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Si.oo a Year, In Advance. .' " FOR GOP, FOR COUNTRY, AND FOR TRUTH." Single Copy, 5 Cent.
VOL. XIII. " - UmOJJTB, N. C., FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12 i 1902. NO. 40.
OLD
THE FOOL'S
BY E. It,
The royal feast was done; the king
Sought some new sport to banish
. care,
lAnd to his jester cried: "Sir Fool,
Kneel now, and make for us a pray
er!
The jester doffed his cap and bells,
And stood the mocking court be-
fore ;
They could not see the bitter smile
Behind the painted grin he wore.
He bowed his head and bent his knee
Upon the monarch's silken stool;
His pleading voice arose: '"0 Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!
"No pity, Lord, could change the heart 'j
From red with wrong to white as wool;
The rod must heal the sin; but, Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!
' 'Tis not by guilt the onward sweep
Of truth and right, O Lord, we stay;
"lis by our follies that so long
We hold the earth from heaven away.
! 1
I When the Plot.
I Thickened.
. Dudley explained bis idea with en
thusiasm. '.Something is bound to come of it,"
hesaid. "We will exchange mail for
one week. You must read my letters
and answer them as if they -were your
own. without consulting me, or even
telling me their contents, and I will do
the same with yours. By following up.
this misfit correspondence I'll be sure
to get a plot'. ' v
"Quite likely," drawled Grant. "But
:what do I get?" '
"The satisfaction of seeing me make
a stake with an original story, and pos
sibly a check, if that delinquent Boston
firm comes to time."
Grant pondered the proposition
doubtfully.
"It's a crazy notion," he said, at
length, "but since I get scarcely any
mail up town except laundry bills and
circulars from local tradesmen, the
chances of your prying into any of my
secret's so ems exceedingly slim, so I
suppose I can safely accommodate you.
When do you wish to put the system
into operation':"
"To-morrow morning, if you're will
ing," said Dudley. "My imagination
'seems to be afflicted with a most ag"
gravated case of dry rot theso days..
and the pooner I get to work on a plot
from real life the better."
At no delivery on the following day
were there any letters of importance,
for either of the friends, but in the 10
, o'clock mail on the second morning
there was u letter addressed to Grant
"that promised interesting results. The
envelope bore unmistakable earmarks
of femininity, and in spite of their
agreement Dudley hesitated before
opening it.
"It seems hardly fair to the girl," be
thought. -Still "
He looked across the table at Grant,
'who. had finished his breakfast and
-was smiling over a communication 1o
Dudley from . the ponderous Boston
firm.
"That settles it." growled Dudley,
file's got the check, confound him. so
I-might r.s well get even by making
the most of this innocent little note."
The bMter was-written in a sprawl
ing, fashionable hand, and covered sev
eral pag-. Defore -ho was half way
'through Dudley' perceived that he had
'been precipitated jiita ihe thick of a
.plot far more unique" than any he had
counted o:i discovering.
".My dear Henry." the letter ran.
"Alter many months of hard woiTi' I
have come to the conclusion that th;?
editing of the papers left by my late
husband. General McKeever. is too big
a job for ine to finish alone, and I have
decided to place them in the hands of
som? trustworthy literary man who
..Will do justice to the GeneraTs ,mcni-v
ory. The question is, Whom shall T
employ? I wish you would advise .me.
' I know that you have a large acquaint
ance among writers, and it has oc
curred to me that you might be' able. to
recommend some person for the place.
Prom our previous conversations ' on
the subject, you are tolerably well
aware of the nature of the data left by
the General, and consequently you will
know what qualifications are essential
in the man who undertakes to finish
rAvomTES
PRAYER.
SILL.
'-'These clumsy feet, still in the mire,
Go crushing blossoms without end;
These hard, well meaning hands we thrust
Among the heartstrings of a friend.
"The ill-timed truth we might hare kept
Who knows how sharp it pierced and
stung!
The word we had not sense to say
Who knows how grandly it had rung!
"Our faults no tenderness should ask,
The chastening stripes must cleanse them
all;
But for our blunders 0, in shame
Before the eyes of heaven we fall.
"Earth bears no balsam for mistakes;
'Men crown the knave- and scourge the
tool
That did his will; but Thou. O Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!"
The room was hushed; in silence rose
The king, and sought his gardens cool,
-ind walked apart, and murmured low,
"Be merciful to me, a fool!"
the book. The payment will be very
liberal, and whoever accepts the posi
tion can well afford to lay aside all
other work while engaged. In this.
Kindly give the matter your earnest at
tention, and advise me as soon as you
have made a choice. Yours sincerely,
"LUELLA McKEEVEH.
. "Hawthorne Apartments, Sept. 2." .
Dudley read the letter several times.
Even after he knew it by heart he kept
on reading It. Presently Grant started
'down town, and then he made prepara
tions for answering it.
"She's the same old Luella,".., he
mused, over ink and notepaper. "I've
been, thinking, ever since I heard that
the General was dead, that I would
look her up and sec if she were as
sweet and pretty as she used to be.
This is an unparalleled opportunity.
It's a blessing I made that contract
with Grant. He wouldn't have recom
mended me in a hundred years, but I
shall have no hesitancy in recommend
ding myself. Luella refused me once,
in another capacity, and she may re
fuse me now in this, but I certainly
shall not fail through want of en
deavor." "Grant's was an easy hand to Imitate,
and after a couple of hours' practice
Dudley flattered himself that his writ
ing "would pass niuster before anybody
less skilled than an expert.' That feat
accomplished, he wrote to Mrs. Mc
Keever. , ....
"My dear Luella," he said. "I am
very glad that you consulted me in re
gard to a competent literary man to
finish editing the General's papers, be
cause it gives me a chance to recom
mend a man whom I think remarkably
well fitted for the post. Clarence Dud
ley is the man I mean. You have no
doubt heard his name mentioned fre
quently of late, for he has been doing
some very creditable work. Dudley is
a particular friend of mine. I have
known him intimately for many years,
and have always found him the right
sort. I have never known a man whom
I have liked so well. He is, byall odds,
the best friend I ever had, and if you
can see your way clear to trusting him
Avitii your bo'ol you will be conferring
a fa vol" upon nie personally. ..vAuide.
from his attributes as an all-round
good fellow, Dudit y is so well equipped
mentally that I, feel sure he would
give excellent satisfaction, and I hone
you can strike a bargain with him. Let
me know at once what you think of my
selection. If your decision is favorable
I will have Dudley call on you. and you
can settle the matter to suit yourselves.
Yours, 1 1 EN II Y GRANT."
Dudley did not view this 'effusiou
with unalloyed pride.
"It is pretty fulsome praise to sing
at one's own funeral," he commented,
"if. she should over find out that I am
the author of the panegyric she will
certainly think me too effervescent to
write a history of her deceased hus
band. I must warn Henry to say
nothing about our compact. If he
should give me away my vanity would
certainly prove fatal."
Grant did not come up to their rooms
that night. He . sent word that he
should lx? out of town for a day or two.
but that. Dudley was to stick to their
bargain and continue to answer his
.share of their mail, as usua. There
was very little to answer, but it made
up in quality what it lacked in quan
tity, for Thursday morning brought an
other letter from Mrs. McKeever.
"I was somewhat" surprised at your
choice of literary executor," she wrote.
"I knew Clarence Dudley several years
ago, and have rather pleasant recollec
tions of him, but I had hardly thought
that his literary qualifications are ex
actly what I require. Still, you seem
to be in a position to judge him from
every standpoint, and I will gladly
grant him an interview. Before send
ing him to me, however, there is one
point that I must make clear to you.
I should have mentioned it in my last
letter, but shrank from doing so. But
it' is .100 important to be put off longer.
It relates to the commands of General
McKeever. It was one of the provis
ions of his will that no one except my
self or my second husband should write
a line of his biography. Naturally, he
preferred 'that I should do it without
assistance, but ho was not a jealous or
a selfish man, and he realized that I,
being a young woman, should probably
marry again. If I found the book too
great an undertaking to accomplish
alone, and decided to marry before its
completion, he expressly stipulated
that my husband should carry on the
work. So, you see, before entering into
fa literary agreement with any author
I must come to an understanding with
him in regard to that clause in the
General's will. You will see, my dear
Henry, without further explanation,
that my position is most awkward. By
the General's commands I am bound
to see that the book is put on the mar
ket, yet I am unable to finish it myself,
and am constrained to seek help only
from some man at whose head I am
virtually bound to throw myself in
marriage. For pity's sake, Henry, help
me over tins-difficulty. Explain the sit
uation to Mr. Dudley as delicately as
you know how. I think it much better
that you, rather than I, should broach
the subject. Then, if he does not posi
tively revolt, let him come to see me.
Yours, LUELLA."
Dudley, spent less than ten minutes
on his reply to the second note.
"My dear Luella," he said. "Dudley
understands the situation thoroughly.
I must say that his remembrance of
you seems to be exceedingly vivid, and
he is anxious to meet you again. Not
withstanding your frank criticism of
his work, I still think him the very
man for the place, and if agreeable to
you he will call on you Saturday after
noon at 3. HENRY."
Mrs. McKeever was plainly nervous
through the preliminary handshaking
when they met on Saturday afternoon,
but Dudley had braced himself for the
occasion and acquitted himself as be
came the literary trustee of a noted
General.
"I must confess," said Mrs. McKeev
er, "that I was astonished when Henry
Grant proposed your name as an ac
complished historian. I did not know
that you .aspired to fame in that direc
tion. Furthermore, I didn't know that
you and Henry were such close
friends."
"Oh, yes," said Dudley, carelessly.
"I've known Grant for years."
"So he tells me. He seems very fond
of you. I really did not know it was
possible for one man to care so much
for another. I hope that your are
equally devoted to him. His praise of
you is unstinted. He says that you are
the best friend he ever had, and that
he likes you better than anybody else
in the world."
"Does he?" murmured Dudley.
"Dear old Hank!"
"And, besides, he is so very proud of
yoVir literary attainments. If I didn't
know -Henry to be such a level-headed
fellow I should accuse him of gushing.
I should be afraid that his judgment
had been warped by the heat of friend
ship, and that his recommendation was
not entirely reliable. However. I have
decided to take his advice, and if you
are willing to to enter upon the proba
tion which I explained to him would
be required of you why "
She shifted her eyes uneasily. Dud
ley felt that he had skated safely over
the thinnest parts of his duplicity, and
he filled up the pause buoyantly.
"Now, see here. Luella," he said,
"you ought to know pretty well how I
feel about the matter. I put the ques
tion to you six years ago, and you
turned me down most beautifully. Ij
swallowed the dose, I flatter myself,
with fairly goad grace, out I kept on
thinking of you pretty constantly, even
after you married General McKeever
and went to Chicago to live. Ever
since you've been single again I've
been aching to sound you on the sub
ject, but I felt rather afraid of you and
thought I'd better go slow. I want
you, Luellai and I want to write the
General's biography. Are you willing
to let it go at that?"
"Yes," sighecr -Mrs. McKeever; "if
you're satisfied, 1 am."
In the first thrill of victory Dudley
felt that the only way he could honor
ably square himself was to confess his
double - dealing. Many times in the
course of the afternoon he was on the
point of making a clean breast of it,
but modesty always forbade.
"If I hadn't spread it on so thick in
my own behalf I shouldn't mind," he
argued. "Since I did, I think I'd better
let things go as they are. I'd feel pret
ty sneaking to have her know that I
blew my own horn so loudly."
Grant came home that evening, but
Dudley was too busy pondering oyer
the outcome of his epistolary enterprise
to say much to him. Just before they
went to bed he remmbered that he
must caution Grant to keep their
scheme a secret.
"By the way, Grant, you haven't told
anybody about our exchanging letters,
have you?" he asked.
Grant yawned. ,"No," said he, "only
one person. I told her the evening the
plot was hatched, but she doesn't
count. She'll never say anything about
it."
"She?" echoed Dudley. "Who (is
she?"
"Oh, nobody but Luella McKeever.
She's all right."
Dudley caught his drooping head in
both hands.
"Good Lord," he said. "I've got a
plot, now, with a vengeance." New
York Times.'
FIRST FICHT UNDER THE FLAG.
Fought on Land, Was at Tort Stanwix
Xew York.
The first conflict waged under the
thirteen Stars and Stripes on land,
after their direct authorization, is.
known to have been at Fort Staiiwix
(subsequenty re-named Fort Schuyler),
in Rome, N. Y.. Th.e fort, yvas invested
by the British on the-2d of August, at
which time the garrison was without
the authorized standard ;:,but they hail
a description of the design, and soon
formed a flag from materials in the
fort. Victory perched upon their rude
and hastily constructed banner; and in
one sortie made by the Americans they
captured five of the enemy's standards.
By an order of Congress, approved
by the President January 13, 17D4, the
flag was changed on the first day of
Maj, ensuing, so a3 to consist of fif
teen stripes and the same number of
stars. This continued to be the design
of our flag1 until the year ISIS, when
the Union embraced twenty States.
On the 23th of March, in that year, on
the motion of the Hon. Peter II. Wend
over, of New York, Congress passed
an act entitled "An Act to Establish
the Flag of the United States." It
read as follows:
"Section I. Be it enacted, etc., that
from and after the fourth day of July
next the flag of the' United States be
thirteen horizontal stripes alternate
red and white; that the Union have
twenty stars, white in a blue field.
Section II. And be it further enact
ed, that on the admission of every new
State to the Union one star be added
to the union of the flag: and that such
addition shall take effect on the Fourtu
of July next succeeding such admis
sion. Approved, April 4, ISIS."
The flags of the United States have
since continued to be of this construc
tion; so that, whatever their variations
to indicate the branch of the Govern
ment service to which a special flag
belongs, every one shows by its red
and white stripes the number of colon
ics which originally formed the nation,
while la v.-Into stars iu a blue ground
will tell the number of States now em
braced in car local Union. George J.
Varuey, in New England Magazine
The Lion of Lucerne.
A great deal of anxiety is felt In the
country through the discovery that one
of Switzerland's chief historical monu
mentsthe Lion of Lucerne is threat
ened with destruction. The Lien,
which was chiseled from the solid
sandstone rock by the Swiss artist,
Aborn, in 1792, commemorates the
massacre of the Swiss Guard during
the French Revolution, and as a work
of art is unique.
It is situated In rather damp sur
roundings, above a pool in the glacier
garden at Lucerne, and the water has
trickled through the sandstone, which
threatens to crumble, and thus destroy
thq statue. An expert has been exam
ining the rock, and by his advice it has
been decided to cut away the surround
ing rock and isolate the "Lion." Gen
eva Correspondence London Chronicle.
COMMON SENSE.
O Common Sense! No diadem is thine, 1
And on thy plain, unsentimental face
There is no brilliancy nor hint of grace;
And yet I love th.ee and would make the
mine"
Because thou art essentially divine.
Thou only through life's labyrinth canst
trace
The true, safe path for our distracted
race.
Ever to follow thee, my heart incline!
Once on the wilderness of waters wide.
Brooded the Spirit, and the land's up
rose. And Chaos saw sweet order then com
mence. Such is thy power; and where thou dost
abide
Each moon and planet straight and state
ly ko?s;
Heaven-born, earth-saving Common,
Sense!
Kate Upson Clark, in the American
Kitchen Magazine.
He "She holds her age well, doesn't
she?" She "Yes.' She doesn't look a
day older than she says she is."'
Philadelphia Record.
IlilJis "Whew! Why do you have
your office as hot as an oven?" Willis
"It's where I make my daily bread."
Town and Country.
"He seems to -be spending his life in
a struggle for the unattainable." "Yes.
and the first thing be knows he will
be up against it." Indianapolis News.
"Oh. Maggie, if I could only make
myself believe dat he loves me. for
myself, an' not because me mudder
keeps er fruit-stand!" Harper's Bazar.
Il dined, not wisely, but too well
y Hence all his ills;
And nothing now agrees with him
. Excepting pills. .:'.
Smart Set.
"She takes only boarders" who' are
blue-blooded." "How does she-inake
sure that they are?" "She bleeds
...themV-Philadelphla . JSvening. Bailie
tin. Small Boy "I want to get a bale of
hay ?" Dealer "What " do ' you want
with the hay? Is it for your father?"
Small Boy "No, sir. It's for our
horse." Chicago News.
Smith "Poor fellow, he has a hard
time getting along, doesn't he?" Brown
"He did for a while, but since- he
started downhill he finds it compara
tively easy." Chicago News.
He took two dollars not his own;
His puilt was very clear. :
He took two millions and was known
As a great financier.
Washington Star.
First Automobilist "Are you going
to take a rest this year?" Second Au
tomobilist "Not a complete rest. But
I'm going off to the country, where
there are fewer people." Brooklyn
Life.
First Decorator "I advised him to
have his house decorated during his
wife's absence as a surprise." Second
Decorator "Good; then we'll have to
do it all over again when she gets
back." Life.
Diggs "Simkins gets a good salary,
yet he is nearly always broke."
Biggs "What does he do with his
money?" Diggs "Spends the most of
it in trying to get something for noth
ing." Chicago News.
Fuddy "There is one thing about
Flanders that I like. lie never has
anything to say about his aches and
pains." Duddy "No; but he's all the
time bragging about his splendid
health." Bos:., :'; Transcript.
"Alice says that book she's reading
is very good." "Yes, she even got so
interested in it in the street-car that
she let several women get up and go
out without looking up to see how
their dresses hung." Philadelphia Bul
letin. "There, thank the stars, that's the
last load! By jove, I hope we don't
have to move again for twenty years!"
"Look, George, there's a man with a
camera! See, he is setting it us. What
do you suppose he wants?" "Guess
he's after a moving picture, my dear
Cleveland Plain Dealer. j
Depended on Advertising;.
The head of a well-known baking;
powder company began business in a
small way with a firm belief that ad
vertising is the sure and most direct
source of success. By paying as much
attention to advertising as to any other
part of his business he became deserv
edly rich.