San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1924-04-27
SAM PAVITT, HERO
A MEDAL, A MORTGAGE A JAMBOREE

OIL lINculN
hung empty from the shoulder. HIS
carefully pressed blue serge trousers
were gallused high with pale blue sus-
penders. The sides of his unbuttoned
vest hung loose. The pencil in one OF
its pockets was held in place by an
ornate clip. There was a band of blue
embroidered elastic about his arm, TO
hold up his sleeve.
He was as compactly and powerfully
built as a Russian wolf hound; thin
thanked. dcep-chested, wide of shoulder,
long of limb. His face was lean and
rather weak.
The bed room of the little frame
ranch house was full Of the blended
odors of talcum powder and bay rum,
ripening alfalfa, sage brush, and that
unnamed. heart-lifting something that
is the breath of the summer prairie.
For Sam was getting ready to go on a
journey, and the window was open to
the blue Colorado day that sparkled
outside like a jewel.
As he brushed his hair his eyes met
his wife's in the mirror.
Ella Pavitt sat b. the window near
the foot of the bed with Sans open
valise on it; a keen, clean-muscled,
vigorous, brown-skinned girl, in a gray
sweater. short wool skirt. mans felt
hat, and rubber irrigating boots witt
fresh mud stains ON them. The early
morning sunshine edged the bold,
strong curves of her figure with a
blurred line of gold.
This hero business" Sam Pavitt
said, "gets my goat! Makes me feel
like darned fool"
But Ella knew it didn't. "You're the
only sure-enough hero 1 ever saw"
Forget it, That's what I'm going
to do just as soon as they'll Et Inc.
I'm going in to Denver today and let
the brotherhood gimme the medal, ard
the railroad gimme the dough, and then
I'm going to stick the medal in my
pocket and come home and forget it,"
And he would, too. She knew that.
He forgot everything. He loved admira-
ton; worked for it; lived on it; had
to have it. When he hadn't attracted
it unwittingly by something he'd done,
he'd fall into funny strutty little ways
to get it, as naive and innocent as
Samuella's. But, after he'd done some
thing heroic he'd forget it. He had
pulled the engineer and fireman of
his train-Sam was a brakeman-out
of the river into which they had
plunged with their engine when the
spring rains took out the bridge. And
he swan the river with broken arm
in order to flag the train from the
other direction. The whole country
rang with it, but Sam himself could
forget it.
There were meretricious things in
him, and this quiet girl he had married
saw them as clearly as if she had been
his sister; but his gallantry wasn't
one of them. Flamboyant, ringing,
spectacular, it was as real as old Gray
Dome's granite peak off there across
the plains. Throw things into the
sphere of action, unfurl the banner of
danger, and Sam stepped out, clean
and simple, hero.
He stood with his legs wide apart to
bring his face down to the glass and
tried on a new green velour hat
jsunty, with the unhealed ends Of the
severed shoulder muscles still witch
ing. He was jaunty because they
twitched. He'd risen to meet the chal-
lenge of pain. And he'd go on meeting
Tiff it didn't last too long. He al
ways breasted the hills 1t was the
level stretches that wore him down.
An automobile siren cut through the
song Of the meadow lark outside.
"That's Tom row." said Ella.
Tom Grierson was their neighbor on
the hundred and sixty 10 the north.
They had arranged with him TO take
Sam to the train.
Sans great arm encircled his wife's
shoulder, and she thrilled to the touch
of its muscles as hard as oak. The
flesh of her ached where the other
arm should have gone. They had been
30 close during those isolated summer
weeks of Sans recovery! The rail-
road had paid all the doctors bills, and
the neighbors had taken turns in re-
heying her of the farm work. She had
sat for hours at Sans edside, sew.
ing, talking little, or in silence, the
windows wide to the summer, the
sweet air Quivering with the jubilant
songs of the meadow larks, the fal
blue mountains dreaming in the west
A perfect interlude in the midst Of
1ife's imperfections. She hated to see il
end and the old, conflicting influence.
have sway again.
"You won't forget?" she said, takini
refuge in the things that could b,
talked aout. you'll raise the mort
gage first. And then you'll get thu
tractor-if you find that you can driv,
it with your left hand" (Secretly
she was sure he could drive it with hi
teeth if he tried; there weren't many
things of that sort he couldn't do
"AEd then you'll buy the things on tn,