mother was a De Graf
fenre5d?"
why. no." Keogh would say:
lis that So" He had heard it
some 800 times.
Fact The De Granfenreids OF
Hancock County. But never
think of that girl any more, do I,
Billy"
Not for a minute, my hoy"
would be the last sounds heard
by the COnQueror OF Cupid.
At this point Johnny would fall
into a gentle slumber. and Keogh
would sauntsr out to his own
shack under the calabash tree at
the edge of the plaza.
In a day or two the letter from
the DalesburS postmaster and It's
answer had been forgotten by the
Coralio eXiles. But on the 26th
day of July the fruit of the reply
appeared upon the tree Of events.
The Andador. a fruit steamer
that visited COralio regularly.
drew into the ofing and anchored.
The beach was lined with specta-
tors while the quarantine doctor
and the custom house crew rowed
out to attend to their duties.
lounged into the consulate, clean
and cool in his linen clothes. and
ginning like Il pleased shark.
Guess what" he said to John
ny. Longing in his hammock.
Too hot to guess" said john
ny. lazily.
Your shoe-store mans come"
said KeOgh. rolling thS sweet
morsel on his tongue with
stock Of goods hig enough to sup
ply the continent as far down as
Terra del Fuego. They're carting
his cases over to the CUSTOM
house now. Six barges. full they
brought ashore and have padded
back for the rest. Oh. we saints
in glory. Won't there be regale-
ments in the air when he gets
onto the joke and has an inter-
view with MIR. Consul? It1l be
worth nine years in the tropics
just to witness that one joyful
moment"
KeOgh loved to take his mirth
easily. He selected a clean place
on the mattress and lay upon the
floor. The walls shook with his
enjoyment. Johnny turned half
over and blinked.
Don't tell me-" he said. that
anybody was fool enough to take
that letter seriously"
"Four-thousand-d dollar stock OF
goods" gasped Keogh. in ecstasy.
Talk about Goals to Newcastle,
Why didn't he take a ship-lOad
of palm-leaf fans to Spitzbergen
while he was about it? Saw the
old COdger on the beach. You
ought to have been there when
he put on his specs and squinted
at the 500 or so barefOoted citi-
zens standing around"
Are you telling the truth.
Billy" asked the consul, weakly.
Am I? You ought to see the
buncOed gentleman's daughter he
brought along. Looks! She
makes the brick-dust senoritas
here look like tar-babies."
Go on" said Johnny, eff you
can stop that asinine giggling. I
hate to see grown man make a
laughing hyen3 of himself"
Name is Hemstetter," went on
Keogh. Hes a Hellol what's
the matter now?"
Johnny's moccasined feet struck
the floor with a thud as he wrig-
gled out Of his hammock.
Get up. you idiot" he said.
sternly. cor I'll brain you with
this inkstand. That's Rosine and
her father. Cad, What a drivel-
ing idiot old Patterson is! Get
up here. Billy Keogh, and help
me. What the devil are we GO