J
fWi y4l4lll4l
CAST
TWO PERSONS WERE USnEHKD TO SEATS DE
HIND MR TINKHAM
man not without a certain accent of
satisfaction
Uls companion did not share this
view
Nothing that I have done unless It
may be thl3 said she somewbut cold
ly has given cause for gossip
You are very clever he replied
and that makes mo wonder all the
nioro why you should hesitate
Hush sho whispered That man
In front of us Is listening
It happeued that Mr TInkham suf
fered from au Inequality lu his
KZ
all
FOR A THINKING PART
-
BY HOWARD FIELDING
HKJ
rTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTVTTtTftttfffttttftt
r In theatrical parlauco tho supcrnu
mcrary who apeaks no linen but mere
ly appears upon the stage plays a
thinking pnrt UHimlly ho Is seen
only a few minutes nud ho himself be
holds but little of tho performance a
fragment of a scene the backs of the
principals as they declnlm to the audi
ence action without meaning to htm
since he knows not the context lie
could not tell the story of the drama of
which he Is so small yet nn essential
part
Such being tho fact lot mo Introduce
to you Mr Wallace B Tlnklmm Do
not fancy that Mr TInkham la con
nected with the theatrical profession
He keeps a store In Itutledge Vt the
best store In the place quite good
enough In fact for a city
A few years ago when human exist
ence was not bo strenuous Mr TInk
ham would hare been called an ordina
ry man Ills life moves evenly along
and he Is happy lu a quiet way proud
too of his commercial reputation and
of his wife and children and well or
dered home
Mr TInkham had been In New York
for a couplo of days buying stock for
his store His business done with the
exception of one small matter which
must be completed on the morrow he
found himself with an evening on his
hands and he decided to go to a thea
ter
All the plays mentioned In a list of
amusements In an afternoon paper
were equally unknown to him so he se
lected The Christian for tho sake of
its name He was fortunate enough to
secure a good scat ou tho center aisle
nud there he bestowed his ample form
much earlier than wns necessary and
awaited with serene patience the rising
of the curtain
At last the orchestra began to play
and Mr TInkham whose mind had
been In Rutledge Vt became suddenly
conscious that his body was In New
York no experienced an almost boy
ish sensation of pleasure It was so sel
dom that he went to the theater He
wished that his wife and children were
there especially his daughter who al
ways enjoyed everything so much
Then the play opened and Mr TInk
ham was transported to the Isle of
Man
About this time two persons were
ushered to seats behind Mr TInkham
but he was so Intent upon tho drama
that ho was unconscious of their ar
rival They were a man and a woman
obviously New Yorkers both The man
was tall dark and nervous so nerv
ous In fact that the quality Is rightly
included in a description of his person
al appearance His face was not hand
some but It bore the stamp of fierce
earnestness which lent a fascination to
Its irregular lines He had a habit of
holding his head eagerly forward as If
ho were restrained only by a cord fas
tened to the back of his collar the at
titude of a hound held in leash Ills
hair had turned gray in an Irregular
fashion that came near being a disfig
urement It was so palpably the result
of hasty living
The woman was young and of very
attractive high bred appearance mar
red only by a restlessness not like nnd
yet akin to that of her companion Her
dress was not especially conspicuous
but the value of all that she wore In
cluding her jewels wns about equal to
the expense of Mr Tlnkhams house
hold for seven years and ho lived well
Wo were mad to come here said
the woman Some one we know is
certain to see us
A little additional gossip about us
wont make any difference said the
ry apparatus Ills lelt ear wns as good
as any mans but the right one wns it
hit dull When the people on the stage
lowered their voices Mr Tlnkhnm nut
urally turned his good ear toward
them
This movement was misinterpreted
by the lady behind him who was deep
ly Interested In her own affairs and not
at all In those of John Storm and Glo
ry Quayle She saw that Mr TInkham
had shifted his position for the purpose
of hearing better and Rho supposed
that the ear turned toward herself wns
the one that was doing the work On
the contrary tho gentleman from Itut
ledge had really placed himself In tho
least favorable attitude for listening to
her
Never mind him said the young
mnn with the gray hair He doesnt
know who we are
Well said she what were you go
ing to say
Only this he replied It seems
providential that your mint Is going to
Europe Just at this time
Providential Is rather a queer word
for It Dont you think so said she
Oh you take this matter altogether
too seriously he declared The fact
Is this I must go abroad You and I
THE STRUGGLE WITH THE COLLAR IICTTOX
are very good friends It would please
me more than anything else In the
world If you could go across at tho
same time and be somewhere near me
on the other side
On the contrary said she the fact
is this My husband is much absorbed
In business and is beginning to grow
old He enjoys my society He would
do anything in the world to please me
but the life he likes to lead Is rather
dull for me Therefore I am tempted
to go abroad to run about on the con
tinent having a good time and doubt
less enjoying a great deal of your amia
ble companionship Viewed In one way
the plan is entirely Innocent viewed
In another It Is selfish and wicked for
It Is desertion of a man who has given
me his name his wealth his heart and
everything that a man can give a wo
man
Then the young man with the gray
hair turned about in his chair until he
faced his companion He put his elbow
on the chair back and shielded his face
with his hand so that no one behind
him could read the motion of his lips or
the expression of his countenance and
he began to prove that black was white
and that darkness was daylight There
was a fascination In his subtle elo
quence and lu the Intensity of his ear
nestness As he spoko the woman
seemed to sec that selfishness was a
virtue and the ordinary self sacrifice
which makes life possible a folly and n
superstition Why shouldnt she run
away and play like a child It was her
husband who was selfish if he wished
to deny her the pleasure
Mr Tlnkhnm henrd not a word of nil
this The play absorbed him He twist
ed about In his seat like a hoy at the
circus and finally succeeded lu dislodg
ing the stud which held his collar at
the back The band of linen crept up
In tho usual way until It tickled tho
back of his linnil whlln his tlo trnt un
der the collar in a most annoying
Ion Ho experienced besides tho usu
al embarrassment and presently his
big fat hands were trying to repair
the damage
Tho lady saw this out of tho corner
of her eye nnd her attention was dis
tracted It Is Impossible to watch a
human creature struggling with a re
fractory cottar button and not take In
terest In the game One may take sides
with tho man or with the collar button
but one cannot be Indifferent
The young man did not notice Mr
Tlukhams struggles but ho observed
the division of his companions atten
tion It Is extremely disquieting to ad
dress the half of a persous mind espe
cially when one does not know whnt
the other half Is doing
Listen to me snld he What earth
ly reason Is there why you should not
take this little vacation You are tired
of New York You arc not happy at
home New scenes uew faces will do
you good
My excellent friend said she you
know and I know that this sort of
thing Is the beginning of scandal The
THE NORFOLK NEWS FRIDAY MARCH 8 1901
coincidence of our departure will bo
noted nud commented upon
Then I will take another steamer
In that case why go nt all said
she that Is from your point of view
I shall not see much of you abroad
You will go to VleiHin where your
mother Is 111 and surely I will not fol
low you
Wherever you are said he there
I will be
You have put your finger upon the
dllllculty she answered 1 do not
trust In the discretion of your friend
ship I hardly believe that you wish to
be discreet it seems sometimes us If
you deliberately planned to have our
names unpleasantly associated
Here was a dangerous place and
the young mnn knew It Dealing with
a woman whose most notable charac
teristic was her amazing frankness It
was Imperatively necessary to avoid
the suspicion of double dealing Me
threw his whole soul Into the argu
ment and she felt his power as never
before
Hut Just nt lint moment the affairs
of Mr Tlnkhnm also reached a crisis
Ills struggle with the collar button
was on the very verge of success when
brutnl failure stepped lu and crushed
nil hope The button slipped from his
fingers It wriggled Itself out of tho
buttonhole and lu a moment It was
sliding coldly down his spine Fran
tlcally he strove to reach It For a few
desperate seconds his fingers touched
tho elusive bit of metal and turned It
about like a wheel Then It went ono
degree lower and was lost forever
The lady saw all this nnd for a mo
ment forgot that there was any such
place as Europe or anything to bo de
cided In the world except the fate of
Mr Tlnkhams collar button She wns
blessed with a lively sense of the ri
diculous and not even the hypnotic
power of her companion could wholly
overpower her desire to laugh
The young man saw this and fancied
himself ridiculous in her eyes That Is
the one thing against which such a
mans nature Is not armed The mirth
In her glance parried his eloquence ami
made all his weapons powerless When
she laughed he felt himself beaten
and he lost his temper
Then she saw him for n moment as
ho really was A rough word In tho
midst of all this smooth persuasion
was a message straight from his ruth
less heart and his anger at her that
she made game of him as he thought
showed her how lie valued her
It all passed In a moment She gave
no sign of perceiving that anything of
consequence had happened lu the little
drama they were playing With an al
most imperceptible gesture sho drew
her companions attention to Mr Tlnk
hnm the supernumerary where he sat
playing his thinking role nnd quite un
conscious of his value In the scene
The young man with the gray hair
saw that he had made a mistake and
ho hastened to repair It but such mis
takes are seldom repaired at all Tho
action of life dramas hangs upon them
for In real existence as upon the stngc
the important thing In tho play is tho
revelation of character
The curtain fell shutting off the view
of the old Manx castle and then It rose
revealing quite n different scene The
lady declared that she must wntch tho
second act and sometimes she did so
and again she watched Mr TInkham
with a dim appreciation of the service
he had rendered her
It wns Impossible after that for tho
young man to resume his argument in
favor of a European tour without re
minding tho lady of the way Mr TInk
ham had struggled with his collar but
ton and who could bo serious with
such a thought Moreover Mr TInk
ham did not cease to be annoyed by
tho collar that would not stay down
At one time he tried to fasten It with
a pin and bloodshed followed to tho
ladys great amusement
The play was nearly done before sho
would consent to be serious and then
Z Mllfc Ifa P
ItCA fffi3r4 tfVKJtT J
fmSm
BY
si w
nE DID NOT NOTICE nKR
sho would merely shako her head and
Bay No no This Is all folly I shall
remain lu New York where I belong
Presently the curtain fell for the last
time The audience crowded tho aisles
and slowly moved out The young man
was cursing his folly In not Insisting
upon going to some other theater when
ho had learned that all the boxes lu
this ono were engaged But the ladys
mind was occupied with a desire to got
a good look at Mr Tlnkhams face
Sho paused a moment lu tho foyer for
that purpose The gentleman from Rut
ledge Vt passed qulto closo to her
but did not notice her Ho would havi
been Interested to observo that despite
the difference in ago and breeding and
above nil In dress she looked a little
like his eldest daughter This Is unim
portant however as he did not ob
serve It
He was occupied with the confusion
the unfamiliar noises from tho street
tho painful glare of lights
I dont belong here ho was saying
to himself Thank heaven Ill ho home
tomorrowl -
FOHCSHAOOWINGS
Vie miy lint lv aum tlio mist 111a
Or heir or Vel the lucnlli ot iijwlntf win
Yrl witi mill uiwn Monte their Mime wlilo
Anil nature teonn Willi ileir tnroaiiatlowlng
Not In wtlil Mount of rrmiMnii ttmmler rung
IUU In deep alleme tint Imiol nlmtil
Without woril from lining tip or toiiRiie
hhe cheers the fallli that wrcitlea with t douht
From hrown coeooiu tho wlmh hug tnaaeit ami
uhirlril
ltmail ltii of rM heat up the ilewlea lr
And dry aetd Keruw that uiiuler round th world
Arc ijulck with ttunga unfolding rich nJ
rare
The alunlcl beetle tired In mnrahy fen
TraiiMljiurnt nn slioie 111 rlien aliell
On Dialling wlnga hefore the giro of men
A rojul liirth a living truth n noil
And itlll aweet olrea apeak the agei through
No gi rtii li toil hut llM a oretcrmorv
The erl linfolda lo fairer life anew
And from the dint at rung plnlotia mount and
aoar
Herald
RINGS ONYELLOW PINES
Two Circle of New 1llier lllrnilliiu
Into Otic Murk Kuril Vrnr
It Is very curious to note tho suc
cessive growth circles of our yellow
pines said a veteran lumberman from
the Pearl river district Until my at
tention was especially directed to the
subject by a forestry expert a few
years ago I hail no Idea that he murk
lugs were so beautifully clear and iIIh
tlnct The tree acquires two rings of
new fiber every year one lu the spring
nud one lu the fall hut they blend to
gether and form a single well defined
circle
During the first ten years theo
successive accumulations aro of about
equal thickness and for tho next two
decades the diminution Is very slight
but after that the rings become thinner
and thinner and when the tree gets In
to the eighties and nineties the growth
Is very slight Indeed In fact a mere
film Nevertheless tho ring Is always
formed as long as the tree lives and
can be clearly discerned with a glass
after It ceases to he visible to tho nak
ed eye
During the visit of the expert to
whom 1 referred we cut a good deal of
timber on my place ranging between
10 and IS Inches lu diameter That
tree is 1Ji years old he would say
that one Is 100 that Is about 1 10 and
so on Afterward we measured the
growth rings with the Instruments he
carried and lu every instance lie had
hit the ago within a few years It
seemed wonderful but was simply the
result of experience combined with an
accurate eye
There are some very ancient pine
trees in the Pearl river district and
many of them figure lu tho traditions
and folklore of tho settlers In their
neighborhood There are a couple of
such patriarchs on a tract near my
mill and when tho standing timber
of the place was recently sold I am
glad to say they were especially ex
cepted in tho terms of tho contract It
would have seemed like murder to
some of the country folks If they had
been cut down New Orleans Times
Democrat
Performed Too Well
The man whom I shall marry said
the proud beauty must perform three
tasks
Name the first said the lover
Go and umpire a ball game
He bowed and departed
After two months he returned hav
ing been discharged from tho hospital
cured
Name the second task he said
Go and net as Judge of the Asbury
Park baby show
Again he departed
In a week lie presented himself
again
I owe my life to the Jersey police
he said Name tho third task
Attend a meeting of a bicycle club
nnd state which in your opinion Is the
best make of wheel
He went and he returned
Dearest ho said I am still In the
ring At last you will bo mine
I have changed my mind said tho
maiden In the first place I could not
marry a man of your p esent personal
appearance In the second place I
should be afraid to marry a man with
such a record for pugnacity Forgive
me
After thinking tho mntter over ho
forgave her Ho thought he might as
well do so
And so they were not married
Brooklyn Life
A Spelling Competition
The other day Jones said to Brown
Ill bet you anything you Ilko you
cant spell three slmplo words Ill give
you within 20 seconds
Ill go you What aro they said
Brown
Well here goes Jones said as ho
pulled out his watch Believe
Receive
again Brown spoiled
Wrong Mild Jones
What exclaimed Brown In sur
prised tones Pvo spelled tho two
words you gave mo correctly Im
certainly not
Times up Jones said triumphant
ly Why didnt you spell tho third
word
Adrantngca of Ynwnlnfir
Not only Is It hcnlthy to yawn
says a French physician but artificial
yawning should be resorted to In cases
of sore throat buzzlug of tho ears ca
tarrh and like trouble It Is said to
be as efficacious In Its way as gargling
tho throat with which process It
should be combined
The chapel of St Helena at Bethle
hem contains 41 marble columns which
were taken from Mount Moiiah and
supposed to have been In tho porches
of tho temple
Chluese streets aro the narrowest lc
the world Some of them are only
three feet wide 1
jttajfeaanwfcr rtftr s rnmrarite
Home In Untile
One of the most ctitiiuis sights o bo
seen lu a cavalry charge Is the various
rldeiieis horses galloping lu he line In
perfect order At tho charge of Unlit
klavii the front rank of one regiment
wns composed to a great extent of rid
erless iinliniiln tlielr mantels having
dropped one by one It would seein
that In the excitement of tliiuionient
the horses lose all conception oV what
Is happening around them nnd proba
bly fall to notice the fall of their rid
era
The return of riderless horses to
camp Is au alumni certain sign of de
feat When a cavalry charge Is suc
cessful tho horses will as I linvo said
all keep up together even though they
have lost tlielr riders bill when a force
Is routed the first news of 111 omen to
those In the rear will be tho return of
the horses with empty saddles nnd
stirrups dangling free No more sorry
sight can be Imagined To Illustrate
the callous feeling these animals have
under fire a case which happened nt
Indysinlth during the slego may be
cited A farrier sergeant was engaged
lu shoeing an olllcers horse lu the open
ground behind the stnbtes of n hotel
and had already put one or two nulls
Into the shoe when a shell came scream
ing through tho air Tho next mo
ment the missile hurst five or six yards
away from where tho sergennt nnd Hie
horse were standing and the splinters
flew around both but failed to touch
either When the smoke had cleared
tho horse was to be seen with lis foot
still In the mans apron qulto undis
turbed by the Incident Pearsons
Magazine
llnyliiK ii Fan In flpnln
This Is how a Spanish seuorltn bar
gains for her fan according to Miss
Katharine lcc Bates who spent some
lime lu Spain studying the people and
customs of that sunny clime
There Is nothing sordid about It
Her haggling Is a social condescension
that at once puts tho black eyed young
salesman at her mercy
But tho fan seems to me the least
bit dear Honor
Ho shrugs bis shoulders and llings
out his arm In protest
Ah senorlta You do not seo how
benutlful tho work Is I am giving It
away at 5 pesetas
She lifts her eyebrows half Incredu
lously all hewltchlugly
At ti pesetas Honor
He runs his hand through his black
hulr In chivalrous distress
But the peerless work senorlta And
this other too I sacrifice it at pese
tas
She touches both fans lightly
You will let us have the two at 7
pesetas senor
Her eyes dunce over Ills confusion
Ho catches the gleam laughs back
throws up his hands
Bueno senorlta At what you
please
And the senorlta trip away content
ed with n sharp bargain although for
Spanish gallantry even when genuine
goes farther on tho lips than otherwise
tho price was probably not much
moro reinoto from what pleased tho
smooth tongued clerk than from what
she pleased Youths Companion
An InKenloan Toper
An eminent tragedian given to in
toxicants was once locked up In a
room nt the rear of the theater to keep
him In proper condition till he wns call
ed to go on the stage One door of the
compartment opened on the street and
while looking through tho keyhole he
saw a man passing
Calling him up to the door he pushed
some money through n crack and In
structed him to go to tho public houso
at the opposlto comer and procure a
pint of gin and a clay pipe promising
to reward him for his trouble
Tho man did ns directed and when
ho returned with tho articles tho actor
told him to put the stem of tho plpo
through the keyhole and pour the gin
carefully Into the bowl
Thcso Instructions tho accommodat
ing Individual also followed and tho
result wns that when tho manager call
ed to notify him of his turn ho found
him In n very happy frame of mind
but not at all In n condition calculated
to add to his fame as an actor Lou
don Tit Bits
From Sky lo Pavrnabop
Pawnbrokers tako some curious
pledges but It Is not often that they
receive one from another world A
London pawnshop however exhibits
In Its window as an unredeemed plcdgo
n magnificent aerolite n mass of fused
metal that fell as It were from heaven
to provldo n poor man with his beer
A ticket bears tho statement that It
was brought from the nrctlc regions by
a sailor New York Tribune
Uaefal Some Day Perlinp
Husband What You bought an ar
tlflclnl arm
Wife Yes dear It wns a great bar
gain nnd
Husband Great Scott What aro
you thinking of You havent any
earthly use for such a thing
Wife But dear you know you trav
el on tho railroads a great deal and
you can never tell what may happen
Philadelphia Press
A Queer Slllltnry Iavr
When a British soldier Is taken a
prisoner of wnr ho Is guilty of an of
fense against tho queen ami Is llablo
to bo put upon trial should thero bo
any doubt that ho gavo up his liberty
when there was really no necessity to
do so He must then prove that It was
Imposslblo for him to tako any other
course without uselessly throwing
away his life
Tbe Queen
My wife ho said proudly has
been known as the queen of hearts
No doubt they nuswered It was
becauso she took the knavo Chicago
Post U J
n nf iifiii J i I 1irTVW
f rtHiii i inn ifTm
7
THE MALLEABLE
T i iiiiiiiiiiiwftj
Miit ALL Y
yqur nnr r
m flR F
STEEL and MALLE flULlw
WITH POUCH FEED
Inr imln nt
1
ALBERT DEGNERS V v-
Dr Humphreys
Specifics enre by acting directly upon
the dlsonse without oxcitiug disordor irx
any other part of tho Hystom
ctmen mm
I Femora Congatlotm InrtAmmMlnnx 41
1 Worma Worm Kovrv Worm Colic tl
I Tertltlng Oollo Crying Wnkufulnoa Uf
l IMfirrhrn or Children or Adults 25
7 Cough Colds Ilrnnchttla US
H rVnurnliiln Toolhncho Kaccncho US
9 llnndnchr Hick llnndncho Vertigo US
I O UvMiepaln IndlgiMtloiiWeaknUimachUS
I I Huiiprenacd iirlnlnrut Period US
1MWhllr Too Profiiao Period US
11 Croup Lnrviigltl llonrnvnoaa JZS
1 I Wult lllieiini Vrjntrn Eruption US
1 1 lllimiiiiatlain lthoumntlo Pnlna US
10 Mnlnrla Chllla Kover and Aguo US
10 ntnrrli Innuonra Cold In tholloivl US
UO UhooplngCoiigli US
it7 Kldnev IHacnaen US
UH Nervoua lleldlltv 10
in Urlnnrv Wrnkneaa Wntttngllod US
77 IJrlp Hny Fover US
Dr Humphrey Mnnnnl of nil DlnoMca at jour
DrtiKKlitt or Mnlleit Kreo
Hold liy drtiKKlxtHor mint on roeclntof crtee
IIuIlIPhyll Mod Co C William ft Johu nu
Now York
50 YEARS
EXPERIENCE
jjmTTn
Trade Marks
Designs
CopvmoHTS c
Anyonoflonrilm naketeh nud rteacrljitlon may
nulekly mrortiiln our opinion froo whothor an
iiivouiioii la pniiinniy rmuiiiiuiio iouiiniinlen
loin at l rict ly roullilmit Int I Iiimlliook on PoUir
out froo ilitimt nponcy for wrurlnir palentu
Inteiitn tnkuu throiiuli Munii A Id recclvu
tveclal notice without chnmo In tho
scientific Jlmcrican
Alinndanmely lllnatrntnd weekly InrKoat elr
rulntlon of any ncloutlUo Journal Turin 3
tear four months IL Bold liy all newsdealer
MUNNCo NewYork
Urancti onico 03 K SU Washington IXC
IFGOINGEASTIOR SOUTH
of Chicago ask your local ticket agont to
routo you between Omaha and Chicago
via tho
cfflauz
Milwaukee
StRAUL
s
the chortest lino botwoon tho two cities
Trains via this popular road depart from
tho Union depot Omaha daily con
necting with trains from the went
Magnificently equipped trainspaUice
sleepers and froo reclining chair cars
Dining cars and ballet libraryjand
smoking cars All trains lighted by
elootriclty For ftdl information about
rates etc address
P A Nash
General Western Agent
II W Howell 1504 Farnnm St
Truv Frt Pass Agt Omaha
HOMESEEKERS EXCURSIONS
via
Missouri Pacific Ry
and
Iron Mountain Route
mr
To certain
points iu
tho --
WEST
SOUTH
WEST
and
SOUTH
EAST
at
ONE FARE FOR THE ROUND TRIP
PLUS 200
Feby 5th and 19th
ON TUESDAYS March 5th and lUth
April 2nd and 16th
Final Limit of Tickets 31 Days
Stop overs will be allowed within
transit limit of fifteen days going after
reaching first homeeeekers point en
route
For further Information or ailvortlslucr mat
tor address any aKtnit of the company or
J 0 lHILLIllI W C BABNES
AQ FandPA TPA
Southeast Cor ltth and DorjflaaSU
OMAHANEBJUBtl