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About The frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965 | View Entire Issue (May 29, 1919)
| i r | The Finding of Jasper Holt BY Grace Livingston Hill Luts Author of "Marcia Schuyler", "Phoebe DeaneT*, ' "The Obsession of Victoria Gracen", etc. ' 1 I ~— i i h i ... _ . ._ ..._ _i_ It had not been a pleasant task.' Scathlin was a foul mouthed, foul souled companion for any man to tie to, and his personal habits were any thing but attractive. Time and again Holt had almost turned from his task with disgust, resolved to let his rights and all go rather than be tied to the creature another hour. Yet he had stuck to him; and now, after these many days of cunning and craftiness, of trickeries too numerous to mention, of attempted escape on Scathlln’s part; after taking side trips to funer als of Scathlin’s relatives who never had existed, except in imagination; visits to business men who were sup posed to be hounding Scathlin to his death and yet who were never found after all this they were on their way back to Hawk valley! Scathlin had come to the end of his money and his wits, and had been compelled to accept the escort and financial aid of Holt back to the place from which he had started, because he did not dare to do anything else. This he did both on his own account and for the sake of his employers, who would not hesitate to leave him in the lurch to save them selves, and who had warned him above all things not to let Holt suspect his mission with those papers to the east ern syndicate. Besides, there was al ways the hope that he might yet es cape and make his way tiack in time to present those papers to the man whom Harrington had said would pay him a big reward for bringing them. Harrington and his men cculd not have done It without suspicion, but the plan was that Scat hi hi should profess to have found something valuable to the syndicate and be willing to sell it at a good price. It was no wonder that Scathlin's eyes had a hunted look, and his bad old face under Its stubbly growth was almost pitifully desperate as he looked at the fresh face of the sweet young girl, and for the moment for got hl3 misery, gloating over her beauty, while Holt seemed to be en gaged with the sunset view. But Holt caught the gleam In his victim's eye and his heart burned hotly within him. He could have crushed the creature then aud there for the insolence of his ga?.e. He could have crushed him like vermin and felt no sin. All the man In him rousad to resent the evil look. “S.sthl’n!" His tone was cutting wit'., command and the old man turned cringing aud met the steely glance of bis captor, then impatient and trem bling with anger began to look again out of the window; again the crimson wrath curbed up Ills leathery neck and induced his coarse features. fhe girl, half aware of what had been going on. turned and took it all In. a frightened color flickering up Into her cheeks Her eyes, growing largo with vague horror, met Holt's Btpely gase, saw it change and soften reassuringly, as it he wore holding at bay a loat30tne bloodhound and wished her to understand she need not fear. The glri, with one fleeting look of grat itude toward the young man, turned back again to her window as if noth ing had happened. In fact no onlooker would have suspected that anything at all had happened, and yet • really a little drama had been enacted and all the actors understood it as thorough ly as if it had been spoken. But one word only had been audible, and the girl wasn’t sure she lnvd heard that aright. The dusk dropped down and the train sped on over the plains. And now the sunset stains grew deeper and blended into gold and crimson and lifted the gray Into clear om.1 spaces of luminous beauty, spreading the panoply of color rar along horizon of the plain. It was a tiring to make one look in awe. to hush evil thoughts and bring a holiness to hearts. Something of its calm and strength crept into the girl's expres sion as she watched it. and once she half turned to see if Iiolt was watch ing too. But Holt was sitting facing the ether way and could see only the fading trails of glor y in the sky as it sped away from, his paze, though ho had caught the reflection of wonder from her face, and averted his own eyes as if from too holy a sight. Those who knew Hoit, or thought they knew him, would have laughed loud and long at suet an idea of him, but it was true. The girl felt it as she turned safely back to her sunset. ScathUh was not enjoying the view. He was'looking furtively on every side to see if there could be by any chance a good place where he might risk throwing out that'- cursed wallet and hope never to find It again. If only there would be a station—or be could risk dropping It. out of the window B-'u soisie water tank or something. Bu* the plain slid by, a level monot or - broken only by the roze and emer aid and gold of the setting sun. ScatU 11,, grew more and moro desperate. It was growing dark, and he cldred not ‘i -ow the wallet where he could net find it again, or where someone else might find it—and yet! They were rearin'’ Hawk valley. The morning would bring them within the ranging of Holts man—that band of traine 1 and JcMOted outlaws who were as re lentless In tlhBir justice a* they were - j careless of their lives. No mercy was to be expected from their hands if once he fell among them. He shivered as a tall shaft of a Dare tree, dead and stark, stood out in the distance against the clear gold of the sunset line. It was on such a tree he had seen a cattle thief hang, ghastly against the sky, as he rode by once Just at night fall. It might easily be his fate be fore another sunset. If he conld not get away in the night all chance of escape before they reached Hawk val ley was gone, for well he knew Jasper Holt's men were set at intervals along the way, sentinels ready to head him , off. And what treatment could he ex- J pect from either Jasper Holt or his men with that incriminating wallet in his pocket? He had been a fool to take | up with Harrington’s offer. Money or no money, it wasn’t worth the risk. He I was getting to be an old man and not' so ready to face death as when his [ blood was hot and his hand steady. 1 He had not even any weapons of de-! fense, thanks to his grim captor who j had disarmed him while he slep^ the first night of their Journey together.1 There had never been any open recog- J nltion of the fact between them, save that one glance as Scathlln put his hand to the pocket where it had been and was not. He had charged with his eyes in one look of helpless fury,1 and Holt's clear gray eyes had met his ' unflinchingly in acknowledgment. That1 had been all, but Scathlln knew then ' that there was nothing for him but to 1 evade Holt and get away if possible. 1 He would stand no chance in an open 1 conflict, and his captor was untiringly I vigilant He glanced again at the' stern face opposite him, wondering1 »iitii, nuum uo iuc iaio tu wuitu no was surely, swiftly hastening. States prison? Or would they take the law Into their own hands? He knew what that might mean only too well, and again the desperate look passed over hl3 (ace with Hate and Murder looking dimly from his eyes. How he would like to spring at that slim brown i throat opposite him and throttle the life from the young fellow. Only a kid } —a mere kid—and yet he had with stood many, and had power to cruch J Scathlin In spite of Sll his boasted cunning. The look of a serpent crept into the little gleaming eyes of the old man as he noticed the quick glance his companion cast at the girl across the aisle; and his own eyes followed filled with hate. Yes, he would like to drive his fat, hairy fingers into the white throat of the girl before the eyes of her gallant defender if only he had Holt helpless! But instead, here was he, helpless himself! And he must find a way to escape before morn ing, or else get rid of that wallet in some safe way. Surely, surely Holt would be off his guard sometimes for a little space. He had scarcely slept a wink for four days; how could he en dure it much longer? But Scathlln’s cogitations were cut short by the entrance of the conductor at last and he turned to watch the girl as she spoke to him. “I was to have had a section re served for me,” she was saying to the conductor. “My brotherinlaw, Mr. James Harrington, of Hawk valley, ar ranged for it, and telegraphed me that It was all right, Soe, I have the tele gram. But the porter said I must come in here until I saw you because I had no ticket for the Pullman." She held out the yellow envelope and the conductor looked at it. "Your brother’s name is Harrington? I You are going to Hawk valley?" He looked at her sharply. "Well. Mnat wuit a fpw minutAq till T pn through the next car and then I’ll see to it. It ought to be all right." Ho bustled on his way attending to his passengers and the girl sat back again to wait. At the name “Harrington” Scathlin had turned with a start and looked to- ' ward the girl; but even in the act he caught the narrow gleam of Holt’s ! | half closed eyes, and, remembering, I I turned back again to Ills window while 1 his thoughts went pounding into new | j channels. He had made a mistake, of course, to let Holt see that he had i heard, so he kept his eyes toward the ' window until it grew quite dark. But he had a plan at last. In another minute he got upon his feet, yawning, 1 and declared his intention of getting i a drink of water from the cooler at the other end of the car. “Good idea!” said Holt, rising and | following his captive down the aisle i lazily. 1 Scathlin reached the cooler first and took his drink, while Holt stood wait ing for the cup and let Scathlin go back to his seat alone, apparently not noticing him. Scathlin settled back in his seat with on^ eye on Holt, and one eye on the girl. ! Holt stood drinking in a leisurely way, apparent’y Interested In lookilng through the glass of the door iuto the I next car, though he was fully aware ■ that Scathlti» was fumbling in the tn | nor pocket of his flaohel shirt- • He tin ; gered, hoping that the old man would do something which would make him more certain of what he already be lieved to be true, and saw Scathlin . finally, after repeated tumbling under the shirt, draw forth a small dark ot Ject that, in the one swift glimps Holt had of it, looked like his owi leather wallet in search of which h had come this long, hard Journej Anxious to see what Scathlin's nex move was to be, he remained quietl; standing and still apparently lookin through the car door, though not i move of Scathlin's was lost upon him To his amazement he suddenly sat Scathlin bend forward and pick u] something from the car floor, then leai toward the girl in the opposite sea and put the object in her lap, at th< same time speaking to her. Had th' man picked up something the girl liai dropped, or was he-? Preposter ous! The fellow woaldn’t dare, witl a strange girl. She was smiling an( looking down at the thing in her la; and seemed to be thanking him. Shi had probably dropped her handker chief or pocketbook and Scathlin hac picked it up. Holt sauntered leisurel; back to his seat and found Scathlin; fumbling with his shoe lace. H< studied him narrowly and fancied tha he detected a look of cunning satisfac tion on the stubbly old face, yet wac puzzled to know what caused it. Hac the scoundrel dared to give those pa pers to the girl when he stood in ful view? It seemed incredible—and yet! If he had, Holt’s hands were prettj well tied and he had two to watch in stead ot one. He didn’t like the idee of shadowing this beautiful younj woman. Just then the conductor returned and spoke to the girl. "Well, your berth’s reserved for yoc all right, but it was in the name ol Harrington. It's Section 7, in the nexl car. This your baggage? Come this way and I’ll show you.” The girl followed the conductor nrlilt n Viol# Vinaifnf inn crlnnoa ♦ Anrn e/1 Scathiln, who was engaged with his shoe. Holt noticed she held her hand bag clasped tightlj, as it bhe were afraid it might be taken from her When she was gone the night settled down Unpleasantly about them and Scathiln, apparently worn out, snored as he had not dared to do for a week But Holt sat up and studied his prob lem. He could not afford to take any chances on sleep that night; more over his heart was in a tumult. This girl was coming to Hawk Valley to visit the Harringtons. She was a sister of Mrs. Harrington, the hand somest woman, the best dressed worn an, the most influential woman in all that valley. Would he ever see the girl? Sometimes, from afar perhaps —and a bitter look swept over his lace. Scathiln slept on, with his coarse lower jaw down dropped, and all his unpleasant features relaxed, He was no charming picture to look upon. Holt noticed that there was no longer that furtive grasp of one hand upon his breast which had been since their Journey together had begun. Scath lin's horny hands, with their grasping look of cunning, were lying idly by his side, and Scathlin himself was en joying a well earned rest, his heavily shod feet sprawled out under Holt’s seat. The night droned on; the train sped »n its way through the darkness, and still Holt sat wide awake and think ing. “I can’t quite dope things out,” he said to himself as he settled back in a new position. CHAPTER II. Meanwhile Jean Grayson had fol lowed her bustling conductor into the sleeper with a sense of deep relief. She had been frankly Tightened since the rough old tramp looking creature across the aisle had landed a worn looking wallet surreptitiously in her lap and asked if he hadn’t heard her say she was going to Mr. Harrington at Hawk Valley, and would she be so good as to give that case of im portant papers to him and not let anyone else know she had it? She had accepted the trust because she did not know what else to do; and, after all, it seemed a simple Bnough request. The man had ex plained that he had to go off In an other direction at the next stop and could not deliver the goods himself. and it was most important that it get to her brother at once. There did not seem to be any good reason why Bhe should refuse, and yet It had frightened'her, and she wished with all her heart that she had gone with the conductor to see about the sleeper and not stayed here to have this' dirty old leather case put into her keeping by that dirty old man. She did not know what to do with it. She hated to put tt in her dear little new hand bag, and she restrained her well cut nose from a shrinking sniff as she hastily put it out of sight. She had sat looking out of the darkened window with her heart in a tumult as the tall young man with the fine eyes and the air of reckless assurance came hack to his seat. What had he to do with the old fel low? Could he be his son? No, never! But did he know about the important papers? Could ho have put the old man up to giving them to her, sc that, under some pretense or other he himself might speak to her? She did not dare to look his way lest, he should presume upon the old man’i speaking. This, her first western trip was a fearsome thing to her, allhougl she reveled in the Joy of it. Yet, when sue arose to follow th> conductor and gave one swift com prehonslve glance toward the eppo site seat, she saw a respectful pair o gray eyes looking interestedly at her with nothing presumptuous in them and £he Instantly fait that there wi no r.eed to fear that young man. XI might be dressed like a cowboy, bu he had eyes like a g'P.t'.eman, Miss Crayson was tired, fr- ^ .a ha. come a '-erg journey, Etopjlujj a da -Jon the way with relatives who had s taken her sight seeing and kept her 1 going every minute, so that she was s glad to creep into her berth as soon . as the porter had made it up. t She shrank in dislike from the r leather case in her handbag, and after ; some hesitation took it out and t wrapped it in a leaf from a magazine . she had brought with her. She could r not bear to have the thing in with > her nice fresh handkerchiefs and > dainty little articles. It seemed con* t tamlnatlng. She had a half Impulse > to throw it away or lose it; and then ! her conscience reproached her loudly l for so dishonorable a thought. Ths - papers might be valuable, of course, i and in that case her brother would 1 have, just cause to blame her if she i did not bring them. At the same time i she hated the thought of carrying around anything that had been in the . possession of that repulsive looking ’ man. As she settled herself to sleep and ' drew around her the folds of the soft silk Pullman robe that had been her mother’s parting surprise, loving thoughts of those she had left be hind her filled her mind. All the little tender words, looks and acts of loving sacrifice that she might be well fitted out for this journey, came flocking to be recognized, until unbidden tears filled her eyes. This silken robe was an extravagance, she knew, and would be paid for by many a denial on the part of father and mother, but it rep resented their great love for her. A thought of what they would have felt about her being accosted by that rough man and asked to carry that package for him came to trouble her, yet what other possible thing was there for her tojlo but to accept it? It certainly couTd nof Tie Jynainlte W an Tnfernal machine. Her mother wnnlri hnvp thnne’hf of Romothincr of that nature the first thing—or Infec tion, perhaps smallpox or something equally horrible. That was possible, of course. But still, the man looked healthy enough. Her father? Yes, her father would undoubtedly have approved of her taking the package. Her father was one who never thought of himself when anything in the shape of duty demanded attention, and he had brought her up with the same feeling. Anyway, now that she had taken it and agreed to deliver it, there seemed nothing more to be done but to keep her word, and it was a simple enough affair, of course, and, after all, quite reasonable. Why should it bother her so? Nevertheless, it mingled with her dreaming thoughts as she drifted off to sleep, and a kind of assurance with regard to it came as she remembered the steady, clear eyes of the younger man. Softly in her silken wrapping she lay and slept while the monotonous hum of the rushing train only lulled her to deeper slumber. Suddenly, in the midst of the com monplace sounds of the journey there came a grinding, grating shriek as of strong metal hard pressed and unable to withstand. A crash, a Jolt, then terrible confusion. The very founda tions of the earth seemed upshaken, the cars climbing through the awful air, then pitching, writhing, tossing, and at last settling uncertainly in strange positions, while the night was filled with horrid sounds too varying to analyze. Cries of women and chil dren! Groans of men in mortal ag ony; breaking glass and splintering timbers; rending of metal in reluc1 tant, discordant clang! And below, rising menacingly to threaten all, came the lurid glare of flame, the wild, exultant crackle of fire that knows its opportunity and power; the desperate hysterical clamor of those who have discovered it, and the mad, brave shouts of those who would at tempt to conquer it. Jean Grayson awoke in dazed be wilderment. For a moment the noise seemed a part of her dream; her strange, huddled position on the wood at the foot of her berth a figment of her imagination. But almost at once the cold breath from the broken win j dow brought her to her senses. An I accident! It had come then! The thing which her mother had feared I and tried to provide against. She , was in a railroad accident all alone ' and oift in the wilds of the west | where she was utterly unacquainted with anyone! It was characteristic OI Jean mat, wnen sue rutiuaeu uei 1 plight, she thought first of how her | mother would take the news, and not , of how she herself would bear the experience, or whether It meant life and death to herself. That she must ! get out of danger and let her mother know of her safety was her instant impulse, and from that moment her j senses were keenly on the alert for j every detail. tContinued Next Week.) ! alleged booze runner AND WOMAN ARRESTED Bincoln. Neb., Mjjy 17.-—Al Bush, former soldier, who lives at Shenan doah, la., is under arrest here, with Alma Simpson, a department store clerk of Omaha, on a charge of booze running. Bush's car successfully | passed the booze testers at Nebraska 1 City, but when State Agent Hyers ex | amlned it he found the imprint of a | hammerhead on a board in the bottom ! of the auto, and when he took the j board up he found 71 pints of whisky. 1 I Bush claims he bought it in Nebraska, i The g'rl talked freely after she had i been informed by the officers that the ■! officials at Shenandoah said that Bush . ! had a wife and children there, where ■ ho was in business. She said Bush posed as a single man. and told all ’ the details of the’.v wanderings from ’ the time he came and got her at Orr.a 1 ! ha an 1 tcuk her to various prints In ; Iowa. t I -— ! A resolution net tlontog w ass 1 ; a federal and lv china < """ ■*< 1 j imously Adopted by rlie * are >■ li c. 1 I Ui« Churches of Christ in America. . — -sfcranas - —* i !; • i i i ■_ From the Indianapolis News. Members of congress who are Inclined to complain that $7,500 a year Is no$ enough to live on comfortably In these parlous times should consider the cas# of the British member of parliament. Members of the house of commond re* ceive approximately $2,000 annually. That is not enough, generally speaking, according to one member who complains to a London newspaper. In his case, he says, the $2,000 Is enough because he has a 7 shillings 6 pence flat In Can ning town, and owing to the shortage of housing facilities cannot get a better one. For members Whose homes are outride London the case Is sadder. Ho says: They have either to break up their homes and come to live in London, where living is ruinous in cost for anyone who has not got a house, or else they have to keep two homes going. They are between the devil and the deep sea. In either case the member has to keep in close touch ) with his electors, otherwise he Is not doing his duty, so that no matter how he is situated he has to spend a lot of money on railway travel ing. Add the cost of railway travel to the tremendously increased cost ! of living, to the possibility of having to break up a home, to the fact that one home in London at the moment costs as much as two homes would have cost before the war—and you have a situation that simply defies argument. Some day, he modestly hopes, the people of Great Britain can be induced t# raise the salary of their representatives to $3,000 yearly, but he warns against the danger of being exploited by adventurers who would be attracted by such a salary. He suggests two immediate remedies for the situation of the poor M. P., which may bring a smile or a .groan to American readers. He hopes that at a very early date the member of parliament will "have a warrant to carry him to London and his constituency”—in other words, mileage—and he wants the privilege of having his correspondence sent free. When the franking and mileage pies become institutions in Great Britain its final and indisputable claim to democracy will have been established. The British people will profit by looking into the experience of others before accept ing all the customs and habits of democracy. Paying their servants real money might be cheaper in the long run. But what a piker is the British member of parliament who only now asks for $3,000 a year and a little mileage and frank ing concession In comparison with his American confrere! Very Prosaic. From the Edinburgh Scotsman. We were alone. AU day long I had waited for his coming. He recited po etry to me softly, find told me that he preferred my 5ull blonde hair and laven der eyes to a piquant brunette’s flashing black eyes and crimson mouth. We heard soft music In the distance. We talked about love. Suddenly the lights went out. We were alone. All day long I had waited for his coming. "Don’t be alarmed,” he said, ”1 have a match. Inflammability. Fron> the Washington Star. "Do you want your hair singed?” asked, the polite barber. "No. I don’t want to take a chance. A friend in whose Judgment I have some confidence told m« I have an Ivory dome.” . ,, ‘What difference does that maker "He might be wrong. Maybe it’s cel luloid." HEROES. I see them hasting toward the light Where war’s dim watchfires glow; The stars that burn In Europe’s night Conduct them to the foe. As when a flower feels the sun And opens to the sky. Knowing their dream has Just begun. They hasten forth to die. Be It the mystery of Love— Be It the might of Truth Some wisdom that we know not of Controls the heart of youth. All that philosophy might guess. These children of the light In one bright act of death compress. Then vanish from our sight. Like meteors on a midnight sky They break—so clear, so brief-— Their glory lingers on the eye And leaves no room for grief. And when to joy old sorrows turn To spring war’s winter long. Their blood In every heart will burn-,. Their life In every song. —John Jay Chapman-. Rocks Stop Commerce. From the Detroit News. Almost $1,000,000,000,000 worth of freight passed through the Soo canals during 1918 and the transportation In- , voiced amounted to 70,107,618,229 mile tons. Such statements look two waya. They give a glimpse of the enormops productivity, the colossal wealth of the vast territory tributary to the Great j Lakes. The ships that pass the Soo and’ Detroit bring ores and wheat and meats ; and dairy products —food and fabrics for clothfng and materials for shelter and' ' Implements and equipment, in amounts to contribute to the comfort, well being and prosperity of mlllons of people. That ; Is looking toward the source. And look ing toward the outlet we find a great in- • land waterway carrying a world com merce, but Isolated from the world mar- ! kets by a stretch of tumbling rapids In- i one river. Is It conceivable that the i genius of two great peoples, those of ' the United States and those of Canada, will not solve this problem and let the - cargo carriers of the Great Lakes out to «-*» inn* Perahlng’* French. Frederick Palmer. In Collier’s. Aside from Pershing’s chief of staff and his chief aid. Colonel Boyd, proba- !i bly his other aid. Colonel Collins, was closest to him. Collins had been with him for seven years. In the Philippines and In Mexico, and had a wise head on young shoulders. The general allowed him to go away for a while to fight, but would not be parted from him for long. Boyd spoke French well. Wherever the general went, there was Boyd, whose- : death from pneumonia after the armls- - t-iee was a blow to hundreds of officers, s who always thought of him as outside the general’s door or at his side. The general’s own French was sufficient for an ordinary conversation and influenced < by the demands of the occasion, He sur prtced a certain interpereter who was In- - tcrpreting for him to Petain one day by : saying: “I didn't say ‘il dlt,’ but *en dit’—they say, not he says." He Won. From the Dallas News. “What are those splendid silver cups there?” Inquired the man in the Jeweler’s shop. “Thos, sir, are race cup3, to be awarded as prizes," replied the Jeweler. “Well, if that's the ca«e.” said the stranger, taking the largest one In his hand, "suppose you raee me for this ! one.” He started off with the Jeweler after I him, but the stranger won the cup. Gen. Leonard Wood will make the com mencement address before the students of the University of Pennsylvania next month. —A— Prince Goes A-Fijdng. From the London Telegraph. In Ideal flying weather the prince of Wales spent a full hour In the air the other day. enjoying the wonderful spec tacle of the panorama of 1 ondon. Lady Joan MulhoUand clad—like the prince of Wales—in a fur coat and wearing a ptlot's fur helmet and goggles, occupied the front gunner's cockpit. There were eight persons in the machine. The ma chine took ofT with the usual case and steadiness which characterizes the type, and soon reached 2.000 feet, which was j the height maintained duriv Jj'tbo' trip- A) complete circuit of cent-vi London wa„t made, with St. Paul's r \ tfcb ftutstand.gtg j lAodrnar^ ± |t+ft4t444444tf44+4| 4 .WHEN MAN IS A FAILURE. 4 - 4 From the Office Economist 4 The mere fact that man has 4 failed in business or other under 4 takings does not mean very much 4 unless we know what he did after 4 his failure. It's the man behind 4 the failure that will tell results— 4 whether it is the end of the man or 4 Just {he beginning. If he is made 4 of the stuff tfiat tflflSj ht will 4 come back. No man is a failure 4 until he loses heart and gives up 4 trying. There Is no such thing 4 as failure in the man who seta his 4 teeth and refuses to quit 44444444444444444444 French Girt Surplus. ' From the Boston Globe. The big problem in France at the close of the peace conference will be the 700, 000 girls of marriageable age who must live without husbands, according to Chap lain Daniel Couve, a lieutenant in the French army and a special representative of the French government lecturing la the United States. "We have 700,000 girls who will never have the chance to marry," the chaplain said. “In France, before the war, we educated our daughters to marry, and, as the father of three daughters, X brought them up with that constantly ts mind. Their whole life is fftted for tt. ‘We lost 1,400,000 French soldiers out of our population of 40,000,00*. Before the war the population of marriageable men and women almost balanced. Half of our honored dead were married men with families, and the other half were of the age to marry.” * No Gun Toters. From the Dos Angeles Times. The west of the woolly novelist is- Be coming a memory. Think of it: A maw can’t tote a gun in Montana! The last legislature placed a ban on shoot! nglrons. The day when a man dangled seven pounds of artillery over ills hip has gon® 'orever. Nobody but forest rangers an® peace officers can carry a sinokewagon. without a permit, and permits are not to ne had merely for the asking. One must ro before a Judge and prove good char icter and some worthy warrant for wear ng a weapon before the license is ob ained. This amounts to the practical llsarmaiment of the Montana cowboy, and die tenderfoot may not even buy a gun po protect himself from the cockroaches, rhe influence of the peace conference la past. America Needs Cables. FTotn the Seattle Times. Better cable connections between th® Thlted States and Japan were warmly lrged at a dinner in Tokyo the other " light, held under the auspices of the Vinerican-Japan Society. Viscount Ka leko, one of the speakers, Indorsed the project on the ground that improved com nunlcatlons would promote closer and nore cordial relations between the tw® lountries. He suggested that a route by vay of the Aleutian islands should Be liven attention By responsible men In. America and Japan. This is a matter vhlch, if no* attempted by private cap tal, should be undertaken by the gov irnment. The United States should' liav®. ts own cables running to Asia and Ed one, rt should have so many oft them, is might be necessary to assure prompt nterchange of news and views with alii no iiKKjvi: cvuiunes ui me worm; Talking Nonsense. From the Saturday Evening, Host: One of socialism's parrot phrases- la hat governments in the United State* md Western Europe are run by. capitali sts for the benefit of capital. It is an >ther bird than the parrot that cannot ee tn. the daylight. If social ism ware lot similarly afflicted it would. long. ag<» lave perceived what complete nonsense flat phrase is. Time was when, capltni'* >n government decidedly outweighed' Sb* nfluenco of labor. The weight is just aa ieelslvely in the other scale now. aatd everybody who can see straight know* it. A further contemporary fact in, 35»g aad is that labor outweighs government Saelf, and government knows it. When t comes to coercing, labor cajv coerce ;overnment with far greater success than government can coerce labor. A power ul combination of unions has- been, lay ng down the terms on which bajsie !n iustries shall operate, amt government -.as been casting about fob tke best com promise it could make. In the United States two. years ago ■allroad capital took on* position before he government and raihread labor took mother. We know which won. An igainst socialism's silly talk about Wall Street running the country'—or Lombard street in England's case—the question is whether another groat Interest is not ible, and quite as selftshly. to impose ita. irbitrarily will on the country. Unfadeabl* tnk to Wilson. From the Milwaukee Journal. President Wilson and others at th* pence conference may affix tneir signa tures to the peace treaty with an unfad stbic ink patented by Alexander Liqhten lag. New Orleans. Mr. Llebtentag received word from th* state deportment that a half pint of hi« “imperishable" Irik had been forwarded to President WTlson for the purpose of signing the world peace declaration. Mr. Liiihtentag has received Information- that !&.* govern »bit chemist* bad declared after tests that it is Unr-vwibh. "to hl%*ok the ink and that it «e>ukl last as