Show a T TA A PLEASANT EVENING BY ROBERT W CHAMBERS I Copyright by Q G P Sons Entered at Stationers Han Hall London Et Ills pis on fait tal pa sa a carne came on fait talt sa Horgue Borgue On et comma comm tin un smet a rounel pus fort Aristide Bruant 1 As s I 1 stepped stopped upon tiia e platform of a aB aI I Broadway B rp dway cable car ca at con l I treat street somebody said i fd Hello Hilton HUton r Jamisons J looking for you ou Hello H lo Curtis I 1 replied what does docs Jamison want He wants to know what youve been doing all aU the th week said ald Curtis hang hanping hangE E ing desperately to the tho railing as the thear oar car ar lurched forward he says you them seem s em to think that the Manhattan Il II Illustrated Illustrated Weekly was created for the sole purpose of providing salary and vacations for you The shifty old torn tom cat caU I 1 said sald in indignantly indignantly lie he knows well enough where Ive been boen Vacation Does he think the state camp in June is a o snap Oh said stId Curtis CU youve been to Peekskill p I 1 should say so I replied my wrath J rising as I 1 thought of my assignment l Hot inquired Curtis dreamily TOne iOne One hundred and three in the shade hade I answered Jamison wanted three full pages and three half pages page all aU for process work and a lot of line I drawings into int the bargain bar in I could have faked ed them themI I wish I had I was fool 1501 f Ol enough to hustle and break my to get some honest hon st drawings and andL L that the thanks I 1 get Did you have hava a camera iiNo aNo I 1 will next Ill ll waste no nomore more conscientious I Jamison I 1 said aM 8 id It pay said Curtis Curtla When military work assigned me I 1 dont do the dashing sketch artist act r you YO bet Igo to my studio light my pipe pull out a lot of old Illustrated L London News select several suitable battle batUe scenes by Caton am amuse use om too The car shot around the neck Breaking r akin curve at Fourteenth street Yes Tes continued Curtis as the car stopped in front of the Morton House for f ra a moment then plunged forward I again ai aIn amid a furious clanging o of gongs gs it d pay PA to do 10 decent work Ork for tor the fatheaded men man who run I the tho Manhattan Illustrated They don dont appreciate it itI ItI I 1 think the public does doe I said but hut Im suro euro Jamison does not I It would serve him right It If I did what wha most of ot you IOU fellows follows do take a lot o ot of Caton and drawings change the uniforms chic chica a figure or two and turn in a drawing I labelled from life Im sick of this sort s rt of thing anyway Almost every everyday everydaY everyday day this week Ive been chasing my myself myself myself self o oer er or that tropical camp or galop r ing in the wake of ot those batteries Ive Iv got a full page of the camp by moon moonlight light full tull pages of artillery drill and light battery in action and a dozen smaller drawings that cost me mo more moans and perspiration that Jamison E e or r knew In all his lymphatic life Jamisons got wheels said Curtis more m wheels that there are bicycles in inH Harlem H He wants you todo to d do a lul Iun page pe p e by Saturday A what I exclaimed aghast Yes he lie does he was going to sent send Jim cUm M Crawford but Jim TIm expects to go to California for the win tor fair and youve got to do it What is It I 1 demanded savagely The Tue animals animal in Central park I chuckled Curtis CurtisL I L was furious The Tha animals In Indeed Indeed InI I deed Id rd show Jamison that I was en entitled entitled entitled titled to t some ROme consideration This Thill was wast t Thursday that gave me a day d and a half hatt to finish a drawing for forthe forthe the paper and after aft r my work at the tote state camp I felt that I was entitled foLd toa little rest resL Anyway I 1 1 objected to the tho th subject I intended to tell Jami sop Bop so 5 soI I 1 intended to tell him firmly However many of the things that we often oftOn Intended to tell Jamison were never nover told He was a peculiar I man thin lipped I and soft in his move movements meats ments m as aB a pussy PUSS cat eat Just why our firmness should give way when we wore actually in his presence I 1 have never quite been able to determine He said very VT little so did we although we often otten entered his presence with other intentions The truth wa that the Manhattan Illustrated Weekly was the best pay F J InS ing bt st illustrated paper In America and we e young oung fellows were not anxious to tj fid ti cast east adrift Jamisons knowledge of art was probably as extensive as the til knowledge of any art editor in inthe inthe Inthe the city Of course that was saying I nothing but the fact merited careful consideration on our part and wo we gave it much consideration This time however I decided to let Jamison son know that drawings are not produced by the yard and that I was neither a floorwalker nor a down don I would stand up for tor my rights Id tell loll old Jamison a few things to sot set 6 t the wheels under his silk hat spin spinning nine ning and if he hEt attempted any of his 4 pussycat p ways on me Id give him a afew afew afew few plain facts that would curl what hair ho hu h had loft left Glowing with a splendid Indignation I Jumped off the car at the city hall hail followed by b Curtis and a tI few mm later entered the of the Manhattan Illustrated News Mr Jamison would like to see you sir air said one of the compositors as I 1 Ip p passed into the long hallway hailway I threw my drawings on the table and passed a handkerchief over my forehead i Mr Ir Jamison would like to see you I sir said a small boy I with a smudge of ink on his nose I 1 know It I said and started to re to remove remove move my iny gloves Mr Ir Jamison would like ilke to see you ou sir said a lank messenger who was I carrying a bundle of proofs to the floor below The deuce take Jamison I 1 said to myself I 1 started toward the tho dark pas passage passage passage sage that leads to the abode of Jai Jami running over In my mind the neat and sarcastic speech which I 1 had hed been composing during the last ten minutes Jamison looked up and nodded softly as I entered the room I forgot my speech Mr tIr Hilton he said we want a full page pago of the Zoo before it is re removed removed removed moved to Bronx Park Saturday after afternoon afternoon afternoon noon at 3 tho the drawing must be bein beIn bein in the engravers hands Did you have havea a pleasant week in camp campIt It was wag hot I muttered furious to 4 find that I 1 could not remember my lit little little littie tle tie speech The weather oaid Gald Jamison with soft courtesy courtes Is oppressive every everywhere everywhere where Are Arc o c your our drawings In Mr Hil Hi Hilton Hilton Hiton ton tonYes Yes es It was Infernally hot and I worked like a I r suppose you were quite overcome Is that thai why w y you ou took a two days trip to tn I trust the mountain mountainair air restored 4 you but was it prudent to ti t go to for the cotillion Tuesday fu u Dancing in It such BUCl uncomfortable un uncomfortable table e weather ye 1 e Is really unwise I e Good God 9 di dif f 1 morning Mr H Hilton remember the en engraver Engraver graver should have your drawings on Saturday by 3 I 1 walked out halt half hypnotized half halt enraged Curtis grinned at mo me as I 1 passed I could have boxed his ears Why the mischief should I lose my tongue whenever r that old Tomcat purrs I I 1 asked myself as I entered the elevator and was shot eliot down to the first floor Ill not put pit up with this sort sorl of thing much longer how in the then name me of all foxy did he know that I went to the tho mountains I suppose ho thinks Im lazy because I 1 dont wish to bo be boiled balled to death d at How Hov did he know about the dance danco at at Old cat caU The rhe roar and turmoil of machinery and busy men filled my mi ears e rs as I crossed the avenue and turned into City Hall park From the staff on the be t tower the flag drooped in the warm sunshine with scarcely a breeze to lift its crimson crIm p bars bare Overhead stretched a splendid cloudless sky deep d p deep blue bl thrill thrilling thrillIng ing lag scintillating in lii the gemmed rays of the sun Pigeons wheeled circling about the roof of or the grey postoffice pO or dropped out of the blue above to flutter around the L e fountain fount ln in the square I On Ort the steps City hall the un unlovely unlovely unlovely lovely politician lounged exploring his heavy under jaw with a wooden tooth toothpick toothpick pick twisting his drooping black mans moustache manst tache t or distributing tobacco juice ew r marble m steps and grass My eyes wandered from these human humin vermin to the calm scornful face e of than Hale on his pedestal end then to the park policeman whose occupation was to keep little children from the cool grass gras grassA grasA A young man with thin hands and under his eyes was slum slumbering bering b on ona a bench b by the fountain anc and the policeman walked over to him and struck k him on the soles of or his shoes with a short club The young man rose mechanically stared about dazed by the sun shiv shivered shivered ered and limped away I saw him sit down on the steps of the white marble building and I 1 went over and spoke to him He neither looked at me nor no did he ho notice the coin I offered Youre sick I said you had bet better better better ter go to the hospital Where he lie asked ed vacantly Ive been but they receive me He stopped and tied the bit of string that held what remained of ot his shoe to his foot You are French I said Yes Have you no friends Have you ou been to the French consul The consul he replied no I been to the French consul After a moment I said You speak lIke a gentleman He rose to his feet and stood very straight looking me for foj tho first time directly In the eyes e es Who are you ou I asked abruptly An outcast he said without emo tion and an limped off thrusting his hands into mb his ragged pockets Huh said the park policeman who had come us ui u behind me ale in time to heat hear my m question and the vaga bonds answer dont you know lenou who ho that hobo is IsAn An you OU a newspaper newspaperman now spa per perman man Who Wiio is he Cusick I demanded dc watching the thin shabby figure big ing across Broadway toward the river On the level leve you ou dont know Mr Ir Hilton repeated Cusick suspiciously No I dont I never before laid eyes OOS on him Why Vh said the sparrow policeman Charlie you remember that French rench officer what sold secrets to the Dutch emperor And was to have been shot I re remember remember remember member now four years ago and he lie escaped you mean to say that tha Is the theman theman man Everybody knows it sniffed Cu Cusick sick siek Id you newspaper gents would have it first What hat was wa his nume I asked after a moments thought Charlie I 1 mend mead his namo name at home lome Oh some somo French dago daso name No Frenchman will speak to him some times they curse and kick him I Iguess Iguess guess hes by inches I remembered the case caso now Two young French cavalry officers were arrested charged with selling plans of fortifications and other military se secrets secrets secrets crets to t tho the Germans On the eve eye of their conviction one ono of them heaven only krows knows how escaped and turned up In ji Now New ow York The other was duly shot The Time affair had made some noise because both young oung men were of good families It was wag a painful episode and ancI I had hastened to forget it Now that it was recalled to my mind I the newspaper accounts of the case caso but I 1 had forgotten the tho names of the miserable young men Sold his country observed Cusick watching a group of or children out of the corner of his eyes you cant trust no Frenchman nor nor Dutch Dutchmen Dutchmen Dutchmen men either I guess Yankees are about the only white man I looked at the noble face of Nathan Hale and ant nodded sneaky about us eh oh Mr Hilton I thought of Benedict Arnold and looked at my boots ThAn Then the policeman said Well so long Mr Ir Hilton and went away to frighten a little girl who had climbed upon the railing and was wa leaning down to sniff the fragrant grass Cheese Chee It de do cop ep cried her shrill voiced d friends ana and the whole bevy of small ragamuffins scuttled away across acrO B the time square With a feeling of depression I turned and balked toward Broadway where the long yellow cable cars swept up and down and the din of gongs and I Ithe the Jie deafening rumble of heavy trucks echoed from the tho marble walls of the court house tp t the granite mass of or the flee Throngs of hurrying busy bus people passed up town and down town slim clerks trim brokers here and there a politician linking arms with some fa favorite favorite favorite heeler healer here and there a city mil halt lawyer and satur saturnine saturnIne saturnine nine Sometimes a fireman in his se severe severo yore vere blue uniform passed through the crowd sometimes a po pa Iceman hiceman mopping his clipped hair holding his helmet in his white gloved hand There were women too with pretty eyes taU tall blonde girls who might be type wrIt rs and might not and many many man other women whose business In that part of the city no human being could venture to guess but who hur hurried hurried ried tied up town and down town all oc occupied occupied with something that gave to the he whole restless throng a tI common the expression of one who hastens toward a hopeless goal I 1 knew some of those who passed me m There was little Jocelyn of the Ute Jail MaU Jl arid and d Express there was v Hood Hoot c j I 1 who had mor inon y than lie he h wanted I and was vas going to have less than he wanted wizen when be hI lift left Vall street I there was Colonel of ot the Infantry N G S N Y probably coming coining from the office of th Army and Navy Journal and there was Dick Diek Harding who wrote the best stories of New York life that have been printed People said his hat no longer fitted especially people who also wrote rote stories of New NoW York life liCe and whose hats threatened to fit as long Ions Ion as they the lived I looked at the statue of Nathan Hale Ha then t en at the tIme human stream that flowed around his pedestal meme I muttered and walked out into Broadway signaling to the Ule gripman of an uptown cable can car II IL III III ILI I P I into the Park by tho the Fifth avenue and street gate I could never bring myself m self to enter It through the gate sate that Is guarded by bythe bythe bythe the hideous pigmy statue of Thor Wa ilsen The Time afternoon sun poured into the windows of the New Netherlands ho hotel hotel hotel tel setting every pane aglitter and tipping the tho wings of the bronze bronzo dragons with flame Gorgeous masses of flowers blazed In tho the sunshine from the gray terraces I of the Savoy from the high grilled court of the Vanderbilt Yand palace Dulace and from the balconies of the Plaza opposite opposite opposite site I The white marble facade of the Met Metropolitan Metropolitan club was wac a grateful relief in inthe Inthe the tho universal glare and I kept my eyes on it until I had crossed tho the dusty street and entered the shade of the trees Before I came to the Zoo I smelled It Next N week it was to be removed to the fresh cool ool woods and meadows in Bronx park far from the stifling stirling air of jf the city far from the Internal Infernal noise of the tIle Fifth Firth avenue omnibuses A noble stag stared at me from his Inclosure among the trees as I passed down the winding asphalt walk a lit Nev Never er mind old oM fellow said I you will willbe willbo be bo splashing about In the Bronx river next week eek and cropping maple shoots to your hearts content On I 1 went past herds of staring deer past great lumbering elk and moose and ind African antelopes un |