Lakeland Evening Telegram Newspaper, October 8, 1914, Page 2

PAGE TWO TWO BROKEN EARS e By GEORGE ELMER COBB. (Copyright, 1914, by W. G. Chapman.) Rufus Burt was poor, miserably poor. He had a little ten-acre farm | and a comfortable house on it, but it | was not entjrely paid for. Five chil- dren, the oldest one fourteen years of age, a boy, Robert, pretty well kept his nose to the grindstone. With a cheery industrious wife and | these five rollicking loving branches, Rufus could not be unhappy long at a time. Once in a while Netta, the mother, lamented that they could not get the burden of debt off their shoul- ders and enough ahead to give the; children a good education. And she used to say: “Why don’t Uncle Zed give up his | stony-heartedness with all he's got.| and help us a little over the hard| places!” But Uncle Zed Mills, fifty miles! away, had long since ceased recogniz- ! ing his relatives, not even allowing them to visit him. There had been a | family feud. Poor Netta was in no way to blame for it, but after a zen-! eral row far in the past, Uncle Zed | had closed heart and doors to every living relative he had in the world, saying he intended to leave his for- tune to charity. They had heard of the miserly old ' recluse living in a lonely house all by himself. Near by was the hut of ! & man named Elf Starkey. This per- “Why, There's the Rig!” son the hermit hired to attend to his daily wants. He had filled that func- tion for ten years. The last the Burts heard of their relative, he was blind and deaf. Several of hig relatives ; S . Lt Sl a oed s PPIPIIOAEIOHIPPRERED BBFOIPDEIEHEDOHUISE DD BEPDVED PEDEPPPPIPREREEIFELEFEFISIPIPITEIPIE . Maybe you wouldn’t feel hard against LS00 T T e oo, THR® EVENING TELEGRAM LAKELAND, FLA. OCT. 8, 1914. ~ EERO ! had tried to break in on his solitude, only to be driven away by the flerce- visaged, implacable Starkey. “Poorer than ever,” announced Ru- fus one morning, coming in from the barn. singled us out particularly.” “What is it, dear?” inquired his wife in her gently anxious way. “Horse and wagon gone—stolen!” replied Rufus. “Well, I suppose all I can do is to try and get trace of the rig.” Rufus started out. There were guiding hoof marks and wheel tracks across a field and then along an ob-| scure and unfrequented road. Rufus' had gone about five miles when he started up with new energy. “Why, there’s the rig,” he exclaimed joyfully. Sure enough, faced in the direction from which he was approaching was old Dobbin. The animal stood by the side of the road unhitched from the, vehicle. The wagon itself was stuck in a great muddy rut. A boy about the age of Robert was trying to pry, an imprisoned wheel free with a fence rail. Rufus viewed the lad curiously as he approached. He was a ragged but bright-faced youngster. ' The way he toiled and perspired at his task rather i pleased Rufus. It showed that he was not afraid of work. The lad | looked up and suspended his labor n; Rufus came up to him. 1 “Say, mister,” he spoke out, “won’t you give me a lift here?” | “Well, you're a cool one,” ejaculat- ed Rufus. “Do you happen to know who I am?” ! “I don’t,” answered the boy. i “I happen to be the owner of that rig.” “O-oh!” observed the lad looking’ embarrassed and troubled. He hung, his head and dug the gaping toe of his poor shoe into the earth. Then story. Two years previously he had; by his father to Mr. Mills and Starkey ; LRSI I L | stranded on the world with two little ' place, “Mister,” he sald, “I'm sorry and| I'm glad, both. I was on my way to: take the rig back to you and I had to face you anyhow, so why not now. ' me if you knew why I borrowed the rig.” “‘Borrowed’ is good, rather,” quizzi- cally suggested Rufus. “I'm going to pay you for the use of the horse and wagon,” said the boy quickly and earnestly. “For the dam- age I've done to it, too. Not in mon- ey, for I haven't any, but in work. Yes sir, I'll make it up to you, sure.”: “What was you doing with it any- way?” inquired Rufus, but the boy shook his head obstinately. “I mustn't tell,”” he insisted. “No harm, mister, you can count on that. When I'm all square with you may- be I'll tell you, but all I want you to think of just now, is how I can work out my debt to you.” Rufus studied the lad curiously. He \ BREFESPPPEPPIPEESFBODG PO aaal il HAT’S what you want in your Printing, no matter whether it be on your visiting card, your little advertising dodger, or ssseese03 your big, expensive booklet. mix the above ingredients in just the right proportion. when we do it, looks just right. out errors in it, that will make you ashamed of it. neatly and squarcly cut—and not look like it was handsaw. The type used will be the latest and most stylish faces; the “It looks as if misfortune has /| and started for home. asked him a few questions and learned that his name was Barton Hale. He supposed the bandage covering one ear and the side of his face was oc- casioned by a toothache and did not press him with inquiries. They got the wagon out of the rut “You go into the kitchen,” advised Rufus when they reached the little farm, “and get a meal. You look as if you needed it.” “Yes, sir, I do,” replied his guest, humbly and gratefully. He acted like a new being after a hearty lunch pre pared by motherly, smiling Mrs. Burt. Rufus put him at chopping wood : and he did it with a will. Then there was a field of hay to rake up. The lad seemed actually to enjoy the task. Rufus was telling him how his wife | had fixed up a cot for him in the at- tic and hinted at hiring him perma- nently, when Robert dashed by on his way from school. “Why, what's the matter?” inquired Rufus, as he noticed the lad staring open-eyed after Robert. “Is that your boy?” asked his com- panion in a strangely quivering tone. “That’s right,” was the prompt re- ply. “Half of one of his ears is ‘gone, isn’t it?” “Yes—had it frozen when he was a little kid.” “See here.” To the amazement of Rufus the lad removed the bandage about his head. There was the perfect prototype of Robert’s distinguishing mark—half an ear. “Why—why, what does this mean?” | demanded the bewildered Rufus. “I didn’t know myself till just this moment,” replied the lad. “You called that boy Robert. It gave me a clew. Listen, sir.” Then the lad told a strange, strange lost his father and mother. He was sisters. The careless fling of a scythe had severed his ear. That ac- counted for the disfigurement. He happened to wander with the | little ones near the home of Eli Star-! key. That individual immediately took a peculiar interest in him. He offered to give him a home and the little ones as well. Starkey took the lad to see blind deaf old Zed Mills. felt over his head and located the broken ear. That seemed to identify some one to him. Before the family quarrel the old man had taken a great fancy to Robert. Undoubtedly he had asked Starkey to bring Robert Burt to him. Starkey had substituted the other lad, in order that the money Mills regularly gave might not slip through his fingers. “I knew there was a mystery, may- be fraud,” explained the boy. “Be- sides, Starkey began to abuse the lit- tle ones. So I ran away. They gave out on the jaunt and I used your wag- . Accuracy . Taste, Style presswork will be such that every Telephone Number 37 We invite your next Order & o v NN T e The latter | :"49-".-; PAR B b a R bR Db b33 B T Ty Ty R e A ¥ W N e G PDPPGEBDPBRPPPPRRFIRPERDODDOOHODIBDHOLS People won’t criticise it, and point letter will show up just right. Your printing won’t look pale and sickly, nor be daubed with too much ink. Workmen who know how, with thousands of dollars worth of the most modern machinery, enable us to “do it better.” sty =i tes et 3 snEy| PLOWS [BRINCEYE Just received, a complete line of 10 atd 12 inch 1 12 o T ey The Brinley Plow is built especially for Florida soils. Eachb \ % one is sold with a guarantee of satisfaction or your mon vg s back. ‘ | | | [ SORBRED OO0 —— L oo e = o — — — = — S — — g | - | | J L2as S DL DL LPutSnl SRR T W DT SO0 SO 0 FOIOFO O F SRR FRBTH OIS OE0 030 ¢ == e N ——— on to get them to an orphan asylum. : I put on that bandage to hide my plle e Gl Ly i i broken ear, for I feared Starkey might mission o 1 try to find me. Oh, how strange ©n the ground that the dogs DON'T FORGET BEAUTY could not be cross-examined. It is _ | things have turned out!” | They turned out grandly for the Burts, for the real Robert was taken not clear whether the judge sustained the objection, but he did point out the sharp limitations of such testimony, which should not, he thought, be used RS for “probative purposes.” The real| yack of sleep affects a function of the bloodhound was to Jooks at once. Woman is @ hunt down known or suspected crim- to require eight hours sleep inals. The fact that it led the police ! goyng sleep can only be & authorities to any particular individ- yoom where the ventilation is- | ual must be used as testimony against __tpa¢ is, where there is a ste: that individual only with the greatest: pent of constantly changing s caution, and only in the light of “ex-' pyve a comfortable bed, pert evidence of the best descriptions,” | sleep propped up with pillows as to just what weight -should be' ;¢ ng possible with a smal i glven to the action of the dogs in or pone at all, under the head * the circumstances involved. I sleep with the mouth open There is no excuse for a sall plexion. Exercise and diet are t: things that will cure it. Eat only the simplest of o fried meats or sweets, no v plenty of vegetables, and w much as you can in the open Five excellent rules of hea! beauty are to eat enough, but Loss of Slumber Probably Woman’s Looks More Than 4 Other One Thing, . exposed and a reconciliation took And, amid their new fortune, the Burts invited the strange lad and his little sisters to make their permanent home in their happy midst. : ] —_— TO BE TAKEN WITH CAUTION Sharp Limitations as to the Value of { the Testimony of Dumb Animals In Cases of Crime. { It is a nice question how much | weight should be given to the testi- mony of animals in criminal cases. Brute instincts, and habits, and psy- i chology are involved in such a way | that expert testimony regarding the ! interpretation of these phenomena, appearing in any particular case, is very desirable if not essential. In :l recent murder trial in India where much, drink only water, walk bloodhounds were shown a cap and| ""; three miles a day, sleep eight us turban in the murdered woman'’s room, No. Her arms are full of bundles | onq glander never. § and then ran straight to the house' 2nd she's trying to see what time it is | ¢ _of the accused, the counsel for bY her wrist watch.” | | the defense objected to the ad- i A Skeptic. “Do you believe in telepathy?” “Not fully,” replied Mr. Dustin Stax. “If it could be practically demon- strated there would have been a com- pany formed to promote it long ago.” Strange Contortions. “Is that woman over there having a GBS oIt B R G feGode g —— >, Lakeland Evening Telegram The Lakeland News For every kind of printing we Your printing, The paper will be backed out with a Lo 2 2 Evening Telegram Buildj ng First House on Main Street ¥ At the Head of Things e it RSORS00 S Q TN TN v v