Evening star., 1923-08-12

hnng and any one who has lived
Il out west ran tell the look of
Chinaman's house. AS every one knows,
white mems houses are often poor,
furtive, unpainted; and an unpainted
frame house is like a pair of shoes
run down at the heel. But there comes
q certain look to Chinaman's house
which is difficult to describe. 1t is
as IL, instead of looking out on life
with it's windows, II looked inward.
blind. secret look.
Sam Chong's was the very first house
iE Lawes. and the very first time Scars
dale saw It he. knew it for China
mans
That was some years back and
I.awes was then a fourishing mininP
camp. unfortunately named. unless in
irony. 1t occupied a good deal of the
attention of that famous force known
locally as the Mounties. 1t was while
riding ih with o'Higgins' patrol that
Scarsdale first met Sam Chong.
It was thunder-weather and drought.
and the patrol clattered wearily down
a track hard-baked as metal. The hills
were gray in the heat. The lone house
was gray. too. It had three windows.
screened with dirty gray stuff. The
door was shut and looked as If IL were
rarely opened. over the door shfngle
stuck out with sam Chong Laundry
on it In English and Chinese. So much
for the front. The back premises
struggled out on stills over the plung-
ing waters of the Wayamous, for the
house was built on the river bank:
Scarsdale was riding at the rear.
haIf-asleep. O'Higgins and. Barrett
were opposite the door, but they were
looking in another direction. 1t was
Scarsdale who saw this door suddenly
open and something, a bubble Of dag
zling color, come bounding and rolling
out to the very hoofs of Barretts
horse.
Scarsdale let out yell and launched
his own mount forward. He was along |
side in two leaps He leaned from the |
saddle and caught that bouncing buD-
BILE from the ground as II he were
doing stunts at fall fair. 1t all nap
.pened in an instant. His rush carried
him ahead His horse gave him some
trouble Then he was at leisure 10
examine the thing he had rescued,
which continued TO bounce and now
gureled besides. He was aware that
he held the person of very little ana
very fat Chinese baby girl.
He rode back to the others, laugh
ing. The lady laughed. too. and
bounced She was slippery as soap
n hold for she was dressed in jacket
and trousers of highly glazed blue
silk worked with mauve butterflies.
Her face was waxily perfect as tube
rose. and from the corners of her long
ewes she twinkled coquettishly at the
white man.
Look at the little flirt." cried the
delighted Scarsdale.
!,
SrHEY rode back to the house with
1 her. And Sam Chong, who must
have seen what happened, ran out to
meet them, in ragged singlet and blue
overalls, fresh from the washtub. He
clawed at Scarsdale's knee, and his
yellow hands, sodden and shaking,
snatched the child. His English had
deserted him; but somehow there was
a universal language in the quick
Chinese in which Sam Chong was as
suring Scarsdale that-because he had
saved the despicable female person who
happened to be all-in-all to Sam Chong
--he, Sam Chong, would never let pass
a chance of doing good turn to Scars
dale and would certainly wash all his
shirts for nothing.
Scsrsdale said, That's all right
John" and would have ridden on But
Sam Chong's English returned. he
said firmly. you come inside one
mint" Scarsdale glanced at O'Higgins
for help, but the sergeant was watch
ing the Chinaman and only said, GO
on in a minute, it won't hurt"
So Scarsdale dismounted and entered
q Chinaman's house for the first time.
Sam Chong. tapping in old slip
pers, set before Scarsdale some queer
looking stuff in a cracked tumbler.
The trooper drank mechanically.
looking about him. He was disappointed
He had expected. being young, some
touch of oriental mystery inside TO
balance the bleak exterior of the
house. But the room he was in was
shabby and bare. Through a narrow
opening he could see three more
rooms, opening one behind the other.
The last room stuck out over the
river. Evidently it served for the
laundry; and in 1t thin fellow coun-
tryman of Sam Chong was bending
over a solitary tub, his bare yellow
arms shining like brass in the steam.
AS Scarsdale watched he lifted the
tub carried it to the middle Of the
room and pressed the floor with his
foot A trap opened. Suddenly
Scarsdale heard trifie more clearly
the running of the river. The China
man tilted the contents of the tub
into the opening. then he released
the trap, which sprang back noise
lessly Scarsdale put down the
cracked tumbler; he was conscious
of a thin burning along his veins.
Sam Chong said, You velly good
feller 1 not forget you" ScarsdaleI
nodded. went out, mounted. rode after
the others. and soon forgot the whole
affair.
He returned to Lawes a few weeks
later, a corporal in charge of two
troopers. searching for reluctant wit
nesses in a murder case. The busi-
ness occupied him a week, and he
had quite forgotten Sam Chong and (
his gray house. But he sent a shirt |
to the laundry. 1t came back beau
tifully washed and ironed and there |
was no charge. Then for a moment |
Scarsdale recalled Sam Chong and \
marveled at his long memory. Soon
the man and the incident he brought |
TO mind passed once more. But he |
was not done with Sam Chong and
his memory.