New York Alfred a Knopf

N E W Y O R K A LFR E D A K N O P F LI B RA R Y UNIVERSITY O F CA LIFO RNIA DA VIS T O GEORGE HORACE LO RIMER C H A P T E R I “ ’ Lo o kin ahead yo u kaint depend ’ ’ O n w hut s w aitin , ’ e e ea en a s ro un de en M bb H v l y b d, ’ ” eb e Hell a ata M b n S n . 0 the Wildcat in San Francisco the world an d all things therein were mi ’ ddlin good . The scheme of life w as benevolent . Old Man Trouble appeared o n the scene often enough to supply a black back ’ ground fo r the noble radiance o f Lady Luck s s t o n mile, but wi h two days balanced the knife edge o f midnight the Wildcat figgered that the griefs o f yesterday would be offset by the joys - o f to morrow . At the eleventh hour Lady Luck had smiled and then her smile had turned to laughter and part of the record o f her favor lay in crumpled ’ banknotes in the ins ide pocket of the Wildcat s l ‘ a ler . y striped vest He had no coat, for the coat had been a gaudy aff air adorned With the o f insignia the Temple of Luck , and he had 9 1 0 L I L Y s luffed this along with the cares o f yesterday when he came aboard the New Orleans bound m ire E p with his mascot goat . ’ Down in the bas ement o f the 01 iron boat the Wildcat leaned comfortably again st a stanchion and watched Lily eat the last few fragments of a wide yellow sash which had gone with the offi ce of So o preemLeader o f the Temple o f . fo r Luck He leaned heavily a while , and then , surrendering to gravity and to a natural instinct, he sogged down comfortably with his back again st the iron post and did the best he could to rest himself loose from the sediment of official care which had infested the day that was past . “ o ff aller . F in Goat , lay dem y tassels ust th g ’ you knows you gits yo stummic k all braided up ’ ’ ’ f o wid go l an silver wire . All right clouds — to have a silver lining goats is different . ’ ’ ’ Spec did you have yo o w n way you nu trifies ’ yo insides so heavy wid such truck dat you kaimt walk de gang plank when u s gits to ’ ’ Memphis whah o l Cap n Jack is “ ' ” - a Blaa Lily replied , and in her answer was a protest against the Wildcat’ s supervision of her menu . In the first place the tassels were gratifying to the throat and ate easily, and in the L I L Y 1 1 second there was a satisfying flavor o f shellac o so o reem attached t the p insignia . By the time the Wildcat had completed his oration nothing remained o f the tw o pompous tassels except a small wooden button about the size o f an after dinner mint . On this confection Lily nibbled t delicately wi h her front teeth . The Wildcat looked down and saw that his “ words had been unheeded . All right , goat, ’ ’ it s usso n al stummick — yo p , load it wid pig o u remembeh o u iron does y crave to, but , y gits ” no sympathy when de belly ache ko nkers you . A sudden memory of the good fortune that Lady Luck had showered down filled the Wild cat with charity toward his erring mascot and he reached in his pocket and hauled o ut a long tw o cigar . He broke the cigar in and held the “ H h . ea long end toward Lily you is , goat ’ Finish yo banquet whilst I sees kin I sleep my ’ ’ ” self dreamless ti1 de 01 boat man gits heah . While Lily munched thoughtfully o n the shredded cigar the Wildcat curled himself up o n the steel deck with his head propped between two sheltering angles o f the stan chion and sailed away, three seconds later, into a placid estuary o f the tranquil se a that lies beyond the troubled ’ o w aters f life s realities . 1 2 L I L Y ’ ’ I o n bo theh w o rk w o rk o n t bo theh msc d t , d , ’ ’ I se f o times as h appy as a b umbl e bee ’ Eats w en I kin it it s ee s mo s all de time h g , l p , ’ ’ o i o o n f d o n e e in e I d n t g ve a d gg e i e sun d t n v h sh . ’ I kin ri e a steam o at I o n t a n o f are d b , d p y , I kin ride a steambo at anyw here ’ ’ at s de reaso n I s e as a as a bee D h ppy , ’ ’ Me an Li s em is o un — em i e -o - s T n see. ly M ph b d , M ph , For an hour the Wildca t slept . A velvet f n s ooted bootlegger, prowli g through the hipi with a rush order for o ne of the engineers o n a duty at that hour, p ssed the sleeping figure and accorded him an intent look . With his pro f essio nal duty accomplished for the moment the boo tlegging person retraced his steps and when he came again to the sleeping Wildcat he halted long enough to sweep the recumbent figure with a fan o f light from the end of an electric torch . The Wildcat mumbled in his sleep when the “ light fell Upon his face . Eats when I kin git ’ it, sleeps mos all de time In the dark the bootlegger stooped over and nu fastened the three upper buttons o f the Wild ’ ” f o r . cat s vest . Sure handy me that you do ’ The bootlegger s hand came back f rom the ’ vicinity o f the Wildcat s left -hand pocket clutch ing a moist roll o f greenbacks . Five seconds L I L Y 1 3 ’ later the Wildcat s right-hand poc ket had been c relieved of its contents , and then with the ash ’ prize safely in his possess ion the agent o f 01 Man Trouble fled noiselessly along the steel deck until he came to a companion-way up which he escaped . ff This was new stu to the mascot goat . It seemed to Lily that perhaps the business o f ab ’ strac ting green slips of paper from her master s k inside poc et might be right and regular, and then it occurred to her that perhaps the Wildcat would be interested in the process . She bleated faintly once o r twice in an eff ort to awaken her master and failin g in this she lo wered her head and rammed him once heartily in the vicinity o f his hip pocket . “ ” Blaa-a i Wake up ! “ o ff ! h Goat, lay me W at you mean ’ ’ ’ Fo bustin mah sleep in two . two bits I d sell ’ ’ yo u to some farm boy whah you could kill yo se f The mention o f the two bits reminded the o f Wildcat the ponderous fortune , which Lady l Luck had sho wered upon him . Mechanical y his right hand sought the pockets o f his vest which had so lately bulged with currency . “ Lawd gawd ! How come ! Lemme see . 1 4 L I L Y. ’ — Wuz I dreamin money no suh ! Dat wuz real . Heah Had me dem greenbacks . I is wid no ’ vet ran more cash dan a has bonus . Somebody ” met me . Fo r He looked around him in the half light . a moment he was on the point o f raising an o f s alarm and then , realizing the futility uch a course , he succumbed to the poor consolation ’ o f singeing Lady Luck s tail feathers with enough red hot language to melt the north pole . ’ Leave me meet dat woman ! Dat s all I ’ ’ ’ . Heah us fo u craves is cept de shoe five , pl m ’ bust ! No mo cash dan a fish has feet . ’ ’ o Wish l Cap n Jack was wid me . It took all o f five minutes for the o ld-time philosophy to rise superior to his misfortune . “ no Easy come , easy go . Neveh seed easy money z yet whut w u mixed wid glue . No money neveh ’ aint do s ticks less yo u mixes it wid sweat . K ’ no pranc in now when u s gits to Memphis . Aimed to prance some befo’ I settles down wid ’ ’ ’ o l Cap n Jack . Dis means us does de askin ’ ’ " ” o f — stead de tellin dat s all . He looked down “ ’ h o u . eve at his mascot goat Goat , who tol y ‘ ’ ’ you is a kin to luck 2 Ceptin I might need you ’ ’ f o c atin purposes I barbecues you right no w ’ r fish ou and scatte s you to de . Don t tell me y L I L Y 1 5 ’ — n 01 Man brings luck, you is plai hoodoo ’ ” usso n al Trouble is yo p pappy .

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