OCR Text |
Show A Fifty-Fifty Proposition The original of Peter Dunne's immortal im-mortal character, "Mr. Dooley," kept a saloon in Chicago much frequented by newspaper men. He was a born wit, and In his way and a very good way it was, too a philosopher and a student of human nature in its varying aspects. One wintry evening as he perched behind his bar in friendly conversation conversa-tion with two of his regular patrons there entered a so-called journalist whose reputation as a ready borrower and a poor payer was more than city-wide. city-wide. "Uncle John," he said briskly, "I'm detailed to an out-of-town assignment and I'm a little short of cash need some coin for traveling expenses. Slip me a tenspot, will you? I'll hand It back to you sure on pay night along with the rest of the small loans I've had off of you lately. The old man's face gave no sign of his real feelings. He lifted his broad bulk, waddled to the damper, extracted extract-ed from the till a bill and without a word passed it across the bar to the promising man. The latter, murmuring his thanks, started to cram it In his pocket but took a second glance at the greenback. "Hold on here, Uncle John," he said. "I needed ten bones and this bill Is only a fiver." "That's all right, me son," said Uncle John; "it makes the tiling come out even." "What do you mean, makes the thing come out even?" "Why, five I lose and five you lose," said Uncle John. |