Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1920-05-13
FROG IN THE
THROAT
By r. RAY BAKER
t@. 1920. by Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate. =,

NS DeAAAAS6 LII LIZ
pond.
Sam Bristol, lying fiat on his back,
his face turned toward a sky I'M
marred by clouds, smiled good-natur-
edly.
Good old Nebuchadnezzar," he
whispered. Nebuchadnezzar was
Sans name for the frog. There was
no apparent reason for that appella-
ton, unless it was that the animals
back was of the same color as the
held fodder the ancient king was said
to have eaten at one erratic period of
his career.
u detest that frog!' said Amelia
Wilton, sitting nearby. Frogs are
so homely, and their voices are worse,
except when they sing at night, and
Nebuchadnezzar never does. He just
croaks all day" long. l don't see what
you can find about him that is so
charming. l can't tolerate any sound
that isn't musical"
Sam pursed his lips and whistled
meditatively.
That's not musical either" Amelia
observed.
There isn't much about me that is
any more" he whispered. ever since
l caught a severe cold five years ago
l haven't had even a speaking voice.
l don't see how you can stand it to
have me around Amelia; I'm so un-
musical"
"Of course you know I care for you,"
she said "in spite of the fact that you
have no voice. l should have liked to
know you when you could sing though.
Isn't there any remedy"
1.-THE doctor says no." he rasped ]:
$50 you see if you marry me you'll
either have to do all the talking your
self or have me for a constant note of
discord in your life of harmony"
II wish you could sing as folks say
you used to-" Amelia sighed. II think
1t would reconcile me more-to my
fate" and she finished with a laugh
a musical laugh.
Her fate" was her marriage to Sam,
which was to take place as soon as
she finished a course in vocal harmony
she was about to commence.
1T would be fine If we could go to
the city together and study music" she
went on.
Eyes, it would. To tell you the
truth, Amelia, I'm afraid to let you go
alone. You'll land in some big opera
company and fall In love with the star,
and you'll forget about little Sammy in
his very prosaic but prosperous shoe
store back here in Glendon."
She shook her head. "No danger.
Sam. Pm not that kind. But 1 wish
you were going to study with me.
When we finished we could get mar
ried and teach voice-if you could
make some arrangements about your
shoe business"
"That wouldn't be difficult" he said.
johnson practically runs the business
now; and I'd give him a half interest.
But what's the use? I haven't any
more voice than our friend Nebuchad-
nezzar. I have a frog in my throat"
"Gezunk !" chimed in the bullfrog, as
If to say, "who says I haven't a voice?"
Amelia s%huddered. Lets go. Your
friend frog gets on my nerves. l used
to rather like him when we used to
visit this little glen, but since I've
studied harmony I've lost interest in
his croaking."
They went back to the village and
Sam, after escorting her home, hurried
to his store.
Three weeks later Amelia packed
two trunks and three handbags and
set out for Chicago, where she would
study voice with the masters.
Sam took her to Prescott, a village
ten miles from Glendon, for the rail-
road on which she was to make her
journey did not touch the latter place.
The luggage, except one handbag,
went ahead by motortruck and the ex
ception followed with Amelia and Sam
in his buggy. Sam never had been able
to give up his spirited driving horse
for an automobile.
Good luck to you," he whispered as
he kissed her good-by, and leaped from
the train as it started. She waved a
hand from the window and he re-
sponded similarly, and stood and
watched the train vanish round a
curve. For five minutes he stood at
the station, detected and lonely; for
Sam and Amelia had been s~weethearts
since his advent into Glendon three
years ago. He wished he could resur-
rect his life of five years-before he
lost his voice. Sam had never told
Amelia much about it, because it wor-
ried him in spite of the jovial atti-
tude he appeared to take toward his
"frog in the throat"
He drove slowly back along the road.
The sunshine of spring and the flow
ers and foliage and birds that it
brought, cast a spell over him, but it
was a spell Of moroseness rather than
gladness. That is, he endeavored to