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iShe Gentleman
From Indiana
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Copyright. I3DD. by Tioublcday
Copyright. 1902.
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, CHAPTER I.
W """""" HEX tlio rusty hands of the
otlloe clock marked half past
TOy-r- 4, the editor In chief of the
raflftl Carlow County Herald took
tils hand out of his hair, wiped Ills pen
on his last notice from the White (.'up,
put on Ida coat, swept out tho close
llUlo entry and left tho sanctum for
be bright Juno afternoon.
He chose the way to tho west, stroll
Ing thoughtfully out of town by the
white, hot, deserted Main street and
thence onward by the country road into
which its proud half mile of old brick
Btoro buildings, tumbledown frame
shops and thinly painted cottages de
generated. The sun was in his face
where the read ran between the sum
mer llelds, lying waveless, low, gra
cious in promise; but, coming to n
wood of hickory and beech and wnl
nut that stood beyond, ho might turn
his down-bent hat brim up and hold
his head erect. Here the shade fell
deep and cool on the green tangle of
rag and Iron weed and long grass hi alighted on the platform of the station
the corners of tho snake fence, al norti, 0f L'luttvllle and, entering the
though the sun beat upon the road sc rickety omnibus that lingered there
close beside. There was no movement necking whom It might rattle to deaf
of the crisp young leaves overhead n03St demanded to be driven to the
High in the boughs there was a, quick Herald building. It did not strike the
lllrt of crimson where two robins hop- driver that the newcomer was pre
pod noiselessly. The late afternoon, ciscy a gay young man when he climb
when the air Is quite still, had come, (C(i i,,t0 the omnibus, hut an hour later,
yet there rested somewhere on the. ia8 )L stood in the doorway of the edl
quiet day a faint, pleasant, woody uce i,L, im,i indicated as his destination,
smell. It came to the editor of the depression seemed to have settled Into
Herald as he climbed to the top rail e marrow of ids bones.
of the fence for a seat, and he drew ( piattvllle was Instantly alert to the
a long breath to get the elusive odor stranger's presence, and interesting con
more luxuriously, and then it was gout jecturos were hazarded all day long at
altogether. the back door of Murtin's Dry Goods
"A habit of delicacies," lie said aloud, Euinorluin (this was the club Anting
addressing the wide silence complain-
ingly. "One taste and they quit," he
finished, gaxlug solemnly upon the
shining little town down the road.
It was a place of which Us Inhabit
ants sometimes remarked easily that
their city had a population of from
5,000 to 0,000 souls, but It should be
easy to lorgive mem iur w;n uuw-
monts. Civic nr do Is a virtue, 'xne
town lay In the heart of that fertile
stretch of flat lands In Indiana where
eastern travelers, glancing from car
windows, shudder and return their eyes
to Interior upholstery, preferring even
the swaj ing caparisons of a Pullman to
the monotony without. I he landscape
runs on Interminably level nnes-oieai;
in winter, a desolate plain of mud and
snow; not ami uusiy in .summer, mm-a
on miles of flat lonesomeness, with not
one cool hill slope away from the sun,
The persistent tourist who seeks for
signs of man in tills sad expanse per
eelves a reckless amount of rail fence,
at intervals a large barn, and here and
there man himself, incurious, patient,
slow, looking up from the fields apa
thetically as the limited files by. Now"
and then the train passes a village
built scatterlngly about a courthouse,
with a mill or two humming near the
tracks. Tills is a county heat, and the
Inhabitants and the local papers refer
to it confidently as "our city."
Such a county seat was Piattvllle.
capital of Carlow county. The social
and business energy of the town con
centrated on the square, and here lu
summer time tho gentlemen were wont
to lounge from store to store In their
shirt sleeves, and in the center of
tiie square stood the old red brick
courthouse, loosely fenced lu a shinty
grove of maple and elm "slipp'ry
ellunr-callcd the "courthouse yard.f
When the sun grew too hot for the dry i
goods box whlttlers in front of the
stores around the square and the occu
pants of the chairs lu front of the Pal
ace hotel .on the corner they would go
across and drnpo themselves over the
fence and carve their Initials on the
top board. From the position of the
Miu the editor of the Herald Judged
that these operations were now In
progress, and he was not deeply elated
by the knowledge that whatever desul
tory conversation might pass from man
to man on the fence would probably bo
inspired by his own convictions ex-.
pressed editorially in the Herald.
He drew a faded tobacco bag and a
brier pipe from bis pocket and, after
ailing and lighting the pipe, twirled the
noiieh mechanically about his flngtir,
then, suddenly regarding it, patted 'It
caressingly. It had been a giddy lltje
I,,,, inn.- nun. urnv with embroidery ff!i
tho colors of the editor's unlversl
ami. although now it was frayed to t
verge of tatters, it still bore an air l)f
m-lstliie iaunt mess, an air or wmcu
nn-nin 111 nowise Dlirtook. Ho looli
from it toward the village In the ch
fllstimen and sighed softly as ho i:
nio uoiich back In his pocket and, ret
liur his arm on his knee and his chin n
Us hand, sat blowing clouds of smo; o
,ut or t he s.auu m '"-
rfent v watching the ghostly shadow
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little carter snake crept under the
'cjw beneath him and disappeared In
tlii underbrush: a rabbit, progressing
jc Its travels by a series of brilliant
flashes and terror smitten halts, came
within a few yards of him, sal up with
quivering nose and eyes alight with
fearful Imaginings and vanished, a tlasli
it fluffy brown and white. Shadows
grew longer; a cricket chirped and heard
inswers; there was a woodland stir of
breezes, and tho pair of robins left the
branches overhead In eager (light, va
cating before tho arrival of a flock of
blackbirds hastening thither ere the
eventide should be upon them. The
blackblids came, chattered, gossiped,
quarreled and beat each other with
their wings above the smoker sitting
on the top fence rail.
But he had remembered. A thousand
miles to the cast It was commencement
day, seven years to a day from bis
own commencement.
Five years ago, on another June aft
ernoon, a young man from the east had
Q,e day), and at supper the new ur-
rival and his probable purposes were
discussed over every table in the town.
Upon Inquiry he had Informed .Indd
Bennett, the (driver of the omnibus,
that he had come to sty( Naturally
such a declaration caused .a, sensation,
a8 pL.0ple did not come t,p Piattvllle to
Hye except uinuigii iiu! umuvcricuc.v ill
being born there. In uddindirtho young
man's appearance and attire wero re
ported to be extraordinary. Many of
the curious, among them most of the
marriageable females of the place, look
occasion to pass and repass the sign of
tllu (,u.uw County Herald during the
ovemg.
Meanwhile the stranger was seal-it
in the dingy otllce upstairs with his
head bowed low on his arms. Twilight
stole through the dirty window panes
and faded into darkness. Night filled
the room. He did not move. The young
man from the east had bought the Her
ald from an agent had bought It with
out ever having been within a hundred
miles of Piattvllle. The Herald was
an alleged weekly which had some
times appeared within five days of Us
declared date of publication and some
times missed 'fire altogether. It was a
thorn hi the side of every patriot of
Carlow county, and Carlow people, aft
er supporting the paper loyally and
long, had at last given It up and sub
scribed for the Cazette, published in
the neighboring county of Amo. The
former proprietor of the Herald, a
surreptitious gentleman with a goatee,
had taken the precaution of leaving
Piattvllle forever on the afternoon pre
ceding his successors arrival, 'ine
young man from the east had vastly
overpaid for his purchase. Moreover,
tho price be had paid for it was all the
money he had In the world.
The next morning he. went bitterly to
work. Ho ldred a compositor from
Rouen, a young man named Parker,
who set type all night long and helped
him pursue advertisements all day.
The citizens shook their heads pessi
mistically. They had about given up
the idea that the Herald could ever
amount to anything, and they betrayed
an Innocent but caustic doubt of abil
ity in any stranger.
One day tho new editor fort a note on
his door: "Will return In fifteen min
utes." Mr. Rodney McCune, a politician from
the neighboring county of Oalnes, hap
pening to be In Piattvllle on an errand
to his henchmen, found the note and
wrote beneath the message tho scath
ing inquiry, "Why?"
When ho discovered this addendum,
tho editor smiled for the first time since
his advent anil reported the incident in
his next Issue, using the rubric "Why
Has the Herald "Returned to LlfoV" as
a text for a rousing editorial on hon
esty In politics, a subject or which ho
already knew something. Tho political
district to which Carlow belonged was
governed by a limited number of gen
tlemen whoso wealth was" over on tho
increase, and honesty in politics was
a startling conception to the minds of
' the passive and resigned voters, who
n .,,,, ,. ilVl ot,.nnr
iumyu UlU UUllUHUl un. .. j..
corners ami in the stores, tne next
week there was another editorial, per
sonal and local In Its application, and
thereby it became evident that the new
proprietor of the Herald was a theorist
Who believed In general that a polltt
l bin's honor should not be merely of
Hint middling healthy species known
as "honor among politicians," and in
particular that Wodncy McCune should
not receive the nomination of his party
for congress. Now, Mr. McCune was
the undoubted dictator of the district,
anil his followers laughed at the stran
ger's fantastic onset: but the editor was
not content with the word of print. He
hired a horse and rode about the coun
try and (to his own surprise) proved to
be an adaptable young man who en
Joyed exercise with a pitchfork to the
farmer's prollt while the fanner talk
ed. He talked little himself, but after
listening an hour or so he would drop a
word from the saddle us he left, and
then, by some surprising wizardry," the
farmer, thinking over the Interview,
decided there was some sense In what
that young fellow said and grew curi
ous to see what tho young fellow had
further to say In the Herald.
roll tics Ib the one subject that goes
to ttiv vitals of every rural American,
and a lloosler will talk politics after
he is dead.
Everybody read the campaign edi
torials and found them Interesting, al
though there was no one who did not
perceive the utter absurdity of a young
otranger dropping Into Carlow ami
Involving himself In a party light
against the boss of the district. It was1
entirely a party light, for by grace of
the last gerrymander the nomination
carried with It the certainty of elee
tlon.
A week before the convention there
came a provincial earthquake. The
news passed from man to man In awe
Btruek whispers Mc 'tine had with
drawn his name, making the shallow
est of excuses to his cohorts. Nothing
was known of the real reason for his
disordered retreat beyond the fact that
ho had been in I'luttvllle on the morn
ing before his withdrawal and had Is
sued from a visit to the Herald olllcc in
a state of palsy. Mr. INirker, the
Itoticu printer, had been present at tho
close of the Interview, but he held his
peace at tho command of his employer.
He had been called Into the sanctum
and bad found McCune, white and
shaking, leaning on the desk.
Turker," said the editor, exhibiting
t bundle of papers he held In his hand,
"I want you to witness a verbal con-
Mr. Jiutliicu McUmtc )nind the note.
tract between Mr. McCune and myself.
These papers are an allldavlt and
copies of some records of a street car
company which obtained a charter
While Mr. McCune was hi the legisla
ture. They were sent to mo by u man
I do not know, an anonymous friend of
Mr. McCune In fact, a frleud ho
seems to have lost. On consideration
of our not printing these papers Mr.
McCune agrees to retire from politics
for good. You understand, if ho ever
lifts ids head again politically we pub
lish them, and '.he courts will do the
rest. Now, In case anything should
happen to me"
".Something will happen to you all
right!" broke out McCune. "You can
bunk on that, you black"
"Come," the editor Interrupted not
unpleasantly. "Why should there be
anything personal In all this? I don't
recognize you as my private enemy
not at all and I think you are getting
oil! rather easily, aren't youV You keep
out of politics and everything will bo
comfortable. You ought never to bavo
been in if, you see. It's a mistake not
to go square, because In tho long run
somebody is sure to give you away,
like the fellow who scut mo these.
You promise to hold to a strictly pri
vate lire?"
"You're a traitor to tho party," groan
ed the other; "but you only wait"
The editor smiled sadly. "Wait noth
ing! Don't threaten, man. Go home to
your wife. I'll give you three to ono
Bho'll lie ghul, yon are out of It."
"I'll give you three to one," said Mc
Cune, "that tho White Caps will get
you If you stay In Carlow. You want
to look out for yourself, I tell you, my
smart boy."
"Good day, Mr. McCune," was the
answer. "Lot mo have your noto of
withdrawal beforo you leave town this
afternoon." Tho young man paused a
moment, then extended his hand as ha
Bpld: "Shako hands, woirt; you? I I
M
haven't meant to be too hard on
I hope things will seem easier and gay
er to you before long, and If If ltny
tiling should turn up that I can do for
you lu a private way I'll lie very glad,
you know. Goodby."
The sound of the Herald's victory
went over the state. The paper camo
out regularly. The townsfolk bought
i It, and the farmers drove In for It. Old
subscribers came back. Old advertis
ers renewed. The Herald began to sell
in Amo, and Gaines county people sub
scribed. Carlow folk held up tlult
heads when Journalism was mentioned.
Presently the Herald announced a news
connection with Uoueii, and with that
and the aid of "patent Insides" began
an era of three Issues a week, appear
ing on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Satur
days. The Piattvllle brass band sere
naded the editor.
During the second mouth of the new
regime of the Herald the working force
of the paper received an addition. Ono
night the editor found some barroom
loafers tormenting a patriarchal old
man who had a magnificent head and a
grand white beard. He had been
thrown out of a saloon, and tie was
drunk with the drunkenness of three
weeks' steady pouring. Ho propped
himself against a wall nnd reproved
his tormentors In Latin. "I'm walking
your way. Mr. FHbee." remarked the
Journalist, hooking his arm Into the old
man's. "Suppose we leave our friends
here and go home."
Mr. I'lsbee was the one Inhabitant of
the town possessing an unknown past,
and a glamour of romance was thrown
about him by the gossips, who agreed
that there was a dark, portentous se
cret Ir. !' life, an opinion not too well
coullrmed by the old man's appearance.
Ills line eyes had a habit of wandering
to the horizon, and hN expression was
mild, vague ami sad, lost In dreams.
At the first glance one guessed that
his dreams would never lie practicable
in their application, and some such Im
pression of him was probably what
caused the editor of the Herald to nick
name hhu, In his own mind, "the White
Knight."
Mr. Klsbee, coming to Piattvllle from
nobody knew where, had taught In the
high school for ten years, but lie proved
quite unable to refrain from lecturing
to the dumfounded pupils on archn
ologyv neglecting more and more tho
ordinary courses of instruction, grow
ing yeur by year more forgetful and
absent, lost in his few books and Ills
own reflections, until at last he had
bceu discharged for incompetency. The
dazed old man had .no money and no
way to make any. One day he dropped
In nt the hotel bar, where Wllkerson,
tho professional drunkard, favored him
with his society. The old mini under
stood. He knw It was the beginning
of the end. He sold his books In order
to continue ills credit at the Palace
bar, and once or twice, unable to pro
coed to ids own dwelling, spent the
night In a lumber yard, piloted thither
by the hardier veteran Wllkerson.
The morning after the editor took
him home FIsbee appeared at the Her
ald olllcc In a new hat and a decent
oult of black. He had received his sal
ary In advance, his books had been re
purchased and he bad become the re
porlorlal staff of the Carlow County
Herald; also he was to wrllo various
treatises for the paper. Kor the llrst
few evenings when he started home
from tho olllcc his chief walked with
him, chatting cheerfully, until they
hnd passed the Palace bar. But I'"ls
bee's redemption was complete.
The editor of the Herald kept stead
ily at his work, and as time went on
the bitterness his predecessor's swindle
had left in him passed away. But his
loneliness and a sense of defeat grew
and deepened. When the vistas of tho
world had opened to his first youth ho
hud not thought to spend his life In
such a place as Piattvllle, but he found
himself doing it, and it was no great
happiness to him that the Hon. Kcdge
Halloway of Amo, whom the Herald's
opposition to McCune had sent to
Washington, camo to depend on Ids In
fluence for rcnomluatlon, nor did tho
realization that the editor of the Car
low County Herald had come to be
Mediae's successor as political dicta
tor produce u perceptibly enlivening ef
fect upon the young man. The years
drifted very slowly, and to him it seem
ed that they went by while he stood far
aside and could not even see them
move. He. did not consider the life he
led an exciting one, but the other citi
zens of Carlow did when he undertook
a war against the Whl(e Caps, deni
zens of Six Crossroads, seven miles
west of Piattvllle. The natives were
much more afraid of the White Caps
than he was. They knew more about
them and understood them better than
be did. .
There was no thought of the people
of the Crossroads in Ids uiliid as he sat
on the snake fence staring at the little
smoky shadow dance on the white road
In the June sunshine. On the contrary,
he was occupied with the realization
that there had been a man Iu his class itsmidCOj in stamps, and it will bo for
at college whose ambition needed no winded post-paid by Paris Medicine Co,
restraint, bis promise was so great in yt Luuis Mo.
.the strong belief of tho university, a be- ' '
lief ho could not help knowii.g-and UIIBUMATI8M uiiui) in a DAY.
that seven years to a day from his com- n , , , ' '
mencement this man was sitting on a "J"1"0 c,,ro for ' and Kouralgia
fence rail In Indiana. J radically curcHlul to sdnys. IU action upou
Down the piko a buggy camo creak- tho ayntt-m U remarkable and myatorfoiiH, It
lng toward him, gray With dust, old removes at onco tho eausp and the dlet-aso Inl
and frayed like tho fat, shaggy gray mCdlaioly dUappcnrs. The flmt dose greatljr
mare that drew It, her unchecked, de- bonoum. 7ft cent and It.oo. Sold byU.lt
eppndent head lowering .before hnr,
Thousands HaYO Kidney
Trouble and Never Suspect it
How To Find Out.
Till a bottle nr common glass with your
water and let it stand twenty-four bouts ;
iiscduncnlorKcl
tlingindicatesnu unhealthy con
dition of the kid
neys: if it stain-
your linen ilis
evidence of kid
ney trouble ; tow
frequent dcsiie
to pass it or miu
iu the back is
also convincing proof that the kidneys
mid bladder are out of order.
"What To no.
There is comfort in the knowledge w
often expressed, that Dr. Kilmer's '
Swamp-Root, the great kidney remedy,
and scalding pain in passing it, or bail
elTccts following use of liquor, wine or
beer, and overcomes Unit unpleasant ne
cessity of being compelled to go oftjin
during the day, and to get up niauy
times during the night. '1 he mild arid
the extraordinary effect of Swamp-Root
is soon realized. It stands the highest
for its wonderful cures of the most dis
tressing cases. If you need a medicine
you should have the best. Sold by drilg
I'istsiu fifty-cent and one-dollar st.es.
' You may have a sample bottle and a
book that tells an
about it, both sent free
bv mail. Address Dr.
I'ilmer & Co., lltng-
hainton, N. Y. When itomoof Hwnmivnoot.
writing mention Ibis paper and don'L
make any mistake, but remember the
name, Dr. Kilmer's Swamp-Root, and
the address, Hinghainton, N. Y.
whlTe her Incongruous fall waved In
cessantly, like the banner of a storming
party. The editor did not hear the
flop of the mare's hoofs nor the sound
of the wheels, so deep was his rev
erie, till the vehicle was nearly oppo
site him. The red faced and perspir
ing driver drew rein, ami the Journal
ist looked up and waved a long white
hand to him hi greeting.
"Howdy" do, Mr. llurkless?" called
the man In the buggy. "Soakin in the
weather?" lie spoke hi shouts, thougk
neither was hard of hearing.
"Yes, Just soaking," answered Hark
less. "It's such a gypsy diiy. How to
Mr. Bowlder?"
"I'm glvln' good satisfaction, thank
you, ami all at home. fih&H In town."
"Give Mrs. Bowlder my regards,"
said the Journalist, comprehending the
symbolism. "How Is Hartley?'
(To bo Continued )
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