Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1921-04-09

gwen the eXaGGcTatlOn OF saying II
| was h0rrifying consider that the
| diary was being handled by con
stable. n sheriff or a coroner or even
| by any idler or resOrt-keepcr in the
! village of Horwich.
If the automobile accident had dis
! posed of one ingenious enemy only to
make a half-dozen equally 1nscrupu-
| lOus ones, or TO appriSe q was tempted
to think this was wOrse) one incor-
ruptible officer of the condition of
Hartley house-in either event, We
were the worse for the change in cir
cumstance.
One of the stablemen knew how to
drive car, and | asked him to bring
out the automobile which used when
| went to town. The chauffeur, when
he returned, would have been up most
of the night did not want to impose
on him. / might be gone most of the
day. In a half-hOur we were away
toward HOrwich. l never had been
| over the road, which ran by old farms
with stone fences and was little trav-
eled except by the people who lived
along it,
Originally the place had a respect
| able tavern. 1t was called the White
Owl. It was still respectable, but odd
| ly enough, 1t was the success Of the
White Owl which had attracted the
other places.
l inquired for the constable and was
| told that | should likely find him at
| the White Owl, he being frequenter
! of that place and now having q case
which needed a great deal of drinking
and talking over.
| went to the White Owl aud on en-
teTing the barroOm, which really had
| an attractive rather than diSreputa-
BILE appearance, saw a group of men
about short, broad square-shOul-
| dered fellow who was talking to the
| interest Of half dozen or more fell
! lows.
My entrance made no diversion, and
| judging. from what / had been told.
that the squat, talkative fellow was
/ the constable and that he was telling
the story l wanted to know, | decided
to remain unidentified have a bottle
of beer-frOm the bartender, who
came half-heartedly from the con-
| stables narratiOn-and thus as an
eavesdropper get what l anne to get
! in direct conversation
| had my bottle of beer, and the bar
! tender went back to the group. domi-
mated by the squat, taIkative fellow.
He was not the comic type of CON
stable. He showed Intelligence and
decision. but evidently he was fond of
a story when he had 1t to tell. He was
saying:
II was up late because there was
bad set at the Half Day. and Bill
DALEY thought he might have trouble
with them before he got them on their
way. About one O'Clock they had
quarrel, without anything but talk
divided into two serS and went away
in two ears toward the city. Bill and
| split bottle of beer. and Bill said
he'd he going himself. 1t was nearly
one-thirty then, and | thought I'd wait
]
and see If anyone got of.
"Bill gave me the keys and told mo
TO shut the place up. | had another
bottle Of beer and was playing soil
taire on the bar when Number Eleven
stopped.
81 went to the front door Of the hor
and looked over toward the station A
man had got off. and he was headed
toward the half Day, which was the
only place showing n light. I waited
in the doorway, and when he came
up. saw he was n foreigner. He bod
gold rings in his ears.
"ITe made as II he wanted n .ooe
10. He didn't speak enough English
for me 10 make ont What he was say.
ing. | let him in, and he went nm 70
the bar, put down a quarter and poipt-
ed toward the whisky. | gave him rho
bottle, and he pointed to me and
smiled. So | said | didn't mind If
did, and we had drink together. /