Evening star., 1922-07-09


"Hmph." Old SourmaeA reflected.
| "Hmph. Evuh sence 6awge wilkes
wuz a pup. Aid say. Goin' on twenty
eight yeah. Yessuh. twenty-eight
yeah. next spring"
More years for you -thhn weeks
| for me- was the sheriF's comment.
Listen. I went some advice. I've been
| in politics as long as you've been
| wastin' your time around horses. II
| somebody comes to me in politics and
| wants to frame with me to play his
| game. l know he's. afraid OF me or
| wants to do me a favor: Does II work
| that way in this game
An say she do and Sourmash
broke into another chuckfe. "'Cept-
in they neVuh want to do y'ali a
favuh. she wuhks tn same way
zactly"
.\-Ow. if can't hsure why he'd
~ want to do me a favor, I'm safe
\ figuring he's afraid OF me. In politics.
my best bet is to let him think I'm
framed TO a fragile with him and
keep him thinking that up. tot 4 Ger
| tain point. Is that. the way IT'S done
! in the harness-horse game
| "Sho' is. boss. 1t sho' is. Ahll say
some folks do pick up tn fine points
| 'thout losin' no time.
| The sheriff decided to take stroll
| ha$ ri found
the bookies and pool sellers. in the
rings under the grandstand. some-
what up ir the air regarding the
| free for-aH pace They had very lit
| tie line on the four PAGERS entered.
for no two of the starters. had met.
Betting started slowly. and there was
no choice in the pools. The sellers,
therefore, offered 500 pools. rating
the four horses evenly. Silver Bill
Reilly. presiding. explained the situa-
| ton in his own way.
| Gentlemen. you've made us no Of
| fcrs,' he called to the crowd from his
vantage point on soapbox. wen
have to offer you a slate, Of our own.
We have four good horses in this
free.for-all pace: some mebbe better.
| some mebbe worse. We don't know
which is which. Will you take them
at sa5 apiece? Eddie Edwards has
| White Winter, and you know Eddie;
| Sam Toiin starts with Expressman.
| Messenger geldin'. and Allen Brown
has come up from Alabam' with a
pacin' fool named Romeo. by Shake
sneare. Oh. yes, Sheriff Billy OBrien
| Of yfso county, Ind. is in with We'd
d,nr BELLS, which he says amt q
ringer The crowd laughed. Now
| then. gentlemen. what do you say!
Won can have them at. SIS apiece
until we find out who's who and
what's what"
Silver Bilrs oratory touched things
off. Before the race started, local
NAV ON White Winter had made him
tho favorite, and he was being bought
in the pooIs at $50, with Expressman
and Romeo at see each. and Wedding
Bells at only SO in the $1o0 pools
The hook. were fairly well played
and their odds reflected the sentiment
shown in the pool selling. "A friend
Of Tolin bought Wedding Bells to win
tho first heat. in some dozen pools
and a friend of Brown put up some
money for him the same way! Ed
w,rd, decided It would not be wise
to bet on another horse right there Ia
ri. ownIown, where he was carded
to win with White Winter. = Sheriff
o'Rrien had two friends getting
money down on the race for him.
irHE sheriff. his survey ended' turn
l. ed back along the midway before
1o,ne to his stable, as lonesome a.
any politician is away from nome. A
county fair is like home brew-nt
on,v for the consumption of the home
folks. The sheriff smiled to himself
ss the comparison occurred to him..
"There's that grin again" A girfs
voIce> addressed him.: and the sherifi
nicked himself manfully out of his
Lonesome musing to find he was con
lfronted by the smiling Irish girl VINO
owned the Edwards barber shop.
.Its a real one now and OBrien
xlad to see one soul he knew, broke
into an ear ear smile. I'm glad
to see you. Out to root for the win
ner.'
THAT depends on the winner" she
renI,ed some winners wouldn't
root for very much. But wanted to
see YOU, and didn't know where to
look"
woman, you do my heart good.
| Never mind your heart. I'm try.
ing to do your pocketbook some
y, .SAsa; ia sraANst hat, mn fhA