The vidette. (Iuka, Tishomingo County, Miss.) 1912-1967, 1923-01-25

gambler coughed lightly and groaued,
brace wondered why he should be
tickled over any ones misfortune. but
he felt q merry iingllng In his blood.
"This boats got a good bass voice."
he remarked.
BASS voice! Do you know what
I'd like to do? I'd like to bore ten.
inSK hole In her bottom and Let her 20
down."
You must have lost, Liberty"
Don't call me Liberty. Call me
Llb--just Lib; that's enough. But lot
me tell you something. Never in all
my life have ever come as near be-
ing a rich man as l was just now. !
had won--by George, | had SO much
money stacked up In front Of me that
Q mulatto from the North called me
smarster.' And then. a cog slipped. We
could have split and had small for
tune apiece"
"Blundering fool sgain" Drace In
Quired.
Eyes, sir, and / was the fool. I
wanted to be q rich man--and came
within one of 1t. You know, some
times Fortune hesitates as to whether
she shall crown you or slap YOU"
'In your case, she didn't seem to
hesitate long, Lib"
mo the hair-tangled bag! And
then do you know what she did just
as ! was forced to get up from the
table In as hot fever as ever
scOrched a mans blood? She smiled
at me. Now, I'll swear to that. But it's
all over. A fellow has his little day,
and then stretches out and let's the
undertaken measure him."
Eyes, Lib, and I'd advise him to
bring along extra tape when he comes
after YOU"
Shottle attempted to smile. but the
fever within him was still SO hot that
his effort ended in q grim tightening
| of the mouth.
'sThats oil right. Virgil, but you
must remember that you are one out
of a million. How fellow can lose
$500 at poker and get up from the
table with money still In his pocket Ia
beyond me- However, It means that
you haven't got poker in your blood,
which Of itself is marvel. But want
to tell you that every man Is food for
some sort OF desperate passion. II 1t
isn't gambling, It may be love. How
| about thatT
Hasn't caught me yet" answered
BRACE, stoutly, even though the pic
ture Of the girl In the passageway was
at the moment floating bright before
his minds eye. "Of course" he add
ed, 81 may marry, Liberty; that sort
of thing runs In our family, you know.
But don't think the subject very i'm
teresting."
II grant you. In this we walk
shoulder to shoulder. But there is
something Of vital Interest. Just now
Il lost"
"Yes, and a very natural tNng,-
BRACE agreed,
mo. 1t wasn't nstural. 1t was UNI
natural that should lose Just at that
time. 1t was an accident. Listen to
me for just a minute. Anybody can
do the natural and expected thing. A
dog or cat or any other animal al
ways does. 1t is doing the thing that
nature didn't intend that marks the
progress of civilization. Now, / have
q proposition to mike that may seem
unnatural. Perhaps no man you ever
met before would make 1t. But you
never met such a man as l am, be-
fore. You COULDN'T look forward and
see me. Could your
II didn't" Drace cheerfully admit.
ted.
"And 1t would have been hard for
you to beleve that I exist, which
don't, according to the belize of some
Of my folks. Now, taen, what are we
getting at? Another stalker No,
am not going to- ask you to risk any
more Of your money. But this is my
proposition: You let me have 800;
If win, I'll pay back all l owe. And,
II / don't, I'll belong to you-your
property, body and soul - but with
this understanding, am not to per-
form any mental service In public.
And 1t Is further understood and
agreed upon that II by any chance I
can raise 500, am to have the privi-
lege Of buying my freedom The first
500. you understand, was stake and
not loan. Before you decide, weigh
the advantages Of owning a rlan. I
will be your Greek. your enslaved phi.
losopher. be your Epictetus and turn
your mill. We will revive the ethics ot
ancient society Won't that prove that
history really does repeat itself?"
"Yes," answered Drace, "but don't
care any more whether history re-
peats herself than do that STAN
mering man repeats himselfr
"Now my dear friend soon to be NV
master, l hope--I ask you; Isn't It
something to own a companlonable
SLAYER"
"Yes. By the way, do you know
New Orleans very well3"
"Whatl Does bloodhound know
the scent Of a darkeyf'' +
IAN right, Lib-here's 500. And
l believe that within an hour from
now youth be my property" II