Evening star., 1922-01-01

through with. And I'm through with.
I'm a bum from now on. There's no
use kidding myself; I'm a bum.
"And yet, often. I'm glad didn't
do it,
Ed brooded in silence for . while.
And then said, It's strange he
didn't know you"
Its been ten years." said Ed, sand
you saw that the old mans got to the
doddering stage. He likely wouldn't
know his own children II he didn't
see them every day or two"
Il suppose" I said, "that the old
man feels he is ending his days in q
very satisfactory manner-the ma
.ional prohibition thing triumphant.
and all that"
How do you mean?" asked Ed.
Don't you known" I said. "why.
old man Singleton, It is said, helped
finance the fight and used his money
and his influence on other big money
all over the country in getting next
to doubtful politicians and putting
the thing through the state legisla-
lures. l don't mean there was any
thing crooked about it anywhere, but
he was one of the bunch that repre-
sented organized power and put the
stunt across while the liquor inter
ests were still saying national prohi-
bition could never come"
1.-The hell he did, said Ed. II
didn't know he was mixed up with it.
never saw him take a drink, now
that ! remember, except the brandy
on the night l saved his life"
'Old man Singleton" l said. lis
credited with having had more to do
with it than any other person, by
those who are on the inside"
"The old coot.' said Ed. And then
added wryly: Il hope he gets as stiff
in his knee-joint as / am and lives
forever! He's made a bum of me-"
1t was three or four weeks after
my talk with Ed that / read in the
papers a peculiar accident, of which
old man Singleton had been the vic
tim. A head of cabbage, he said, had
his own head one evening as he was
walking along in Central Park. lie
had been dazed by the blow for a mo-
ment, and when he regained his feet
a considerable sum of money which
he had been carrying was gone. He
was sure he had been struck by a
head of cabbage, for a head of cab
bage lay on the pathway near him
when he was helped to his feet. He
did not pretend to be able to say how
a head of cabbage could have gotten
into one of the park trees.
The police discredited his story,
pointing out that likely the old man.
who was nearsighted. had blundered
against a tree in the dusk and struck
his head. The head of cabbage. they
told the reporters, could have had
nothing to do with it: it could not
have come into contact with his head
at all. unless, indeed. some one had
put it into a sack and swung II on
him like a bludgeon; and this. the
police said, was too absurd to be con-
sidered. For why should crook use
a head of cabbage when the same re-
suits might have been attained with
the more usual blackjack, stick or
fist?
Old man Singleton was not badly
hurt, and as regards the loss OF
the money, he never said. nor did his
family ever say, just how large the
sum was Mr.. Singleton had the
vague impression that after the cab
bage fell out of the tree and hit him
he had been helped to his feet by a
man who limped and who said TO
him: "Kale Is given to them that can
best use it, to have and to hold
He did not accuse this person, who
disappeared before he was thoroughly
himself again, of having found the
money, which had evidently dropped
from his pocket when the cabbage
fell from the tree and hit him, but
he was suspicious and he thought the
police were taking the matter too
lightly. He criticised the police in
an interview given to the papers. The
police pointed out the irrelevance of
the alleged words of the alleged per-
son who limped and intlmated that
Mr.. Singleton was irrational and
should be kept at home evenings; as
far as they were concerned the in
cident was closed.
But / got another slant at it. as Ed
might have said. Last winter ! was
talking at my club with a friend just
back from Cuba, where the rum is
red and JOY is unconfined.
II met a friend of yours" he said.
"by the name of Ed down there who
is running a barroom and seems to
be quite a sport in his way. Sent
his regards to you. Must have made
it pay-seems to have all kinds of
money. Names his barroom The
Second Thought Asked him why.
He said nobody knew but himself and
he was keeping it a secret-thought
you might guess. Wants you to come
down. Sent you message. Let's see:
what was it? Oh. yes! Cryptic! Very
cryptic! Wrote it down-here it is:
'kale! kale The gangs all here"
Make anything out Of 1t? 1 can't
could, though I didn't tell him
what. But 1 shall not visit Ed in
Cuba: I consider him an immoral
person.
Copyright 1921. D. Appleton & %. All rights