The Washington herald., 1920-11-21
first I.staIinenf.

First lnsfnihnenL
LIE compelled my interest a. ne
II stepped from the ferry at Dres-
brosses street. He had the air OF
being familiar with hemispheres
and worlds. and Of entering New
York as the lord of q demesne VINO
revisited It after years Of absence.
But I thought that. with all his an
he had never before set foot on the
slippery cobbiestones Of the City OF
Too Many Caliphs.
He wore loose clothes Of strange
blush drab color, and a conserva-
tive, round Panama hat without the
lcock-a-ioop indentations and cants
with which Northern fanciers dis
figure the tropic headgear. More
lover. he was the homeliest man i
thaye ever seen His ugiiness was
less repellant than startling-aris-
ing from a sort of Lincolnian rug
gedness and irregularity Of feature
that spellbound you with wonder
and dismay. So may have looked
afrites or the shapes metamorphosed
4
vase. As he afterward told me, his
name was Judson Tate; and he may
as weIl-be called SO at once. He
wore his green silk tie through a
topaz ring; and he carried a cane
made of the vertebrae Of a shark.
/ Judson Tate accosted me with
some large and casual Inquiries
about the city's streets and hotels,
in the manner OF one who had but
for the moment forgotten the tri-
fling details. could think Of no
reason for dispraising my own quiet
hotel in the downtown district; SO
the mid-morning of the night found
ius already yictualed and drinked Cat
my expense). and ready to be chair
ed and tobaccoed in a quiet corner
of the lobby.
There was something on Judson
lTate's mind. and. such as IL was, he
tried to convey IL TO me- Already
ihe had accepted me as his friend;
and when looked at his great
| snufr brown frst-mate's hand. with
which he brought emphasis TO his
periods. within six inches of my
nose. / wondered IL. by any chance
he was as sudden in conceiving en-
nifty against strangers.
| Wnen inns man oCBdh " NoAH
lperceived in him a certain power.
His voice was a persuasive instru-
lment. upon which he played with a
,somewhat specious but effective art
HE did not try to make you forget
ihis ugliness; he Haunted IL in your
lface and made il part OF the charm
of his speech. Shutting your eyes
you would have trailed after this
Irat-catcher's pipes at least to the
walls Of Hamelin. Beyond that you
would have had TO be more childish
Ito follow. But let him play his own
ltune to the words set down, so that
II all is too dull. the art Of music
may bear the blame.
Women" said Judson Tate, "are
mysterious creatures"
Nv spirits sank was not there
to listen to such a world-old hy-
lpothesis-to such a time-worn. long
,ago-refuted, bald. feeble. illogical,
vicious. patent sophistry-to an an
lcient, baseless. wearisome. ragged
lunfounded. insidious falsehood orig
mated by women themselves. ano
iby them insinuated. foisted, thrust
spread. and ingeniously promul'
gated into the ears OF mankind by
lunderhand. secret and deceptive
meNnOos' iOT Nhe puiposc VI al sN-
imenting. furthering. and reinforc-
Ing their own charms and designs.
''Oh, / don't know" said /, vernac-
, iularly.
Have you ever heard of Orata-
MAJ" he asked.
Possibly" / answered. "I seem
Ito recall a toe dancer-or a subur-
iban addition-or was IL a perfume
of sNme such name"
"It is a town" said Judson Tate.
ION the coast of a foreign country
iof which you know nothing and
lcould understand less. II is . coun-
TRY governed by a dictator and con.
itrolled by revolutions and insubor-
ldination. 1t was there that a grea,
. life was played. with Judsor
Tate, the homeliest man in America