Show od i A FAIR CENSOR Lj BY W H HOSE Jj Tho grayhaired man looked at his p j caller keenly The young man smiled II bi clc in a pleasant way He was a too rather tall young man a little slender l and much too pale He was not a handsome young man His features lucked regularity and just now his cheek bones were quite too prominent and avery frank expression But he had a very pleasant smile Yes lie said hI havo had some exp ex-p rlence in newspaper work What kind Inquired the grizzled editor Pretty much all kinds replied the young man Been at It more or less for ten years and had I a chance at every detail except drawing the profits Worked on a country paper three years Did most of the work myself Good schooling muttered the editor ed-itor Then he smiled I fancied at first that you might be from some college col-lege of Journalism The stranger laughed Never had a chance at a college of any kind he said Mores the pity That depends entirely on the man hard at said the old editor He looked the stranger You want emplo menthe ment-he said Yes replied the young man I want to keep myself employed while I am in ElmsHeld I came up hereto get the benelit of the pine woods and the rarefied air Im trying to drive the effects of a malarial siege out of my system and the doctor recommended i your town I may be here for six months or more and I dont want to bo Idle So I came to you because I understand your associate had left and because this Is the only work with vhlct I am familiar t You want to make a convenience of the Elmsticld Weekly Gazette said the editor Thats about it laughed the young man At the same time I mean to render a fair equivalent for both the 1 privilege and the salary The salary neednt worry you said J the grizzled editor We pay the Elms field scale and make no deviations I differs Elms lield isnt New York and It fern materially In some respects from I Chicago But there rather like your appearance I want a man I can trust I This here and I need him right away Is a conservative old paper and it cant be tampered with Changes oven I manifestly for the bet when they are I ter must be made with great deliberation delibera-tion and much discretion 1 want a safe man for afew months at least I I have business that will keep me In Washington for some time and I dont want to be worried about the paper Yet I really ouglrt to know a little more about you i i The young man hesitated Ive never possessed such a thing he recommendation letter of as a said but here is a little expression of ont newspaper man approbation fom a It Is name will recognize whose name you strictly confidential of course And ho handed the grizzled editor a letter from a little package that he drew from an inner poclcet I The editor settled his glasses on his nose and read the letter through Then I he folded it up and handed It back I afternoon Glad to havo you utart In this will Mr Howard he ernoon if you aid John Howiud was pleased to get the place lie reeded work to keep his mindsafely anchored The jungle fever that had held himwdown in a hospital ward for ten long l weeks had left him badly shattered It would take months to regain his oldtime strength and not mental energy Ami the work was it all exacting lie arose early and tad a morning AUiJk 1 along the edge of tho piney wopds lateame down to the winding highway Hehad a simple jreakfasit with unsympathetic land he J leisurely came down l ady and then Main street to the office of the Gazette lie enjoyed getting into the old lint and particularly liked the again less arlity that his duties afforded him dlscov ftditor Amos Connlff speedily 31 ed that his new helper understood his requirements thoroughly and as he r J had outside business to attend to he left the next Issue of the Gazette almost entirely In the now mans hands most his usual two columns of editorial wrote lie itorial matter and he looked after the All the business ends of the paper other details fell to John Howard hand But the veteran editor was on Saturday morning blight and early to see the Gazette run off When John Uoward brought In a copy damp from the press bin employer took It and I looked It over with eyes that were ready to note and label every possible error When hf finally laid 1 It down he looked hard at John Well 7 said the latter The veteran shook his head We cant keep this pace he said You have put the standard too high And ho looked back at the sheet I ° Wheie did you get this story of the I whaler In high latitudes and tapped John looked up smilingly hit forehead with his forefinger Fiction John shook his head Eh You there John nodded and resumed his writing writ-ing See here said the veteran warmly I tell you this wont do I a hurler in the hallway lucre WLLO n wand w-and a charming voice cried What Is it I that wont do daddy I John Howard has just come In I from the pressroom His coat und vest were hanging on a nail beyond the big book quite sure there was a case and ho was smudge of ink on his nose He bent I lower over the mailing list that he was revising Mr Howard the editor was calling I him He looked around Air Howard daughter to meet you Julia I want my I this Is Mr John Howard our new associate asso-ciate John arose and bowed a little stiffly I He was conscious that he was appearing appear-ing before a decidedly pretty girl at a disadvantage Mr How I I am glad to meet you I ard the charming voice exclaimed and a neatly gloved hand was thrust toward him John looked VU his own hand and 1 hesitated It was passably clean however how-ever and he ventured to lake the slim I llnguies In his Miss Julia saw his hesitation and laughed Thats all right she said Im a I veteran printers daughter you know I and an Ink roller was one of mj earliest playthings She laughed and John laughed and suddenly felt quite at his case But what is that papa says wont do this mans effort to wreck Its young the Gazette said the editorf and f he I know handed her the paver added that tho old paper gravely needed new blood but I hadnt bargained that over gained for a flood of It Look trouble this and what my dear see young man has brought upon dangerous aged parent Sit in Judgment I on your and back presently child Ill be my and the leaving John stalked out he of the I pretty girl tho sole occupants Then John with an Excuse sanctum me bent over his work and the pretty I Excuse me sot girl with anolhcr herself to read the Gazette Presently she looked over at him Pardon me Mr How aid she said her gentle tones but where did you In get this little incident of the child at the theater door Saw It replied the young man I Ill I without looking up the girl It It beautifully written continued Howard and Thank you said John went on with his work The girl wiped t away a furtive tear and resumed her reading laid When her father came back she the paper down Its revolutionary she said gravely he tapped the > sheet The next as thing I we know well be In the Associated Asso-ciated Press and getting special poems from Ella Wheeler Wlcox I wouldnt be the least surprised to learn l that the good housewives of ElmsllcMd will very soon make up their minds that the Gazette fitted for use as zette is no longer She laughed so pantry shelf paper merrily that John and her father couldnt help Joining her And then she suddenly quieted I have just thought out a plan father dear she said and it seems a very good one It will serve You to divide up the responsibility will appoint me official censor daddy and I will pass judgment on everything In the news and special line that goes Into the paper Walt daddy dont say nonsense just yet Ill come down three or four times a week and loolc over all the proofs It will save you a lot of I trouble daddy and you know you have always said that my Judgment In so many things is better than yours So thats settled and I start In next week It Is nonsense Just the same I grumbled the veteran editor but of course youll have Your own way So the fair censor began her duties coming in from time to time and going through the proofs that John kept on r her with much I a apiujlal J hook for incidentally gravity and little result But indI very dentally she and John became good friends and the young1 roan fancied that she wny quite as good a the pine trees and tonic in her wlj as the rarefied air Anyway he certainly Improved In health much faster than he had done before he knew her fair girl There was no doubt that The liked to talk with the new associate entertaining fellow and lie was an seemed to have considerable experience for a man of his years But there I he had little was one subject on which or nothing to say And that subject inns himself One day the censor came Into the I sanctum in a great hurry Oh Mr Howard 1 she said I want I to put a notice in the paper explaining I that the next entertainment of the church literary society Is unavoidably I postponed and there arc a lot of tickets sold too It is I such a disappointment J disap-pointment and Im tho president of the society you know and they are sure to blame me If they have to give tho Porter has telegraphed money back But Prof graphed me that ho is unexpectedly of called to Boston and 1 dont know anybody who can be secured as a substitute sub-stitute and really most anybody would do Isnt it too bad She looked so genuinely worried and I distressed that John Howard suddenly straightened up I Did you sUY that most anybody I would do he asked with Just a little hesitation Why yes anybody with a lecture Do you think I could help you out I The fair girl stared at him Do you lecture she asked In an amazed tone I havent done so yet he laughed but I may be reduced to It in time Any tell story way I can a And what will be the title Ill leave the choice to you said John Howard Suppose we make It a military subject With Roosevelt at Santiago or With Otis in Luzon or With Roberts In Pretoria Make your selection please The censors eyes dilated And have you been to all these places she asked 11 Why yes he smilingly answered I and came bark too Its splendid she said but whether 1 she referred to his experience or to the titles of the lecture John wasnt sure And what were you doing there War correspondent replied John Thats splendid again cried the llmt will sound Permit How censor distinguished to introduce to you the < mit me correspondent Mr war tinguished Upward who nll lectures John J evening on With iRoolevQt ai San l > llngorf aid John Draw it mild please said thing youll want to sell my Next photograph up and down the allies So the Santiago subject Is the one you JSlt wish Js itAnd knew Col Roosevelt Yes And you velt i ti that remlnds me And Very well uniform that old khaki I that 1 have an occasion and a trol out on the I can captured Spanish JIllgT personally sJ > Santiago and J11 when < wc entered make big outline mapof the cam I lmlgn with the Into It Ile was entering short zest of a boy but he stopped I When he caught Julias admiring glance Prof Im beginning to be glad that the Porter was called to Boston said frank young woman great The lecture was certainly a I success and half the audience wanted hands with the lecturer I to meet find shake turer and few of them were prepared I to believe that he was and had been for some time their fellowtownsman He walked home with Julia after the I little reception was over her father of was out of town and It was one the most delightful walks he had ever undertaken although altogether too short 1 Then A few evenings later he called I under I he called frequently It was stood that he came up to bring proofs If so he became very forgetful IIe had been with the Gazette a little more than six months when one bright September morning the editor called him to his desk Howard he said I have a little business proposition to submit to you I Ive had an offer for the Gazette avery a-very good offer Ill admit that it Is a i better offer than I would have received I before you began to boom the sheet I Now Im not anxious to sell but at the same time Im about ready to drop the responsibility and pull out I can I afford to and Im even thinking moving to the city It will give Julia a pleasant taste of life that she has never had in this slow town Now do you want to buy a half interest In the paper If you do Ill retain the other I half and let you run It and you can pay up as you go along Thats very kind and very compli men La ry saiu aonn Howard and tho offer Is a tempting one But I haw concluded to accept proposition that came to rne yesterday It Is the Offer ot late editorship or the Aurora MOt b azineWell Well well said the old man as ho put out his hand thats fine ot course you should accept You are too good a man to ibev cooped up here Thank you said John Howard Then his tone changed Ill will b7 month before they want jno he Went on and in the meantime I havo a sc gestlon to make concerning the thn makeup of our editorial staff The old editor looked a little aston shed Go on ho said I want to abolish the position of censor Eh What fresh nonsense Is thin And the veteran laughed I want to unite the positions of censor and associate edltorUTgald John Howard The old mans Hinlle faded lie understood un-derstood Johns meaning And you have Julias approval hI slowly said In this matter her approval is sub Jcct to her fathers John replied And if I I give her to you It means that you will take her to New York when you go John nodded There was a little silence Then tha old man put out his hand Ill go too he said Cleveland I Plain Dealer |