The Richmond Virginian., March 04, 1910, Image 10

About The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920

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Virginian phones.
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JggfiCESS-M«d5«M> 1758.
KJ>rrORlA L— Mwlwin 1922.
■QCBKl'Y—Madfccm 1923.
BY mail -postpaid.
ONE YEAR.t4.00
SIX MONTHS.»00
THREE MONTHS.»1.00
Technicalities and Rat Creek.
The temperance people of Virginia are viewing
with wt»r prrnwinp; imp.nienco the action of the
Senate of Virginia concerning the Strode hill . 1 he
: Kin was introduced on Saturday, February 5th.
the hearing on the bill was had on Wednesday and
Thursday, February 16th and 17th. Rut the com
mittee did not take up the bill in executive session
until Wednesday, February 23rd and so the bill
was not reported until neariy a week after the hear
ing. In the interval l>etween the hearing and the
report on the bill, the calendar was loaded with a
great mass of bills, many or them purely local,
effecting only a few citizens.
When the patron of the bill has, on two separate
occasions, endeavored to secure the consideration
for the bill that its importance warrants, he has met
with points of order, and special rules providing
; for the consideration of local bills, etc. Rules of
I order are necessary for the proper conduct of busi
ness and local interests should be given their day
in court. But the temperance people of \ irginia
can not be made to believe that technicalities and
.bills permitting the building of a wharf on Rat
} Cceek or a bridge over Squcdunk River are so
important that they cannot be brushed
aside temporarily whenever the Senate of Virginia
| desires to do so.
fe The mass nf vuieri of Virginia are not versed in
parliamentary tactics, but they know that if the
Senate of Virginia really desired to take up the
Strode Bill backed as it is by the petitions of over
35,000 of the most intelligent, industrious and moral
citizens of the State there would be no parliamen
tary difficulty in the way. The importance of
.Rat Creek and Squedunk River would recede to a
vanishing point.
Senator Strode suggested night meetings of
cunmuui^» aim dii^rnoun <u
in order to facilitate uncontested hills, but tha
Senate refused. Again he suggested an afternoon
session of the Senate on Thursday to take up un
csontested bills, but the reply was made that one of
the committees of the Senate would lie in session
and the suggestion was not adopted, although the
absence of that committee would not have affected
in any material way the taking up of the calendar
of uncontested bills.
to
the
There has not been as much disposition to give
special sonsideration to this bill as there has been
give special consideration to a local bill to build
wharf on any small creek although for the Rat
"fe=fetff only a few jx-opfr are pleading while for
Strode bill, thousands of citizens are appealing.
Technicalities and Local bills may finally prevent
the proper consideration and action upon the Strode
bill but such excuses will not satisfy the people of
Virginia. The iivest and the most important issue
before the General Assembly today' is the answer
the General Assembly will make tc> the petitions of
the people for an opportunity to vote on the State
' ’; Law. To jx>st pone a matter of such importance
the closing hours of the session is a practical
.denial of its importance.
The issus today i> not how any Senator will
finally vote on the bill. The issue today is will the
Senate of Virginia treat with proper respect the
thousands of petitioners, who have asked for the
Consideration of the bill! Gentlemen, you cannot
satisfy the people by points of order and pleas for
local bills. Take up the b»ll and if you desire to
do so, limit the debate latt give it consideration and
,a recorded vote on the merits of the question!
Annexation in Sight.
It is said that a woman always has a tender re
gard for a man who offers her his hand in marriage,
whether she accepts him or not. Manchester must
have a kindred feeling for Richmond. All the
.courting and coaxing have been from this side of the
river, and Manchester has behaved with becoming
modesty. She has tx-on more or less in a passive
state of mind and has even coquetted a bit. At any
rate she has shown no disposition to force herself
upon Richmond.
Rut it seems to 11s to tie a desirable match for
Manchester as well as fur Richmond. Indeed, such
a union is logical and inevitable. Annexation is the
-Order of the day. It is of a kind with business com*
bination-. Manchester and Richmond are one
community. The people of the two cities belong
to one family, so to speak. Some of those residing
in Manchester do business in Richmond, and vice
versa. The ties of blood and the ties of business
are so numerous and so vita that the two cities
are already one body. In the very nature of the
case, therefore, tin y should he under one govern
ment—one in name and charter as well as one
in fact.
Such a union gives strength, promotes neighborly
jk affiliation and business co-operation and insures
economy of administration. All this, to say nothing
of the enhanced prestige of increased population in
| the census returns.
One thing can surely be said of this proposed
union. It is no hasty affair. It is no run-away
fk match. The courtship has been going on for years.
There is no romance in it. It is an afaair of busi
ness. It is a marriage for convenience, and while
the bride-to-be brings a handsome “dot”, the
“settlement” which Richmond proposes to make is
generous.
The ease i- now up to Manchester. All the de
tils have been threshed out, and all the real ob
gstades removed. It is to be hoped, therefore, that
the question will be disposed of without further
lo. It would be a handsome thing and a sensi
ble thing for the opposition to withdraw all ob
jection and clinch annexation by a unanimous
(Me of council and people.
The Baylor Survey.
Our esteemed contemporary, the Norfolk Virginia
SpPilot, makes ado over the statement in these columns
( that Speaker Byrd had made no secret of the fact
he desired to break the Baylor Survey. As wq
khad undertaken to tate Mr. Byrd's position, we
I requested him to state it in his own words and we give
the same prominence that was given to the
inal. Mr. Byrd says:
“1 do not think some of the tidewater people
, have an accurate idea of mv position regarding
’k the Baylor Survey.
I have absolutely no personal interest in .this
^.tStfter My whole idea is to, if possible, pro
sVide some method by which unproductive bot
I'ltom may be made productive. It has never
been ray intention to turn over any productive
^natural rock(to the planters. The Constitution
wsvmmmt
of the State prohibits this. My information is
that there arc large areas of .bottom included in
the Baylor Survey which from one cause or an
other have become barren and unproductive.
‘‘I think these areas should be made produc
tive. 1 cannot conceive of any agreement which
would justify the prolongation of conditions
under which such areas must continue per
manently unproductive. The words “Breaking
the Baylor Survey.” is a phrase which may have
different meanings to different people.
"Some of the very people who were most hostile
to making the Survey now regard it as sacred
and claim that any attempt, however intelligent
and however well safeguarded, to change its
lines is a species of blasphemy.
"I have never desired to do any more than to
turn over unproductive bottoms to persons who
will by industry any! care make them produc
tive.
"If the Wickham-Byrd bill is an entering
, wedge, it is only so in the sense that, if the
unproductive bottoms of the James become
tinder that law productive, their unproductive
bottoms in other portions of the Survey will
by the same process be made productive. I
have no desire except to advance the interest
of the oystermen themselves.
“Lately I had a talk with the Speaker of
the House of Delegates of North Carolina who
told me that the oyster interest of his State
had practically lieen ruined by the inability of
i the tidewater people to get together and agree
[ upon any practical remedial kn;t>4attt«r.
“1 hope that this will not be the fate of the
great oyster interests of this State.”
Mr. Byrd, Senator Keezcll and other citizens
I from the interior have taken an unselfish interest
in the oyster industry, and have endeavored to
work out some plan by which the supply of seed
can be increased and the planting industry devel
oped, without depriving the tongers of any of their
rights. But every attempt at legislation is opposed
uy tmaui annuii iium uutwaiti, uw h»hv.u>
offered for existing evils. The opposition insists
that the status quo must be preserved, that the
lines of the Baylor Survey must not be changed in
any degree, and that every tomorrow shall be as
today. And if ever any man suggests that these
lines should be changed, he is set down as a publican
and a sinner who wishes to rob the poor tonger of
his rights, that the natural rock may be given to
the rich planter. The Commissioners are worse
than tired. They are disgusted. The State will
not continue for long to spend SI0,000 a year to
collect $4,000 in revenue from James River oyster
men. There must l>e a change for the better or
| the James River beds w ill be abandoned.
Stuart's Candidacy.
It is devoutly to be hoped that there will be no
occasion for Henry C. Stuart to return to Paris.
But should the illness of Mrs. Stuart demand his
presence there, his candidacy for Congress will not
be weakened thereby. As was enthusiastically
stated in the Bristol convention, his friends will
take care of his political interests while he is absent.
That implies of course, a strong organization, and
such an organization there should be, whether Mr.
Stuart is here or not. The Republican organiza
tion already exists and it is powerful. Stuart: is
not running against Slemp alone. He is running
against a political combine that is hard to beat, for
it is no sentimental affair • it is a business organiza
tion which controls' practically all the Federal
patronage in Virginia, anti it is not easily defeated.
It must be fought by a Democratic organization
which will rally the forces, see that the Democratic
voters are qualified and that they give an account
! of themselves on election day.
Prying Into Private Affairs.
j One of the most objectionable phases of a Federal
income tax is the inquisitorial feature. If the Fed
eral government should undertake to impose such
a tax. Federal officers would go about inquiring
into the private affairs of citizens and every citizen
subject to the tax would be required to make a
sworn statement showing the amount of his income
| and probably the source of each item. This would
not only be objectionable and offensive, in a sense,
but would lx* rather a serious proposition to some
■ men from a business point of view. It is not
pleasant, and sometimes it is not judicious, and
sometimes it may be absolutely ruinous for a man
in business to make such an exhibit as the govern
ment would require.
Corporations are now getting a taste of this
sort of inquisition. We have before us the state
ment of a small Virginia corporation, which is re
quired to be made to the Internal Revenue De
j partment in Richmond, under act of Congress ap
t proved August 5, 1909. Following arc the ques
j tions that must be answered in figures, under oath,
and filed with the Department:—
Total amount of paid up stock, outstanding at
close ot year.
| Total amount of bonded or other indebtedness
outstanding at close of year.
Total amount of ordinary and necessary expenses,
j maintenance and operation.
Total amount of losses sustained.
Total amount of depreciation.
Total amount of interest on bonded debt.
Total amount received by way of dividend upon
stock.
The government sends out these blanks and each
and every corporation must render an account
whether good, bad or indifferent and expose the
secrets of its counting room.
That sort of inquisition by a Federal official is
not agreeable even to soulless corporations; to in
dividuals it would be obnoxious.
Chicago is going to make her Fourth of July
celebration a protracted affair. It is to be part of a
great exhibition covering ten days, something on
the order of the Hudson-Fulton celebration, and
its climax will take place on the Fourth, when there
will be a grand parade, including 5,000 United
States troops led by General Grant. Chicago has
had so many national political conventions that it
is getting to be real patriotic.
The Postmaster General says that there is an
annual loss of $64,000,000 on the transportation of
magazines and periodicals as second class matter.
That is pretty dear to pay for the kind of magazines
we are now getting, and yet it would be a travesty
to carry them as first class matter.
What a sly matchmaker that W» T. Dabney is!
•Did Cannon dance to ,'I'aft or Taft to Cannon?
That'* what many of us would like, to know,
.. .. .. . ■■■ r
THE PEOPLE’S FORUM
All letter* sent for publication
in "The People** Forum” of The
Virginian" should be concise and,
as far a* possible, kept within 3M
word*.
No attention win be paid to
1 anonymous letters, but names and
addresses sinned as an evidence of
good faith will no* be printed if re
quest is made that they be omitted.
The freest discussion of topics of
public interest Is invited, with the
understanding, of course, that
publication of a letter is not to be
taken necessarily as approved by
the editor of the writer’s views.
The Ways of the Politician.
Editor of The Virginian:
Sir,—I am about to recover from
the shook of the Meyers-Strode bill
being so roughly handled in the face
of the numerous petitions for them
when I know of none against them.
Sizing the situation ui> from the
standpoint of one who believes that
kind begets kind; that bad or evil
lawk come from men like their pro
duct; that Intemperate laws will more
than likely result from men of at
least intemperate ideals. Yes, kind
begets kind.
But let us look at it from the stand
point of a eitizen who knows that pe
titions with perhaps thousands of
names of legalised voters on them
men who were willing to sell their
fouls for a few paltry dollars appeared
before the committee and argued, not
for the moral uplift of the people,
not for the thousands of children beg
gared by strong drink, not for the
souls that are forever damned, not
for the suicides, not for the starving
thousands of women and children who
: are Innocent of any crime other than
ix-inn reiaieo 10 a aruiikcn nusoana
or father.
These men who turned this bill
. down, last fall never missed the op
portunity of appealing t" the good
sense and sound judgment of the very
men whose will they have disregarded
: in their action on this hill. t have
j lately been studying this question
from an almost entirely different
standpoint from any I have heard or
seen discussed—that Is, that the aver
age politician Is a queer cmhinatlon.
He wishes to lead In church, or anyT
where he may’ happen, but, like a
blind fish, he has feelers instead ol
eyes, and when he wants an office
seldom regards his qualifications to
fill the office, but regards the skill ?)
i which it requires to get the vntes as
, all that is required. To do this he
1 '1 bushwhacks/; telling (inn man one
thing and avoiding that point when
he meet a man of a contrary opinion,
but striking a chord on some other
point. Only a few will get hn the
stump and tel! about what they do
and do not advocate, because there
might be men of both and perhaps
opposite opinions In fhi crowd. The
few who do speak talk on themes oi
national and known merits and de
merits, avoiding all the Urne compll
1 cations which might possibly lose
: them a vote or two.
The "bushwhacker” Is like the cun
ning fox—he will only tackle one ai
a time; others who may' be present
■ are henchmen. They rely on fooling
i the voter, and often do a good job
i >ur temperance petition did not ask
them for prohibition, because we did
not know if we wanted It or not. Wt
only begged our servants (?) for the
privilege of trying to rind out, to make
a law for ourselves. Their answei
cannot lie interpreted in any othei
way than (to put It into words), "You
are such a set of Idiots that we eannol
trust you with your own affairs and
you fiiil to have enough gumption tc
make a law." It’s wonderful what a
set .vf f",,ls these fellows left at home
\ and how quickly they found It out
I Hut then, w hen 1 take a second think
I they have known it good and hard
i ever since the 3d of November. They
judged us justly by our Job then, an.
the outfit which has so judged us i
u sample of our work and perhap;
| Of us.
Kind begets kind.
We need more men and fewer poli
tician-. in our Legislature and more
thinkers at home.
DAN A. KELIEU.
Cumberland. Yu., Marcn 3.
A Woman’s itoast.
Edttor of The Virginian:
Sir—Although 1 am not accustom
ed to writing for th( press, I eannol
longer restrain the impulse to lifl
1 my voice, though a feeble woman, Ir
the interest of the great Issue now
at stake in our blessed “Old Vir
ginia." It was the great pleasure
! and privilege of the writer to attend
the convention of the Anti-Saloon
League, held In your city January
1X-20, and up to that time. I had
thought, from impression# of child
hood and reverence, that the day ot
i heroes and statesmen, such as adorn
! the beautiful Capitol Square In bronze
and marble, had passed, but when
j I witnessed from the floor of that
convention such intellect, such learn
ing. such morality, such religion, I
erica aimosi aiouu in ,'cstasy, jwui
Christ, the same v.^terday, to-day
and forever." And now as X watch
j through the columns of your great
paper the progress of the work of
the "league” in the Legislature, 1
feel indeed that it is time, so to
speak, for some one of the followers
of our Lord and Master, in His name,
to take the "scourge of small cord"
and clear that Capitol of stubborn,
puffed up, “liquor elected" Demo
crats. Tlie idea to in,' of Jesus beg
ging and explaining ihinks of right
eousness to the representatives of
"Satan" is almost absurd.
Still, we are commanded to be in
"submission to the powers that be.”
I would like to ask why the liquor
interest is allowed a \ otee in that dis
cussion. Is it not an outlaw? Why,
then, is it allowed to plead for its
material good at the hands of the
lawmakers? That seems to me to be
| inconsistency. But. excuse me, that
is the "stock in trade” of our “great
: Democracy," so we are by this time
; prepared for such things.
No. Mr. Editor, 1 think I know
very nearly where the "dead fly" is
concealed in the .olntme&t” The
leaders of the Democratic party in
Virginia have been riding in on the
hacks of big, bull-necked barkeepers,
and their "pull" so long that if their
"horse” is crippled or dtsabled they
no longer see how they can continue
to "run this State." i just think if
I were Dr. Cannon and the Anti
Saloon League 1 would demand my
right and dare^ them to refuse it.
though you know Christians must be
patient and long-suffering. But,
thanks be to God, His arm is able,
and ilt thetp do Just as they wiH,
there is a day of reckoning coming,
not only before God s throng but at
the hands of nn outraged people.
Mr. Editor. I fear I am getting too
long, so wi'i quit before you lose pa
tience: but would like to inquire
why exsGovernor Swangpn is so quiet
Jjut now, X Wonder U he expect* to
come back to Pittsylvania, and after
everything la deemed and adjusted, as
it were, take aides.'' Wouldn't that
be tunny? My: My!
A VOICE KKUJI PITTSYLVANIA.
Danville, Vu,, March II.
is the AtiU-Saluon Lsgue Consistent?
Editor ot Thu Virginian;
Sir,—itecent editorials in various
.papers call for a Bettlement of this1
question at once. Of course, the gen- j
tleraon who nave made the charge 1
will make the amende honorable so
soon as they discover their mistake.
| Hence, the undersigned would give
1 the following testimony:
! At the birth ot the organization
! in Washington city a member of the
Virginia conference made a short 1
speech, in which he declared his pur- j
pose to use all honorable means to
ge persons to vote out tfle Saloon from ;
our afflicted country. ’>,e Bentlment
i seemed to please. Other speeches j
! were made to the same effect, and
: when the constitution was framed
| it declared about the same purpose. I
i There was no binding of after ac- j
tlon to have the same form of argu- j
| ment in every locality, when dtf
| ferent positions of liquor advocates ;
! called for different lines of argumen- j
tative thought. Between State-wide
and local option as an adopted policy ;
there was no call for a choice. Hence |
the framers of that "league" (we :
can have not a particle of doubt) '
went home determined to work zeal- !
ously in all elections where the sim
ple question of "saloon or no saloon” j
; was to be settled. In all military ,
campaigns the adoption of minor de
tails of roads, etc., must be left to
-tha-offieew-ln- 4he—fteM-- - They- - must *
| be recreant to the authority of the
j government that said "Go," if they
I knowingly took the way that would
! lead to certain defeat. Consequently
! it is the opinion of this humble scribe j
i that there would have been grave
Inconsistency had our Virginia men
I inuru iu c,vi tvc w tin law iuaM'19 iu ^
give the right of petition to our elti
: zens to have a State-wide election, to '
1 vote “yea” or "nay.” It was far from
I our thought that any lover of Rich
mond would ever call upon the coun
try people to let “our capital alone.”
Reason would also have dictated un
belief In the prophecy that city liquor
dealers would brag over their success :
In forbidding the counties to have
the fruits of local option. To do as
much harm in "dry" as in “wet” ter
ritory may be impossible, but that in- I
genuous men may generally And per
sons low- enough in morals to conduct
a “?peak-easv” or a “blind tiger" Is
surely credible. Ret appeal after ap
ipeal he made to every legislator: “give
our people a chance to speak and tell
our voters who says ‘No.’ "
F. M. EDWARDS,
Stony Creek. Va.. March 3, 1910.
Shall the People Rnle?
Editor of The Virginian:
Sir.—During the last campaign Mr
Rryan asked, “Shall the people rule?"
Mr. Taft said, “The people do rule.”
, The people of Virginia to-day are op
posed by one of the “interests." 1\^re
seems to be quite a trepidation on the
part of the General Assembly in de- ;
termining who should rule. Why this
hesitancy? Have we. the people of ;
j Virginia, made such asses of ourselves i
in the election of our "representa- ’
| tlves” as to (convince even those we
elected that we are unfit, incapable, to
j determine Important matters'.’
Shall the “regular," “solid” Demo- j
1 cratlc Old Dominion be guided by tier |
sons, or shall she cringe at the behest
of the liquor trust? Mr. Uvan's query
Is pertinent—“Shall the people rule?"!
What say you, “REPRESENTA- 1
TIVES”?
C. D. WENGER.
Payton. Va., March 1.
1
Virginia Press
on the Virginian
Danville Lite It.
Early In the past month the Rich
mond Virginian made its splendid ap- j
, penrance in our capital city. The i
initial as well as each succeeding
number of this live, ten-page daily j
bears the impress of meritorious work [
in all of Us departments. No better |
paper has been launched in Virginia ’
for many years. To be aide to scan
it secular daily in Virginia that does
not flaunt in the face of the reader
a liquor house advertlsemnet is re
lreshlng Indeed. Wo arc delighted to
i sea that the Virginian has joined
i hands with the Lynchburg News and
■ une or two other daily papers of the
State in excluding such advertising ;
matter from Its columns. The edi
j torial department of the new dally
| is conducted with great ability, the
i news service is not surpassed by any
j paper in the State. This paper de
serves a welcome in every home in
our Commonwealth.
We had a call durin the past
month from Mr. Henry Ravn, the
subscription solicitor of this paper,
who was working Danville in a most
thorough and intelligent manner. In
scanning the list, he obtained in Dan
ville hb subscribers, we were pleased
! to see that the bi^st people of the j
| community were among those enroll- i
ed as readers of this new publication. I
We take pleasure In commending
the paper to our readers as being
In every way worthy of their sup
port.—Danville Methodist.
A Warm Member.
As was expected and predicted, the
reception given The Virginian, Rich
mond's new paper, by Its contempo
raries In the local field is proving a
little warm, and may be expected
' to grow still more so. The new pa
i per was prepared to fight its waj*
i from the beginning against the odds
' of three rivals, and has not as yet I
shirked Its responsibilities nor shown
any evidences of raising the white
i feather. There have been several
1 tilts, especially with the "Supreme,”
and in each instance the youngerster, |
or, as the "Supreme” calls it, "the
! Old Lady,” has not only held its own, i
j but put its advisory on the peurile de
fensive.—Blackstone Courier.
Mr. Potts Vindicated.
The outcome of the charge against
the Rev. T. N. Potts in a trial here
Monday was gratifying to everybody
! in the community. Those who fol
lowed closely the evidence had antici
pated Justice Ayers* decision, and
i when he gave his Just verdict no one
was surprised. The inquiry covered
every angle of the case, and the vin
dication of the gentleman was as com
plete as the inquiry was broad and
isearching. Mr. Potts admitted that
he had made an error in not taking
the people generally Into his confi
dence, mixing more with them, and
talking "shop.” By that he meant
that had he told frankly that dis
ease • was- rampant among his Cheep,
and that they werS dying from an
unknown malndy. there would have
been no humiliating Indictment. A
desire to’hlde Me losses was prompt
ed* more by business pride than any
thing elsei as he was averse, like
most men, to parade his losses.—Wil
HamgKnrf OfiXAtlAa
richmonb^^irginian
PUBLISHED EVERY DAY EXCEPT SUNDAY.
BY
THE RICHMOND VIRGINIAN CO.. Toe.
SAMUEL W MEEK.Iiu»ini"M Menager.
B.JL WOODFIN...., .... .Managing Editor.
Iiueicere Office: "fhe Virginian RuiMing.
Governor end Uotw Street*.
RICHMOND,.VIRGINIA !
Daily on yaw, pmtm paid........HOI
Daily «U_montba punt—a paid..>3.0}
Daily throe eaontha, poatape paid.$1.09
at the poat-offioe at RMauoi Va.. ooder aat t!
March 3. 1879.
For aala by ncarabaya and dealara at 9« the <xrrr
GUEST
QUESNAY
0 0
Tarkington
Conriftt. NM. by tb« Medan Ctam?
Cayyrttbi. i*n. ItW, by lb* RMgwiy Caayaif
(Continued from Yesterday.)
"Oh. the paiD!" she cried. ’‘That Im
becile! If be has let me break my leg!
A pretty dniK'rr~i Strom dtiCT "mope
he is killed!”
Another automobile bad already come
up, and the occupants were hastily
alighting. Ward shouted to the fore
most to go for a doctor.
“I am a doctor.” the man answered,
advancing and kneeling quickly by the
dancer. “And you—you. may be of
help yonder.”
We turned toward the ruined car,
where Ward’s driver was shouting for
us.
“What is it?” called Ward as we ran
toward him.
“Monsieur,” he replied, “there is
some one under the tonneau here!”
From beneath the overturned ton
neau projected the lower part of a
man’s leg clad in a brown puttee and
a russet shoe. Ward's driver had
brought his tools, had Jacked up the
car as high as possible, but was still
unable to release the imprisoned body.
After considerable effort we rescued
the imprisoned body, which stirred in
pain.
T found that I was looking almost
straight down into the upturned face
of I.arrnbce Harman, and 1 cannot bet
ter express what this man had come to
be and what the degradation of his lift*
had written upon him than by saying
that the dreadful thing I looked upon
now was no more horrible a sjght than
the face I had seen, fresh from the
valet and smiling in ugly prl^e at the
stnrers. as he passed the tefrnce of
Larue on the day before the Grand
i’rix. f
We helped to carry him to the doc
tor’s car and to lift the dancer into
Ward's and to get Imth of them out
again at the hospital at Versailles,
where they were taken.
“IHd it aeetn to you.” said George
finally, “that a man sf frightfully in
jured could have any chance of getting
well?”
“No,” I answered. “I thought be
was dying ns we carried biin into the
hospital.”
“So did I. The top of Uls head seem
ed all crushed !u. Whew!" After a
pause he added thoughtfully, “it will
bo a great tiling for Louise.”
Louise was the name of his second
cousin, the girl who had done battle
with all her family and then run away
from them to be Larrabee Harman's
wife. Remembering the stir that her
application for divorce had made, I
did not understand how Harman's
death eonld benefit her. unless George
had some reason to believe that he had
made a will in her favor. However,
the remark had been made more to
himself than to me, and 1 did not re
spond.
The morning papers flared once
more with the name of I.arrabee Har
man, and we read that he was linger
ing. And the dancer had been right.
One of her legs was badly broken.
She would never dance again.
A irront iminv rw'nnli) !*-#»»* n Miuir frlnnHa
Id mind by writing to them, but more
do not, and Ward and l belong to the
majority. After my departure from
Paris I had but one missive from him,
a short note written at the request of
his sister, asking ute to be on the
lookout for Italian earrings to add
to her collection of old Jewels. So
from time to time I sent her what I
could find about Capri or lu Naples,
and she responded with neat little
letters of acknowledgment.
Two years l stayed on Capri, eating
the lotus which grows on that happy
island and paiuting very little. Bm
eveu on Capri people sometime? hear
the call of Paris, so there came a* last
a fine day when I. knowing that the
horse chestnuts were Ui bloom along
the Champs Elysees. threw my .-ope
soled shoes to a beggar, pac.wu u
rusty trunk and was olf for the banks
of the Seine.
At the end of a fortnight 1 went
over into Normandy and deposited
that rusty trunk of mine in u corner
of the summer pavilion in the court
yard of Mute. Brossard's inn. LesTrois
Pigeons, in n woodland neighborhood
that is there. Here 1 had painted
through a prolific summer of my youth,
and I was glad to find, as 1 bud hoped,
nothing changed, for the place was ]
dear to me.‘ Situe. Brosaard (dark,
thin, demure ns of yore, a flue looking
woman with a fine manner and much
the flavor of old Noriuuu portraits)
gave me a pleasant welcome, remem
bering me readily, but without sur
prise. while Arnedee. the antique servi
tor, cackled over me and was as proud
of my advent as if I bad been a new
egg and be hud iutd me. The simile
Is grotesque, but Arnedee Is the mota
henlike waiter lu France.
He is a white haired, fat old feljow.
always well sbaved. as neat as s bil
liard ball. In the daytime, when he
is partly porter, be wears s black tie.
a gray waistcoat broadly striped with
—Mist. ti<d (mm welst to Cast # white
apron like a skirt and so competently
encircling tbat hit trousers are of mere
_<-nnrg|tHnn(|||fy nnri fin rani ncccwrify, —._
but after 6 o’clock (becoming altogeth
er a maltre d'botel) he Is clad as any
other formal gentleman.
Amedee’s suggestions as to my re
past were deferential, but insistent.
His manner was that of a prime min
ister who goes through the form of
convincing the sovereign. He greeted
each of his own decisions with a very
loud ’•Blen!" as If startled by the brU*
llaucy of my selections, and, the menu
being concluded, exploded a whole vol
ley of “Blens” and aet off violently to
Instruct old Oaston, the cook.
The iuu Itself is gray with age, the
roof sagging pleasantly here and there,
and an old wooden gallery runs the
length Of each wing, the guest cham
bers of the upper story opening upon
it like the deck rooms of a steamer,
with boxes of tulips and hyacinths
along the gallery railings and window
ledges for the gayest of border lines.
in the course of time and well with
in the bright twilight Amedee spread
the crisp white cloth and served me at
a table on my pavilion porch. He
feigned anxiety lest I should find cer
tain dishes (those which he knew were
most delectable) not to tny taste, but
was obviously so distended with fatu
ous pride over the whole meal that it
became a temptation to denounce at
least some trilling sauce or garnish
ment. Nevertheless so much mendacity
proved beyond me. and 1 spared him
and my own conscience. The salad
■ prepared and the water bubbling to
the coffee machine, he favored me with
a discourse on the decline in glory of
| I.es Trols Pigeons.
“Monsieur, it is the automobile*.
They have done it. Formerly, as when
j monsieur was here, the painters cam*
, from Paris. What busy times and
I what drolleries! Ah, it was gay In
those days: Monsieur remembers well.
Ha. ha! But now, I think, the auto
mobiles have frightened away th*
p« Inters.
“I should have said tbat we should
be happier If we had many like mon
sieur.’’ went on Amedee. “But it 1*
early in the season to despair. Then,
too. our best suit Is already engaged."
“15y whom?"
“Two men of science who arrlr*
next week. One is a great man. Mine.
Brossard is pleased that he is coming
to Les Trols Pigeons, but I tell her it
is only natural. He comes now for th*
first time because he likes the quiet.”
‘‘Who is the great man, Amedee?"
“Ah! A distinguished professor of
science, truly. He is a member of th*
institute. Monsieur must have heard
of that great Professor AeredecT’
| “The name la knowr, Who Is tbs
other?”
“A friend of his. I do aot know. An
the upper floor of the east wing they
have taken—the grand suit—those two
and their valet de chambre. That is
truly the way lu modern times—ths
philosophers are rich men.”
“Yes,’’ I sighed. "Only the painters
are poor nowadays."
I
‘ iia. ua. monsieur: Ameaec^j'iuga
ed cunningly. “It was always ertfcy to
see that monsieur amuses himself only
with his {minting.*’
“Thank you, Amedee," 1 responded.
“I have amused other people with it,
too, I fear."
“Mousieur remembers the Chateau da
Quesuay. at the crest of the hill on tha
; road north of Dives?”
1 "I remember."
“It is occupied this season by soma
rich Americans."
“How do you know they are rich?"
“Dleu de Dieu!” The old fellow ap
pealed to heaven. “But they are Amer
icans'”
“And therefore millionaires. Perfect
ly. Amedee."
“Perfectly, monsieur. Perhaps mo*
sleur knows them.”
“Yes. I know them.”
“Truly.*" He affected dejectfa*
“Aud poor Mme. Brossard thought
monsieur hud returned to our old hotel
because be liked It aud remembered
our wine of Beaune and the good beds
and old Gaston’s cooking!"
“Do not weep, Amedee,” I said. “1
have come to- paint, not because 1
know the people who hare taken
Queanay.** And 1 added, “I may not
see them at aU."
(To be Continued.)
Pkllm-fUc-L
A friend met a cheerful Irish ettlaen
who had plainly suffered some hard
knocks.
“Well, Pat. how are you setting
along now?” he Inquired. _
"Oh. ot’nt tiara Up yeti but Ol have
a fine job in Honnolutee, and fare paid,
Oi sail to-morry.”
“Sure, man, you'll never he able to
work there. The temperature is a
hundred la the shade.*' ,