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Show THE DHAlliOF SILENCE. Characters Needed in the Drama, a Man, Another Man. Some Screens and Some Shoes, A CHEAP AND SUCCESSFUL PLAY. HeisaPublio Benefactor Short Stories to Amuse "Short" People Items and Notes of Interest. He had a sample fly screen nnder his arm as be came along to a small shoe shop on Lndlow street. The cobbler looked up from his work, sized his caller up, and then resumed his pegging without a word. "Nice weather, this," suggested the agent, as he sat down on the only chair in the shop, i No response. ' "That is, it's nice weather for flies. Beats all how many flies there are around this year. Did you ever make an estimate of the number of house flies in New Yorkr" The cobbler didn't seem to bear. ! "Anything UJte the full number would run into the billions. There are in your shop at the present time no less than , 6,752 flies, large and small. Taking this as a basis to figure on, and the total in the city would be an almost incredible number." num-ber." ' The cobbler dampened a piece of sole leather and hammered it out, but said nothing. "But for tho ingenuity of man the house fly would make life almost a purgatory during the summer," continued the agent as he nibbled nt u piece of the shoemaker's wax. "Ijeft to his own free will the pest would damage this city 110,000,000 worth evory year. The inventor of the fly screen was a greater man than Columbus. Have you ever figured on the cost of screens for the door and two windowsf" The cobbler was silent. ' "Probubly not, and you'll be astonished at the low price. Just let me measure. Now, I'll figure a little. Ah! here It is a result to astonish you. I can screen those . openings with our patent woven wire cloth for how much do you think?" The cobbler was burnishing oil a heel and never raised his eyes. "It figures 480, but as I want to introduce intro-duce these goods in this neighborhood I'll make it even dollars. Come, now, but it's the biggest bargain of the century." The old cobbler reached for his hook and prepared to pull out the last. "I shouldn't want yon to give my figure away to the baker above or the tailor below be-low you, both of whom have given me orders or-ders at regular prices. An I said, the object ob-ject is to introduce the goods and secure a foothold." The cobbler palled and pulled, and the last Anally came out with a "chuck." "Remember that I warrant these screens for five years, which is something no other ageut dares do. They balk the fly, baffle the moth, perplex the mosquito and make life miserable for all kinds of bugs. They have an aristocratic look, are generally accepted ac-cepted as evidence of thrift, and I'll defy you to find a business house in New York provided with our Bcreens which can't discount dis-count its paper. Let's see. What is the name, please?" "You like some patches put on?" asked the cobbler, as he suddenly looked up. "Patches! Why, no. I called to take your order for" "Yon want a lift on your heel?" : "Lift! Why, man, my heels are all right. I want to supply these openings With our" , "No work for you?" "No, I don't want anything done. As I have several times informed you I called to" Tho cobbler sat down, picked up an old shoo, cut a "rise" for the left sidoot the heel, and began driving in pegs, and after standing fortwoor throo minutes the agent walked to the door and turned and said: "Very well. I como to you not only as an agent, but a public benefactor, and you treat me with coutumely and contempt. In , brief, you make me weary. Suppose we say $3.50 for the three openings." No response. "An even $3." Deep silence. "There is a limit to what even the fly screen man can bear," said tho agent. "That limit- lias been reached. The worm turns. I go." And the only response was a peggety-te-i peg as the hammer sent the sharpened bits of maple deep down into the heel. New York Sun. . |