Newspaper Page Text
The Wisdom of
Nicodemus
Railroad Brought to Terms
by a Smart Dog.
By L ti BICKFORD
CopvrlKlu by L. M Bickford
The Sunrise Limited swept past the
lower pasture of Mrs. O’Henrn’s Ne
braska farm every afternoon at 3
o’clock, and Mrs. O'Hearn’a dog. Nlco
dermis, sallied down to the fence and
barked at it He was an unlovely an
Imal of no breeding whatever, h canine
outcast deserted by an emigrant, and
his hostility to all railway movements
was pronounced and even excessive,
although ids best effort and longest
run were reserved for the flying ves
tlbulcd train that came so tieetingly
out of the east and shot by him with
contemptuous roar and shriek.
A year after Mrs. O’Hearn’s bus
band had been snatched from the held
of toil she lost the companionship and
nourishing daily gift of her only cow.
That {lie double calamity distressed
her was not phenomenal, but the de
parture of Michael O'Hearn was with
in the number of things reconcilable
since the movements of Providence are
to lie accepted without question and
sire, indeed, but instances of the ex
piated Mrs. O'll earn, a faithfully
•and notoriously religious person, re
•signed herself to the simple hope that
Michael was to be met in another
•country. The taking off of the cow
loft no such solace, since its spiritual
future did not concern her.
From the day ttie engine of the Sun
rise Limited swept the animal In all
literalness from the face of the earth
<it had been rather foolishly investigat
ing tlie nutritions qualities of cinders*
Airs O'Hearn faced a world that up
fieured to lie singularly unsympathetic.
Where it had condoled with her in her
first bereavement it merely smiled over
tier second. Obviously, in the eyes of
•the community, the least lilting place
Tor a vow to browse was in the line ot
n lightning express The station agent
at Exeter intimated as much when
Mrs O'Jlearn called upon Him and de
picted, with admirable detail, the eir i
iouinstances ot her misfortune. He |
*xrwioJd. lie declared, lay tile matter lie !
dope (the proper officials
A vetsdi later she came again, and !
•tier visit left memories of life, color
.and action She demanded to know |
whether the equivalent luid been sent.
The equivalent, she had somewhat ex
-Mtl.v figured, was $::!) 1.'., (his tteinizn
linn including -5-ft > for cow and Ifi cents j
■fur Ole purchase of milk thrice weekly |
from a iieighlror. Her following visit
disclosed fully as close calculation, for
The equivalent had mounted to $311.30.
JO/h it was plain to the agent that her
arithmetic carried with it rules of in
terest and equity that would never be
»cw|ited by the company even if it
-deigned to recognize her claim tor the
•w 'itself Ou this occasion and on
many occasions thereafter lie. mentally
convinced that his prevarication would
hot outlive ins tenure of office, asserted
that only the president of the road had
.authority in the matter of destroyed
< L ws and. having made it clear to her !
ttlurt her claim had been duly forward- I
• ed. besought her to follow methods
less spectacular and to exercise some
(Patience.
Having so frankly thrown himself
on tier mercy, he made a personal truce
with the Indy, hat each week a new
-hill was presented with Its nccumula
itinn of figures, together with verbal
'expressions of disregard for the presi
dent of the company and his lax meth
ods or business.
Ait first the efforts of Nicodemus
nmused the freight crews, who threw
lumps of coal at him. Tills was to the
advantage of Mrs. O’Hearn, since coal
was a luxury, and the daily perform
ance resulted in a small “measure of
the precious fuel to udd to her store
of wood. She began to wish, indeed,
that the attention or the passenger en
sghieors might be equally attracted aud
that their resentment might take the
jcinte form. After a time, however,
and from long familiarity the sport
-ceased to Interest the passing train
men. and but for an occasional missile
the dog harked without purpose, al
though he never relaxed his endeavors.
T&e tiight or time brought no spirit of
-charity to overcast the bitterness of
Sirs O'Hearn. And it was quite by
-way of coincidence that on the day
-*she had prepared her weekly state
ment—which now had sl-S0 added to
<Xbe principal—something entirely un
wnal hi railway equipment should en
tire. although tardily, the attention of
.Nicodemus. This was au abbreviated
■edition of the despised "tiier,” for the
-engine drew but two cars, the last a
wxwdcr of luxurious construction and
jtmisrted a bright yellow.
The train hart stopped, and around
on«‘ of tin* sot** of wheels stood three
men variously engaged in drawing
voJtim from an aperture, poking it
•Miiout with a stick or dousing water
Us*r»n the steaming mess. A veuerable
ja*utieuian who hart descended from
the gorgeous car to watch the opera
tion finally strolled over to the fence
and attracted by some wild blossoms,
-fomewhnt awkwardly scaled the bar
rier and ambled pleasantly about the
green holds, lost In contemplation of
the simplicity of nature's wonders
Nieodemus came into action by a
spring in the air. a shrill bark and a
■series of contortions that brought his
haunches almost to his chin. Wheu he
felt the ground after the ttrst flight he
had made two yards, and his hair
■savept the wiud as he rushed on Here,
in his dog's comprehension, was some
thing tangible. something not only to
bark at. but to Lite. The venerable
gentleman dropped the flowers he had
gathered and turned unsteadily to the
fence, but made such poor progress
that Nicodemus. with terribly gleam
ing teeth and a bounce like a kangaroo,
ran into his legs. There was then a
fall of dog and man. with a singularly
active display of man, considering age
and lack of recent athletic training
and as the venerable gentleman caiuo
upright he did the only thing tlujt
seemed to ids bewildered mind ot ra
tional purpose. The fence was still a
great way off. and the speed of the
dog laid impelled that animal on a few
feet, but he was even now reversing
himself. Nearer than the fence branch
ed a tree. Two comforting knobs,
within easy reach, projected from the
trunk. And before lie unite knew bow
he did it the venerable gentleman, with
amazing agility, was seating himself
on a lower branch of the tree, w-hile
the dog was making earnest and suv
age efforts to reach bis dangling legs.
Tile incident naturally served to in
terest the men at the car wheels. They
came to the fence in a body, calling
out to tlie dog to desist, and one.
braver than his fellows, mounted tlie
rails In an effort to distract Nicodemus
from his prey. He put one foot down
on the opposite side as if he would
come into the pasture, it was with
drawn almost on the instant, for the
dog, now animated by a desire to eu
gage all comers, sprang at the would
he intruder, and his white teeth dosed
on a boot heel. The man of courage,
giving way to profanity, tell back into
the arms of his companions The three
stood in doubt and conference, but
made no new more, while Nicodemus
returned to guard the tree with now
and then sudden sportive excursions in
their direction.
Into this excitement, after some
minutes, came Mrs. O llearn, her arms
bared to the elbows and a rolling pin
In one hand She waddled down. ied
and breathless, her Hour smeared
apron telling of baking day. her bear
iug that of ponderous surprise She
came to a halt just beneath the branch
on which tin* venerable gentleman
was perched, and tlie dog wagged her
a welcome and mode another dash for
tiie fence describing, as lie returned
a circle. The man in the tree viewed
her ad-.ent with positive pleasure He
at once connected Mrs O'liearn with
the ownership of tlie flog, and lie was
also Impressed that his position was
absurd, so. although bis tones were I
pleasant, chagrin was somewhere ap
parent.
He smiled genially, conscious that
ne Jiad |iut tlie case concisely at least.
90 VK AlhE THE I'UtSIDEN-T LV THE
KAIL.KOAU' 1
while Mrs. O’Hearu. with au authors- i
la five, "be shut, now." forced Nieode
iiiiis to lie down, ait Ilona h his uody |
still quivered from the exertions of them
••base and the consequent can!lie do
i in u m
"Ye're l*ein' wan of rlic-o rlow.-r -
pickers that preserves them in -.eiirap
nooks, mebbe.” ventured the only. ux
a spirit of conciliation, as she gi-a.-po.s
Nicodemus h.v one ear and >k mm ,
roughly, "or p’raps wan of tii*->e pro
lessors that can till ye the varieties;
UV the posies by the sclimell uv tMitn
"I am not a botanist." said the vote j
era I tie gentleman, preparing to die- !
scetid. but eyeing the flog warily, "at- 1
though you must confess that either
a botanist or a railway president would 1
appear equally out of place in a post- ;
lion such as l have found myself—a
position.'* lie added, to show that he
had a sense of humor, "that l never
thought possible out of the pages of
a comic weekly.”
Tlie manner of Mrs. O'Hearn chang
ed. as changes the fare of nature un
der the sudden burst of the tel»|**st.
She released tlie dog which sprang
again at the tree trunk, and her ut
terance was one long inspiration.
"Oh. ho-o-o-o-o." she emitted, with
a slight questioning inflection, and her
blue eyes showed the glitter of steel
"Oh. lio-o-o-o-o-o-o!"
Arms akimbo, she looked up at him.
•‘So ye aire the prisident uv the
railroad ?"
The v(»nernble gentleman, reconsider
ing his determination to come dowu.
clutched the tree branch firmly and
called out a warning to the engineer,
who had again sought to climb the
fence and again found himself beset
by Nieodemus.
"That.” be answered, "is my office
Now"-
He wondered why the woman was
so interested in this fact, but tiis af
THE COFFEE COUNTY PROGRESS, DOUGLAS._jG-TO
lArmation, calculated to impress, was
cr.t short by an exultant cry from itic I
rquat figure beneath him.
"Thin ye aire the same wan that's
been Impin' me out uv the price uv a
cow this t'ree mouths,” proceeded
Mrs O'Hearn. "Ye"—
She cast about for an expression that
would at once convey her contempt
and anger.
"Y'e miirtbarer!" she concluded.
The trio at the fence, now enjoying
tlie exclusive attention of Nicodemus.
since it was obvious that the woman
commanded the situation at the tree,
resorted to missile throwing. The
venerable gentleman looked perplexed
ly about him.
"Upon my soul, my good woman.” he
ventured, "you surprise me. 1 know
nothing of your row, You have surely
mistaken me for some one else. I do
not recall that I have ever before been
in this locality."
“Ye'll remimber it. thin, from this
J’yous dbay, for it's not from the place
ye’ll be sthlrrin' till I've me equivy
iiut an' me reshtititiou for the evil
ye’ve done me. 'it's tlie prisidint ot
the roud,’ says the station agent, ‘that
is considerin' your claim. Mrs.
O’Henrn. an' It'll be all roiglit in toime.
but he’s a very busy man.* 'Ye're not
so busy but ye can put your band to
yer pocket au’ projnee tile S3P for the
cow ye’ve murthored in cold blood
along uv your ig’narant injine dhriveis
an' she doin' no barmm to tbim or
anny wan. Au’ it's the extra money I
want for the milk I've bought since me
bereavement.' ”
The situation seemed clearer.
“You do uot. then, accuse me of
driving off your cow?" asked tlie ven
erable gentleman.
"Dbrivin her off?" repeated Mrs.
O'liearn, striving to compass her
I scorn bv raising her voice to its high*
! est pitch. "It’s makin’ mincemeat uv
; her an’ wid no sthuppin’ for an apolo
gy that I claim ye to be the ridliaud
ed assassin ye aire.”
”1 do not run tlie engine." asserted
the venerable gentleman uselessly, "if
you have losl a cow. Mrs. O’Hearn,
through any carelessness of the eiii
ployees of tile road you may be sure
your claim will receive due considera
tion You can hardly expect to ad
vance it, however, uy keeping me here.
And you have been misinformed. Tlie
president of tlie road does uot adjust
| these matters that come out of ltie —
the misfortunes of cows. Your claim
| has probably been delayed.”
Mrs. O'Hearn glared. \\;hi!e Nicode
j mus. rushing past her in gleeful pur
suit of a rock thrown by tlie engineer,
came wiggling back, licked tlie rolling
pin and returned to the fence.
“Consideration!" exclaimed tlie lady. |
I “It's today that me eqnlvylint comes
to forty dollars and eighty cint.s, an'
it’s in the three ve’ll sthay an' ye're
hired murtlierers lookin' on from the
feuce be.vant like gorillas in a cage
before I sthir from the sphot or call
off me dog, an' nick to him for kuow
tn' a thafe whin lie sees wan.”
The venerable gentleman started to j
parley, looked bewildered, sighed and
fumbled ill the breast pocket of His \
coat He Anally withdrew a some- !
what worn pocketbook bulging with j
papers. From these be extracted two
greenbacks Then he searched as !
well as lie «-onld in personal safety j
tlie pockets of bis trousers. He tin>al
ly gave up in dismay.
"I am sorry to say that I haven’t
the ainoiwit ypn ask. If you will ac
cept $-_’u i assure you tlie remainder
will be fortiM-oinmg.''
Mrs. O Heu.ru raised tlie rolling pin.
"It's the eq.mvylint or not one cine,”’
she dec-la l ed.
"itut. as i have toid you. I do not
possess the amount i rarely carry
with me any ready money.” he added,
with u shack* of exasperation, as if
Mrs. O'Hearu could have been pre
viously acquainted with his habit in
that regard.
"You can git it.’” asserted tlie amazon j
j inflexibly.
The venerable genrlemaD sighed again
and called out to the etlgiUee! ;
"1 say. Hawlviice. do you tiappen to j
have any money':''
"A few dollars, sir ”
"I nave a .Itrle Change." supplement
ed the fireman, while the conductor
reached into h pocket.
"If (be three ol voo could make up
a purse the tiling is absolutely at»- ,
surd, but we caiu«ot remain here argu
ing with tins woimiM. i shall ask you j
to loan me S'JU "
“Au so eints." interrupted Mrs.
O’ H earn.
“Exactly," acknowledged the vener
able gentleman, although not agree
ably. "and SO cents."
Tbere was a search of overalls and.
blouses, and In the moment of sus
pense the president considered that it
would not i>e at all unlikely that the
ridiculous situation would he further
complicated by the discovery that the
combined wealth of the crowd did not
make up tne meager sum required.
He was consequently relieved when
the balance was forthcoming to the
final ten <*ent piece, a contribution from
ihe porter. This, by direction, was
thrown over the fence, to be guarded
by Nieodemus. The two hills fluttered
from the hand of the president, and
Mrs O'Hearn, picking them u t >. turned
them over carefully. Then she moved
over to the second collection, and, sat
istied with the accuracy of her count,
and she was not quick at coin values,
i called rf:- dog. grasped it by one ear
and ambled back toward the house
with no concluding word. But she evi
denced her faith by locking Nieodemus
in the barn, whereupon the venerable
gentleman descended. When the dog
was released and shot off down the
(mature to renew the sport the special
had gone. He sniffed at the tree and.
presumably living over the late adven
ture in his imagination, barked in a
paroxysm of joy.
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