Show Johnson J HE was a nonentity In fact so much so Eo that 1 doubt if any of the boys except myself ever knew more tha than that his name was Johnson and that he had held the same saIne position ever since he had come among us It would be a difficult matter to describe him from memory His eyes might have been blue they might have been gray or even brown he might have been anywhere from twenty five to fifty years of age I 1 have a vague idea that he was tall but if told that he was very short I I. I would not be surprised in fact to give a rather doubtful description description description tion its meaning I would say that he was a negative quantity one of those men who make no impression upon ones one's mind Of one thing I am certain that is that he was a man But to do away with uncertainty and go on with my story Johnson always made his appearance in the same way At the fourth strike of the tre nine o'clock bell he would come comein comein comein in with a smile smile smile-no no I wont won't be sure that he smiled smiled smiled-at at any rate with a bow walk stiffly to the hook at the side of his chair and after carefully hanging up his topcoat and hat take his pla place e eat at the long desk Before commencing his work ork he had a peculiar habit of running his hand carefully over his hair which although doubtful as to color I Iam Iam Iam am quiet sure was always smooth I He was so exact in all these little things that when Toto first came in as errand boy boy lie he has a chair now you know know know-he he declared that he Johnson took exactly twenty five steps from the thedoor thedoor thedoor door to the hook and four more to his desk and the entire time consumed was five minutes fifteen seconds I suppose Toto thought he w was s funny at any rate he does not say that now for st this COl compelled com strange ange to say Johnson all us fellows to respect him We didn't any of us know now what it was then but it was quite clear lear to me when I heard his story We all knew V that he lived in a little garret at the top of f the four flights nights of stairs of a respectable house where rooms rooms were let One day when nine ten and eleven o'clock struck and no Johnson appeared we naturally supposed that something serious had happened or nothing so extraordinary could have occurred so probably bly more out of curiosity than anything else we sent Toto to enquire about him An hour later when Toto appeared looking very serious for Jor Toto we all crowded about him sure that something something something some some- thing strange was up All that he had to say was that after climbing four flights of the steepest stairs you ever saw he found himself on a narrow landing in front of a little door on which he vented all the vehemence that four flights of stairs usually put into a fellow He heard not a sound sound until the door suddenly suddenly suddenly sud sud- denly opened and as suddenly closed Johnson was standing before him In answer to the enquiries he briefly stated that he was perfectly well and that Pendleton is the chief you know understood know understood his absence Then he disappeared Toto said nothing about the of climbing down stairs and treated Johnson with much more respect when he returned the next morning morning morning morn morn- ing so putting two and two together we came to the conclusion that the door had been open long enough to allow something to be seen but no amount of pumping would get it out of Toto although we all tried that process process unbeknown unbeknown unbeknown known as we supposed to each other Johnson lived on Twenty sixth ty- ty sixth street I on Twenty One night as I had settled down for a comfortable evening with a box of good cigars and plenty of of- hot toddy I heard a quiet rap at the door I managed to restrain a rather inappropriate greeting and growled an inhospitable and arid chilling Come in in j J. J The door slowly opened and J Johnson stood before me f After bowing and excusing himself for the interruption he began J Mr Walter will you kindly do me me methe methe the favor favor He got no farther He tottered and would have fallen had he not clung to the table He seized my glass and having swallowed the contents he seemed to regain a little control over himself and he half sobbed half sobbed out the words For Gods God's sake go get a doctor and bring him to my room and he was gone before I could recover myself sufficiently to ask an any questions Deeply impressed by the agitation of ofa of a man usually so self-possessed self I stopped only to get my hat forgetting slippers and smoking jacket in my my hurry I found the doctor tired out by a ahard ahard ahard hard days day's work sitting down to his dinner By a great deal of persuading I succeeded at length in landing him at atthe atthe the head of the stairs before the little door which was quickly opened by by Johnson before we could knock We found ourselves i in a small square h room lighted by a single dingy skylight the floor was partially covered by bits of what might once have been a carpet The only furniture in the room was a table two chairs a folding cot a gas stove and a cupboard The cupboard stood open and displayed displayed displayed dis dis- played the shelves full of dainty Dresden 1 cups and saucers and all kinds of delicate delicate deli deli- i cate shaped odd-shaped dishes while on the the table was a silver tray covered with all all all' the requirements of the tea table But no time was given to wonder about these strange decorations for a dingy little attic for Johnson led the the way to a little door on the opposite side j of the room He opened it and we found ourselves at I the top of a few heavily carpeted Ii J steps Descending and pushing the f. f curtain at atthe the bottom aside asid we entered a dimly lighted room We could feel that the carpet was soft and yielding we could see that the room was comfortably even even luxuriously furnished that the lamp and stand lamp-stand were of beautiful wrought iron but something something something some some- thing still stranger attracted our attention attention attention atten atten- tion for beyond the lamp and lighted by it stood a bed and on it was a a woman A woman not beautiful in the worlds world's acceptance of the word but a woman such sUeh as one would wish to call a mother sister Happiness peace love was there On that face were prin printed ted all the qualities that make mak a woman a true woman The doctor accustomed to such scenes divined divined- the truth A After fter bending over her an instant he slowly straightened straight straight- ened himself and turning with bowed bowed- bead head he said I She is dead tJ Johnson led us up the stairs a and d dafter after thanking and paying the doctor he bowed him out then shutting and locking the door he turned and pointed to a chair and he drew the other to the opposite side of the table and said simply Let me tell you And this is what I gathered gathered- She was his wife He was the son of hum humble ble parents Possessed of unusual intellect he had risen step by step and when at that enthusiastic age which looks forward forward forward for for- ward with so much hope and true t to the future he married her It was as not long before it became evident evident evident evi evi- dent that she had inherited the curse of her family family insanity Then followed a a a. along long tale of sacrifice and patience H Now How ow he gave up the fame already in reach and worked in the office that he might give her every comfort and more time than he could if engaged in other pursuits ts He finished his head fell forward among the the cups a- a and ad d saucers saucers andi and I heard him mutter Grant me patience a little longer I gently closed the door j j n tj W I b f |