The Washington herald., 1920-10-10
AN O. HENRY STORY
"Cabbages and Kings"

else IMAM the mule D4Ck system Oh
transport that prevailed between
Coralio and the capital. The hint
that the doodle" was six figures
short" made the condition of the
national treasury lamentably clear.
Also it was convincingly true thar
the ingoinG party-its way now
made a pacific one-would need the
"spondulicks." Unless its pledges
should be fulfilled, and the spoils
held for the delectatIon OF the VIC
tors. precarious indeed would be the
position OF the new government.
Therefore it was exceedingly nee
essary to collar the main guy"
and recapture the sinews of war
and government.
Goodwin handed the message to
Keogh.
Read that. Billy" he said. It's
from Bob Enslehart. Can you
manage the cipher?"
keogh sat in the other half OF
the doorway, and carefully perused
the telegram.
''Tis not a cipher" he said, final
ly. "'Tis what they call literature,
and that's a system of language put
in the mouths OF people that they've
never been introduced to by writ
ers of Imagination. The maga-
zines invented it, but l never knew
before that President Norvin Green
had stamped it with the seal Of his
approval. 'Tis now no longer lit
erature, but language. The die
tionarles tried, but they couldn't
make it go for anything but dia-
lect. Sure, now that the Western
Union indorses it. it won't be long
till a race of people will spring up
that speaks it,"
You're running too much to phil
ology, Billy" said Goodwin. DO
you make out the meaning Of it?'
Sure" replied the philosopher of
Fortune. IAN languages come easy
to the man who must know 'em.
I've even failed to misunderstand
an order to evacuate in classical
Chinese when il was backed up by
the muzzle of a breeCh-loader. This
little literary essay l hold in my
hands means game of FoX-in-the-
morning. Ever play that, Frank,
when you was a kid?"
Il think So" said Goodwin, laugh
ing. You join hands all round,
and"
You do not" interrupted kcogh.
You've got a fine sporting game
mixed up in your head with All
Around the Rosebush.' The spirit
of 'FoX-in- the Morning is opposed
to the holding of hands. Ilf tell
you how its played. This president
man and his companion in play.
they stand up over in San Mateo,
ready for the run. and shout: Fox
in the Morning" Me and you.
standing here. We say: Goose and
the Gander" They say: How many
miles is it to London town" We
say: Only a few. if your legs are
long enough. How many comes
out?' They say: More than you are
able to catch And then the game
commences"
Il catch the idea" said Goodwin.
1T won't do to let the goose and
gander slip through our fingers,
Billy; their feathers are too valu
able. Our crowd is prepared and
able to step into the shoes of the
government at once; but with the
treasury empty we'd stay in power
about as long as a tenderfOot
would stick on an untamed bronco.
We must play the fox on every foot
of the coast to prevent their getting
out or the country"
BY the mule-back schedule" said
Keogh, its five days down from
San Maeto. We've got plenty of
time to set our outposts. There's
only three places on the coast
where they can hope to sail from
here and SOlitas and Alazan. They
are the only points we'd have to
guard. It's as easy as a chess prob
iem-foX to play. and mate in three
Hn-
whittier do you wander? BY the
blessing of the literary telegraph
the Doodle Of this benighted father
land shall be preserved to the hon
est political party that is seeking
to overthrow it,"
The situation had been justly
outlined by Keogh. The down trail
from the capital was at all times
weary road to travel. A jiggety-
joggety journey it was; ice-cold
and hot, wet and dry. The trail
climbed appalling mountains, wound
like a rotten string about the
brows of breathless preCipices.
plunged through chilling snow-fed
streams. and wriggled like a snake
through sunless forests teeming
with menacing insect and animal
life. After descending to the foot
hills it turned to a trident, the cen
trail prong ending at Alazan. An
other branched off to CoraliO; the
third penetrated to Solitas. Be
tween the sea and the foothills
stretched the five miles, breadth of
alluvial coast
Here was the fora Of the trop-
les in its rankest and most prodi-
gal growth. Spaces here and there
had been wrested from the jungle
and planted with bananas and cane
and orange groves. The rest was
a riot Of wild vegetation. the home
of monkeys, tapirs. jaguars, alliga-
tors. and prodigious reptiles and in
sects. Where no road was cut a
serpent could scarcely make its
way through the tangle of vines
and creepers. Across the treach-
erous mangrove swamps few things
without wings could safely pass.
Therefore the fugitives could hope
to reach the coast only by one of
the routes named.
Keep the matter quiet. Billy"
advised Goodwin. We don't want
the Ins to know that the president
is in flight. | suppose Bob's infOr-
nation is something of a scoop in
the capital as yet. Otherwise he
would not have tried TO make his
message a confidential one; and be-
sides, everyone would have heard
the news. I'm going around now
to see DR.. Zavalla and start a man
up the trail to cut the telegraph
wire"
A. Goodwin rose. Keogh threw
his hat upon the grass by the door
I -
What's the trouble, Billy" ask
ed Goodwin. pausing. That's the
first time I ever heard you sigh"
'"Tis the last" said keOgh. With
that sorrowful puff of wind l re-
sign nnVgelf 10 a life pF nraisa