The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1923-10-17
It Was in the
Blood
By JUSTIN wENTWOOD

said Tom to his friend. "Some.
times I kind of wish I'd settled
down when was young man.
but rowing was In my blood. and |
just had to tramp"
"Same here. Tom." answered hia
friend. "We've been hitting the
pike twelve years now. and I guess
we'll keep on hitting. 1t till we die
In Gods free air. And what I nay
is. tramp printers like us amt buns
nor hoboes. We're educated men
with taste for walking"
Say. old man. what life could be
better than ours. here today. gone.
tomorrow And the sights we See
That's an education In itself. We're
Arabs. that's what we are, only we
haven't got no tents. What towns
this anyway" n...
"Exton. you old BOOB" answered
Tom. Where are your eyesT
"Exton? My God!"
Why. what's the matter with
why. was born and raised
here" answered Jim. 'It's years
since l was In this old burg, and
| kinda forgot. Say. let's 60 look
at the town."
They tramped the streets. Few
people turned to look at the two
dusty trarnps inspecting the build.
1ngs, the fire station; only the 20.
llceman on duty at the corner OF
Main street turned suspicious eye
on them.
1T sure has changed" said Jim,
Say, Tom, let's 60 look at the
house ! was born In. You wouldn't
believe At, maybe. but my dad
owned the newspaper here"
might be a job" suggested Tom
Nothing doing" said Jim. 1--WE
sure had q nice house. though.
There was q girl next door i was
kinda sweet on. 80. !"
He said no more. Tom under.
stood. Jim had left Exton when
pretty Molly Davis married his
rival. steady young Larabee from
the bank.
They left the business quarter be.
hind them and proceeded along q
fower-bordered road into the sub
urbs. Fine houses stood on either
side. At length Jim halted at an
0ldish house about the middle OF
a block.
"That was my house, Tom." he
said. Lord. wouldn't !. the people
stare II was to tell them we owned
that house once. And that house.
next door"
He broke off,. Tom understood
again and said nothing. But q ter
rible fear was growing in hia heart.
Suppose the girl still lived there
and Jim made himself known to her.
Suppose he married her and settled
down, and left him. Tom, to tramp
the roads alone in his cd age.
"That's the old maple tree" said
Jim. "She used 30 come out In the
evening, and we'd kind Of stand
and gossip here. They've taken
down the picket fence, though.
There's some one living there sure. y
There was. Two children came
out and stared at the intruders who
were looking the house over. A
dog barked. A shade went up In
the living room 81
'Them sure were the days, Tom"
muttered Jim. Pretty she was,
and lively. and she strung me along
till the end. and all the while that
son-of-a-gun was counting her, land
I never guessed 1t. Fell for her.
did, like q blame fool All WON.
ems that way. Tom. They amt no
use meddling with them. Still. them
were the days.
Tom watched bis friend anxiously.
For all his words II was evident
that the spell OF the past was on
him. How he, hoped Molly didn't
live there nowI But OF course that
was unlikely.
The door opened and a hard.fea.
tured woman Of middle age came
out and down the path.
"What are you two men d0ing
there?" she shrilled. ave don't
want tramps afound here. You
take yourselves on or I'll telephone
the poles md ha4e ypn run out
Of town. ' g asss & So;
..Wny, We wasn,t doing nothing.
mum, only admitting your flowers
! said Tom.
"Y0u take yourselves Of, you pair
OF tramps," shriiled the woman. -
Jaw, come on. Jim r. mumbled
Tom In disgust.
She watched them from the path
% they bumped their way alopg tue
road. & T 81. ri
Shame nlled Jim's heart, but Il
was not for himself or Tom. Il
was for what the pears had done
| with Molly. -,
Hs turned 70 Tom. ..Eoms on,
pldrtimsr.. hs said, n xiJesS q
roying ne brings oSt tn bsst =
| Folks after Ill. B Z. ~
! O. issa. wssssra Nevsa.p.r ua,sAj