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THE GREAT GAME
By AGNES LOUISE PROVOST
(CopyrlEht, by
It was a big day nt the race truck,
aud as it wae also a holiday, there
were at least four thousand men
crowding and pushing one another in
the poo) room.
There weie three men among the
4,009 wt wore vitally interested in
each other's movements, hut it was
not until .they came in from the sec
ond heat that Mr. William Lyman
address not found in the directory
discovered .1. Brownley of the San
Francisco detective force standlug bo
fore the hoards, well in front of the
crowd and apparently studying the
ilds with thoughtful eye. It occurred
to Mr. Lyman that J. Drownley's other
eye was keeping watch on the rear
exits.
Mr. Lyman melted away Into the
crowd like fog before the sunBblne, be
lug by nature ever modest and retiring
when an official appeared on the land
scape, lie wriggled his way back un
til he Bigoted his friend and co-partner,
Mr. Collins, and retired with him
from the range of inquisitive ears.
"Mickey," he mumbled cautiously,
"We're pinched."
'Hell!" observed Mr. Collins pro
fanely, staring around him in an un
pleasantly (suspicious manner.
"Sure thing. Brownley's up in
front. He's done up something great,
hut you can't fool me on Brownley.
It's him sure."
Mr.jCollins, expressed a. desire that,
the immortal' part of J. Brownley
might be subjected to a roasting pro
cess for an indefinite futurity. Under
stress of emotion, Mr. Collins was apt
to be vituperative.
"He's follered us all the way from
'Frisco," he grumbled wrathfully, "an'
three times this month we've Just got
off with our necks. The only way to
get rid of Brownley is to kill him."
"And have the whole U. S. know we
did it? Not on your tin-type, Mickey.
I don't throw my head away like that.
Never, kilj a man unless you have to.
S-pose you sneak around front and see
if the road's clear for a break."
Mr, Collins worked his way swiftly
hack to the front entrances and casu
ally looked out. One would have said
that he was enjoying the beauty of the
cloudless sky, so innocently distant
and abstracted was his gaze; certainly
no one would have suspected that he
saw two men look quickly at him and
away.
The two men outside looked at one
auother, and moved closer. They were
in no -hurry. .7. Brownley's orders
were that unless these two shy birds
could he captured together at the
track, tbeywere to be quietly and cau
tlously followed to their lairs, and
there invited to take up their resi
dence in the nearest police station.
The reasons why Messrs. Lyman
aud Collins were so greatly in demand
were numerous and interesting. These
were versatile gentlemen, and if one
vocation proved irksome or unhealth
fill from the legal point of view, they
could always pass ou to another. They
found it convenient to change their
occupation frequently, as well as their
post office address; it diverted the of
ficial mind, and kept it guessing.
Mr. Cpllins found his partner in a
niarvelously short time; he was used
to it. He fhook his head a trifle,
which meant thai, their Immediate fu
ture was not of an encouraging nature.
Mr. Lyman thrust out his under lip in
token of his displeasure, as they edged
away from their nearest neighbors.
"If we run for it when the crowd
goes out to the track, there'll he a
million smart Alecks ready to help
em catch us," he mused discontent
edly. "1 think they mean to catch us
here if they can, or track us down -to
a good place nnd nab- us. But they
don't know that we're onto 'em. We'll
fool 'em. We might raise a big row,
Mickey, and light out In the racket.
We'll stampede the crowd, that's it!"
Mr. Lynian radiated good nature
again, as he thought of the mischief
tt. hla command.
"Fire?" queried Mr. Collins duhi
ously. "M'm, 'no, Mickey; that's an old
gag. We'll do fiomethln' original.
Brownley's in front of the whole
hunch awful reckless to Htand In
front of a crowd the other chaps are
hack of It, aud we'll keep about three
quarters back, and .save our shins
while wo lose the other fellows. Chase,
Mickey; It's 'most time for the start."
Mr. Collins was not a man of many
words, but his little eyes twinkled as
Mr. Lyman hastily told hint whnt to
do. He wriggled swiftly away, lost
himself in the thickest of the crowd
aud 111 imaged to get his brown derby
knocked off. When he came up from
enrolling for It in the piohh, snvornl
feet from wh;ie ho had been, ho had
in his hand a largo and rakish light
felt, which he tilted well over 0110
iyu. Ho was now ready for business,
aad If tberv won- any luvvaUgatlng
Sliortstory Pub. Co.)
gontlemen craning their necks to see
a man In a brown derby, they missed
him.
Then Lynian caught Collins eye
over the hendB of a dozen or more
men, and pulled out a hugo roll of bills
which ran Into the thousands, flutter
ing them over with the air of a man
who has plenty more, and will risk
the whole business with all the. pleas
ure in the world. He turned his back
deliberately upon Collins, who edged
his way toward him, watching him
with sharp but furtive eyes.
A swift hand shot toward the roll of
bills, but Lyman was ready for it, His
revolver flashed out as he whirled
around and faced the dodging Collins;
the hand with the bills was crammed
safely in his pocket.
"Look out in front!" he yelled, lev
eling the weapon nt Collins' head, and
a score of men in the line of his aim.
melted away with; warning shouts: and
jammed against those in front. Only
20, certainly no more, but the mischief
was done. It was marvelous how
slight a thing may set a great crowd
In motion.
Up at the front Brownley turned in
surprise as he heard a roar behind
him. Four thousand men, not more
than 20 of whom know the causo for
their flight, were bearing down on him
In a howling, fear-stricken mob, sweep
ing toward the rear exits. The pool
room, wits not as. lavishly provided
with exits as the moro modern struc
tures, and a mob there was a thing to
flee from.
There was but one thing to do, and
that was to run for life or death in the
same direction. Even as he ran Brown-
- r-
"J2TSSJ3S. lYTZWiM)
ley saw men piling on each other in
layers in their frantic efforts to Jump
from the windows, but he shot past
them for the broader oxlt ahead and
felt himself whiz dizzily through the
air as ho took a flying jump into the
hack inclosure and landed on all fours
on something soft and struggling a
German of vast circumference, who
swore frightfully at the concussion.
A pain shot through Brownley's foot,
but he rolled swiftly to one side, just
as the pushing, struggling mass poured
out on the ground.
It was over In three minutes, and
men rushed from all sides to disen
tangle the heaped-up mass of human
ity. Many picked themselves up and
limped off, disheveled and cursing, but
some had to be lifted carefully, with
broken ribs and legs, and bleeding
faces, and above and around there
was a babel oLexclted questions. Rolls
or money had disappeared in the rush,
watches were lost and hats gone, but
no one knew what had happened.
Later, somo of the few who had
seen It told how slight a matter had
started a great stampede, and J.
Brownley swore to himself as ho went
through the streets in an ambulance,
with a leg and ankle that would lay
him up for weeks to come, and 10,000
bruises distributed impartially over
his person, but Messrs. William Ly
man nnd M. Collins wore far away,
speeding through the land In a Pull
man car and drinking cool drinks.
liven .1. Brownley and his exasper
ated aids did not guess that thoy had
done this thing.
"It was a great, game," tighed Mr.
Collins, contentedly, tapping his glass
with his finger and noting with
dreamy satisfaction that tholr noaroBt
fellow-traveler was throo chairs awuy.
"It was the sllckoBt thing 'I've soon
this season, and thoro wus lots of
mouoy dropped or plnchod in the shuf.
flo. I went In with the crowd, Billy,
and I made somo fulr pickings my
Hoir." "So did I," admitiod Mr. Lyman,
with a remlnlucout chuckle. "Wo'vo
mud j the haul of our llvou this day,
uud If Brownloy WMon't kill!, it'll
take him all summer to piece himself
together again. It cortainly was 1
groat game, Mickey. We'll work v
agai."
BROKEN LEQ5 AND FLOWERS.
True Artistic Temperament ai Evl.
denced by Landor.
"At a dinner In Philadelphia," said a
clergyman, "I ouce heard the lament
ed Bishop Potter talk In u most amus
ing manner about the artistic tempera;
ment.
"First ho described the contradic
tions iu the characters of Whistler,
Poc, Hawthorne and other great Amer
icans. Then ho turned to Landor, the
great Englishman.
" 'Landor,' he said, 'was at the same
time the most violent and brutal and
the most delicate and sensitive o(
men. He adored flowers. The gar
dens of his beautiful villa In Florence
were full of flowers, and the pool
walked among them dally, novel
plucking them, only bending over them
reverently to admire their loveliness
and their perfume.
"Laudor's cook one day served hint
a wretched dinner, and in his rage the
poet threw the man out of the win
dow into a bed of splendid roses.
"As the cook wrlthod with a broken
leg below, Landor from the window ex
claimed in a horror-Btrlcken voice:
"'Good gracious, I . forgot the
roses!'"
Blamed Death on "Debil-Debil."
Australian aborigines fear croco
diles but have no fear of sharks. The
author of "Confessions of a Beach
comber" says: "They take every caro
to avoid crocodiles, oxerclslng great
caution and clrcumspoctlon when
crossing inlets nnd crooks. . .
. Their indifference to sharks is
founded on the belief that those which
inhabit shallow water among the Is
lands never attack a living man. And'
so they continue to think, notwith
standing a tragic incident like the fol
lowing, which, indeed, they attributed
to a 'debil-debil' and not a shark at
all: The captain of a beche-de-mer
cutter was paddling in a dingey along
the edge of a detached roof not many
miles from Dunk island, whore ov
eral of his boys were swimming and
diving. Suddenly one of thorn was
seized and so terribly mutilated that
he died in a few minutes. Although
the captain was within eight or ten
feet of the boy and three of his mates
were not more than a fow yards oft
. . . no one saw a shark or any
other fish capable of inflicting such in
juries as have caused the death of
'Jimmy' nor was there any disturb
ance on the surface of the water."
Peril of a New Dance.
"If the young people ullow this barn
dance craze to grow," remarked a
well-known local architect, "buildings,
here will have to be erected much
more substantial than heretofore that
is, all buildings such as private homes
or clubs where dancing Is carried on.
There is a jump and a swing about
barn dances that will,, cause swaying'
of the beams in even the most sub
stantial frame houses.
"With a whole crowd on the floor
at once and skipping up and down on
the floor right together, with the
music, you can imagine what might
happen. You know how necessary
it is sometimes for a company of
soldiers to break step when crossing
a bridge. If this dance continues pop.
ular, It may be necessary for some of
the dancers to keep out of step with
the music. I know of one danco out
at the Colonial club last season at
which the barn dance numbers had to
bo stopped, the buildings swayed so
uoticeably." Cleveland Plain Dealer.
BILLY'S EYE-OPENER.
Dog How can you eat those old
suspenders?
Goat Oh, these mornings I want a
"bracer."
A Paying Profession.
Mr. Million H'm! Want to marry
my daughter? Nowspnper reporter, I
understand. I never heard of a news
paper rojwrter getting rich.
Mr. Qulckpon Oh, there aro plenty
of lucky reportors. I know a dozon
who have married heiresses. Now
Tork Weekly.
She Knew Him.
Mr. Crimsonbeak The doctor said
I must glvo up coffee.
Mrs, Crlmaonbeak What aro you
going to uso now, cloves? Yonkorr
Statesman.
To bo Ignorant or ouo'a Jgaoruuc la
tho malady of Igtmruuco, SprlUi,
lsssi
NOTES.
Mr frm
Bake and burn up the rubbish.
That low, wot ground will do well In
I lord's grass.
Kill a sheep this full and corn the
meat. It Is delicious.
Novor feed more to the nulmuls than
thoy will eat up clean.
Often, the pessimist needs a change
of diet as much as anything oIho.
Keep down tho weeds In the fall.
It will lighten the work In the spring.
Pig raising is moat successful where
skim milk Is a largo part of the feed
ration.
Machinery all housed? You cannot
ufford to let the rust eat nut the lining
of your pocketbook.
Irregular feeding is one contribu
tory cause to horses acquiring tho
habit or bolting their feed.
Put a mulch of strawy manure
around the berry bushes and the grape
vines, hut don't put on loo early.
Your first mistake is excusable, your
second, never; for no man has any
business making the same mistake
twice.
The dairyman's profits come iu dur
ing all the year. That is' one reason
why that type of farming Is bettor
than any other.
A good herd of cows of one breed
and in thrifty condition is tho best
kind of an Index to tho character of
the farmer who owns them.
Colts will not raise themselves. Hit-and-miss
methods never yot produced
the best horses. Romembor that rais
ing colts pays if you give them intel
ligent care.
Careful feeding can keep up the
milk flow. It doos not pay to let It
run' down, for once a smaller yield is
established it cannot be inoreascd un
til after another calving.
Not only place the farm machinery
under cover, but oil it up so that
atmospheric dampness will not rust
the exposed bright parts. A little
time now will save dnys or trouble
noxt spring.
A tidbit in tho way of a piece of
sugar or an apple will prove Ideal in
winning the confidence of the colt.
Always have something for him, and
you will be proud and delighted at. tho
attention he will shower upon you.
Grade up your dairy cows by using
a pure bred bull. It may take a fow
years to do it, but each year saving
the best of the heifer calves will give
you in time a herd of sown that will
prove fur more profitable thon your
prcsont herd.
No farmer evor did things so well
but that somewhere there wus room
for improvement. Always be on tho
lookout for better methods and new
ideas which will make the work of the
farm easier and the productiveness or
the farm greater.
Raise the best crops you cau and
sell them at the best price you can,
but don't speculute. The farmer that
begins to deal on the grain market has
taken his first step to ruin, for noth
ing but failure and loss ever came to
tho farmer who tried his hand at tho
game.
An old swindle that la being tried
on the farmers again is that of selling
thorn a new and wonderful kind of
wheal and binding thorn by u contract
to return to the mun (who thus places
them In a way to gut rich), a certain
number of bushols of tho grain next
your. Look out Tor It.
Shoop that have boon a long time
without salt are apt to mako them
selves sick eating loo much or it
when tho opportunity comes. Bo
regular Iu reeding It to them, or, hot
ter Htlll, provide a box to which tho
flock cau havu access ut all tlmos.
Thoy will help themselves, and wllj
oat only such ub Ik, koo4 for them,
ii
Rape mulcts n gobd pasture for
hogs.
Plow the Iti ml only when it crum
bles away from the plow.
Not, "Shall I build a silo?" but
"How Iflrgf shall I build It?"
Get things In shape for the win
ter. Make the poultry snug.
Try feeding wheat to tho bona and
see If It will Increase I ho egg yield.
Kind words Is tho oil that makcH
the machinery of life run smoothly.
Gel after the tent caterpillars iu tho
1 roes. Cut. out tholr nests and burn
them.
Why not a good dairy If a dairy
herd at all? You can have such by
caro In breeding.
Currant bushes should be propagat
ed only from bushes that boar the
most and best fruit.
Attend to the (lie draining this fall.
Perhaps all that alls that young or
chard is the need of tiling.
Poison vinos growing In the fence
corners aro poor testimonials to a
farmer's character. Dig 'em out.
Good winter quarters must be pro
vided for the sheep ir they do well.
They need sunlight, fresh air and dry
floor.
Neglected to mark the turkeys and
now there comes the dispute with the
nolghlmrs as to who's who, and what's
what.
Pound for pound, sheep uinnuro is
three times as valuable as cow mu
uure. One argument in favor or keep
ing sheep on Ihe farm.
The munure Hpreader Is a drudge
saver. Many a farmer thinks he can
not, afford one who would And that a
few seasons' work would moro than
pay for It.
The overhead rack Is a poor place
from which to fivsd the horse. Bo
sides being an unnatural way for the
animal to feed, it. causes a great deal
or dust, which is a bad thing.
Have a hospital pen where the
sheop that give evidence or bolus;
sick can be isolated and treated. Many
a contagious disease can Iu this way
he kept from spreading In h flock.
Pull a few of the tomato plants ou
which green tomatoes still hang and
put iu the cellar. They will ripen and
you will continue to have ripe, fresh
tomatoes until after Thanksgiving, if
you manage right.
The chief trouble with the party
line is that some.rolks mako hogs
of themselves and monopolize the
telephone in visiting to the prevention
of the transaction or urgent business
by other parties on the same line.
Watch the chickens when Ihe runn
er is going through the barnyard,
and you can orten learn a heap as to
what kind of a man lie in. If the
hens run as though In fear of their
lives be sure thai, that rarmor has a
brutal strain In him .which even the
chicks have discovered.
Don't let the fence get Iu bud re
pair. II. is not only an invitation to
the stock to get breechy. but It make
the work of fixing them up much more
difficult than would have been the case
had they been Ilxed In season. Re
member the old adage, "A Htltch In
time saves nine."
A road which has successfully stood
the test of two years at Mankato,
Minn., and cost only 80 cents a Hn
oal fool, was made by overlaying the
ordinary road with crushed stone a'nd
gravel upon which a dressing of ce
ment wus spread followed by a coat
ing of sand and then well rolled.
in our opinion the best time ror a
cow to come rresh is in the fall, for
lliu stimulus which then comes to
the lacteal glands will with proper
feeding and care continue a good milk
flow through the winter; thon, with
fresh grass in the spring, u still fur
ther stimulus is received. On tho
other hand, the cow that Is fresh iu
tho spring receives all the stimulus at
ouce, then as 11 y time comos she be
gins to shrink and when she goes
on winter reed she falls off rapidly.
, farm paper suggests a uso for
old tin cans by melting off tho tops
and bottoms and straightening out the
tin and lining the inside of the chick
on house, it certainly would make
tho walls aud corners mice und rat
proof, but how about the llco and
mites? The small overlapping pieces
of tin would prove Ideal hiding places
for the pests. This difficulty might
bo overcome, however, by whitewash
ing aud making sure that tho cracks
woro plastered flush with tho whitewash.
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