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A Department Case
IN Texas you mar travel a thousand
miles In A straight line. It your
course 1 A crooked on it ts ltkely
that both the dlstanc an your rat
of speed may be vastly Increased.
Clouds there sail serenely against the
wind. Th whip-poor-will delivers Its
disconsolate cry with the notes exact
' ly reversed from those of his Northern
brother. Given a drought end a subse
quent lively rain, and lo! from the
glazed and stony soil will spring In a
single night blossomed lliles, miracu
lously fair. Tom Green County was
one the standard of measurement. I
have forgotten how many New Jerseys
and Rhode Islands tt was that could
have been stowed away and lost In Its
chapparral. But the legislative az has
slashed Tom Gre-n Into a handful of
counties hardly larger than European
kingdoms. The Legislature convenes at
Austin, near the center of the state, and
while the representative from the Rio
Grande country Is gathering his palm
leaf fan and his duster to set out for
the capital, the Panhandle solon winds
his muffler above his well-buttoned
overcoat and kirks the snow from his
well-greased boots ready for the same
Journey. All this merely to hint that
the big ex-republic of the southwest
forms a sizable star on the flag and to
prepare for the corollary that things
sometimes happen there uncut to pat
tern and unfettered by metes and
bounds.
The commissioner of Insurance, sta
tistics and history of the state of Texas
was an official of no very great or very
mall Importance. The past tense Is
used, for he ts commissioner of Insur
ance alone. Statistics and history are
no longer proper nouns In the govern
ment records.
In the year IS! the governor ap
pointed Luke Coonrod Standlfer to be
head of this department. Standlfer was
then 65 years of age and a Texan to
the core. Ills father' had been one of
the state's earliest settlers and pion
eers. Standlfer himself had served the
commonwealth as Indian fighter, sol
dier, ranger and legislator. Much
learning he did not claim, but he had
drunk pretty deep of the spring of
experience.
If other grounds were less abundant.
Texas should be well up In the lists
of glory as the grateful republic For
both as republic and state It Was busi
ly heaped honors and solid rewards
upon Its sons who rescued It from the
wilderness.
Wherefore and therefore Luke Coon
rod Standlfer. son of Esra Standlfer,
ex-Texas ranger, stmon pure Democrat
and lucky dweller la an unrepresented
portion of the politico-geographical
map. was appointed commissioner of
Insurance, statistics and history.
Standlfer accepted the honor with
some doubt as to the nature of the
office he was to fill and his capacity
for filling but he accepted, and by
wire. Be Immediately set out from the
little country town where he main
tained (and was scarcely maintained
by) a somnolent and unfruitful office
of surveying and map drawing. Before
departing he had looked up under the
I s. 6'a and R's In the "Encyclopaedia
Britannic" what Information and prep
aration toward his official duties those
weighty volumes afforded.
A few weeks of Incumbency dimin
ished the new commissioner's awe of
tie great and Important office he had
been called upon to conduct. An in- ,jBy wnen he bearded th old lion Sam
creasing familiarity with Its workings Houston himself, and defied him dur
soon restored him to bis accustomed j na. that season when secession wss the
placid course of l.fe. In his office wss theme. Now. In bearing and dress,
an eld. spectacled clerk a consecra- Luke Coonrod Standlfer endeavored to
ted. Informed, able machine, who held do credit to the Important arts and scl-
nts desk regardless of changes or ad- .
mlnistratlve heads. Old Kauffman In
structed his new chief gradually In the
knowledge of the department without
seeming to do so. and kept the wheels
revolving without the slip of a cog.
Indeed, the department of Insurance,
statistic and history carried no great
heft ef ths burden Of state. Its main
work was the' regulating of the busi
ness done In the state by foreign In
surance companies, and the letter of
the law was to guide. As for statistics
well, you wrote letter to county of
ficers, and scissored other people's re
ports, and each year you got out a re
port of your own about the corn crop
and the eotton crop and pecans and
pigs and black and white population,
and a great many columns of figures
.headed "bushels" and "acres" and
-square miles." etc. and there you
were. History? The branch was pure
ly a receptive one. Old ladles Inter
ested In the science bothered you
some with long reports of proceedings
of their historical societies. Some
;0 cr so people would write you each
year that they had secured Sam Hous
ton's pocket-knife or Santa Ana's
whisky-flask or Davy Crockett's rifle
all absolutely authenticated and
demanded legislative appropriation to
purchase. Most of the work In the his.
tory branch went Into pigeon-holes.
One slxxllng August afternoon the
commissioner reclined in his offlceJ
chair, with his feet upon the long, of
ficial table, covered with green billiard
cloth. The commissioner was smok
ing a cigar, and dreamily regarding
the quivering landscape framed by the
window that looked upon the treeless
Capitol grounds. Perhaps he was
thinking of the rough-and-resdy life he
had led. of the old daya of breathless
adventure and movement, of the com
rades who now trod other path or had
ceased to tread any. of the changes
civilisation and peace had brought, and
maybe, complacently, ef the snug and
comfortable camp pitched for him un
der the dome of the Capitol of the
state that bad not forgotten his serv
ices. The business of the department was
lax. Insurance waa easy. 6tatlstica
were not In demand. History w" dead.
Old Kauffmao, the efficient and per
petual clerk, had requested an infre
quent half-holiday. Incited to the un
usual dissipation by the Joy of having
successfully twisted the tail of a Con
necticut Insurance company that was
trying to do business contrary to ths
edicts of the great Lone- Star state.
The office was very still. A few sub
dued noises trickled In through th
open door from the other departments
a dull, tinkling crash from the treas
urer's office adjoining, as a clerk
tossed a bag of ailver to the floor of
the vault the vague. Intermittent
clatter of a dilatory typewriter a dull
tapping from the state geologist's quar
ters, as if some woodpecker had flown
In to bore for his prey In the cool of
the massive building and then a faint
rustle and the light shuffling of the
well-worn shoes along the hall, the
sound ceaalng at the door toward
whloh the commissioner's lethargic
back was presented. Following this,
the sound of a gentle voice speaking
words unintelligible to the commis
sioner' somewhat dormant compre
hension, but giving evidence of bewil
derment and hesitation.
The voice was feminine; the com
missioner was of ths race of cavaliers
who make salaam before the trail of a
skirt without considering the quality
of Its cloth. . . .
There stood In the door a faded wom
an, one of the numerous sisterhood of
the unhappy. She dressed all in black
poverty's perpetual mourning for lost
Joy. Her face had the contours of 10
and the lines of 40. She may have lived
that Intervening score of years In a 12
month. There was about her yet an
aurum of Indignant, unappeased. pro
testing youth that shone faintly
through the premature veil of un
earned decline.
1 brg your pardon, ma am. said tne
Commissioner, gaining his feet to the
accompaniment of a great oreaklng and
sliding of his chair.
-Are you the Governor, alrf asked
the vision of melancholy.
The Commissioner hesitated at the
end of his best bow. with hie hand in
the bosom of his double-breasted
-frock." Truth at last conquered.
"Well. no. ma'am. I am not the Gov
ernor. I have the honor to be Com
missioner of Insurance, Statistics and
History. Is there snythlng ma'am, I
can do for you? Won't you have a
chair, ma'am?"
The lsdy subsided into the chair
handed her. probably from purely
physical reasons. She wielded a cheap
fan last token of gentility to be aban
doned. Her clothing seemed to Indi
cate a reduction almost to extreme
poverty. She looked at the man wko
was not the Governor, and saw kind
liness and simplicity and a rugged, un
adorned courtliness emanating from a
countenance tanned and toughened by
40 years of out of doors. Also, she saw
that hie eyes were clear and strong and
bine. Just so they had been when he
used them to skim the hortson for raid
ing Klowss and Sioux. His mouth was
set and nrm as n nig oeen on mil
enees of Insurance, statistics ana nis
tory. He had abandoned the careless
dress of his country home. Now. his
broad-brimmed black souch hat. and his
long-tailed "frock" made him not the
least Imposing or tne oiriciai iamuy.
even if his office wss reckoned to
stand at the tall of the list.
"You wanted to see the Governor,
ma'am f asked the Commissioner, with
the deferential manner h always used
toward the fair sex-
"I hardly know." said the lady hesi
tatingly. "I suppose so." And then,
suddenly drawn by the sympathetic
look of the other, she poured forth
the story of her need.
It wae a ' story so common that ths
public has come to look at Its mo
notony instead of Its pity. The old
tale of an unhappy married life made
so by a brutal, conscienceless husband,
a robber, a spendthrift, a moral cow.
ard. and a bully, who failed to pro
vide even the means of the barest ex
istence. Tes, he had come down In
the scale so low as to strike her. It
happened only the day before there
was the bruise on one temple ahe
had offended bis highness by asking
for a little money to live on. And yet
she must needs, woman-like, append a
plea for her tyrant he was drinking;
he had rarely abused her thus when
sober. ,
"I thought." murmured this pale sis
ter of sorrow, "that maybe the state
misijt be willing to give me soms re
lief. Tve heard of such things being
done for the families of old settlers.
I've heard tell that the stats used to
give land to the men who fought for It
against Mexico, and settled up the
country, and helped drive out the In
diana My father did all of that, and
he never received anything. He never
would take it. I thought the Governor
would be the one to see, and that's
why I came. If father waa entitled to
anything, they might let It come to
me."
"If possible, ma'am," said Standl
fer. "that euoh might be the case. But
most all the old veterans and settlers
got their land certificates Issued, and
located long ago. Still, we can look
that up In the land office, and be sure.
Your father's name, now, wu "
"Amos Colvln, sir."
"Good Lord:" exclaimed Standlfer,
rising and unbuttoning his tight coat,
excitedly. "Are you Amos Colvln's
daughter? Why, ma'am. Amos Colvln
w.A ra thloirir than two hoss
thieves for more than 10 yearsl W
fought Klowas. drove catle and r an
gered side by side nearly all over
Texas. I ' remember seeing you once
before now. You were a kid. about
T. a-rldlng a little yellow pony up and
down. Amos and me stopped at your
home for a little grub when we were
trailing that band of Mex'can, cattle
thieves down through Karnes and Bee.
Great tarantulas! and you're Amos Col
vln' little girl! Did you ever hear your
father mention Luke .Standlfer Just
kind of casually as if he'd met me onoe
or twicer
A little pale smile flitted across the
lady's white face.
"It seems to me," she said, "that 1
don't remember hearing him talk about
much else. Every day there was some
story he had to tell about what he and
you had done. Mighty near the last
thing I heard him tell was about the time
when the Indians wounded him. and you
crawled out to him through the grass,
with a canteen of water, while they"
"Yes, yes well oh, that wasn't any
thing," said 8tandlfer. "hemming" loudly
and buttoning his coat again, briskly.
"And now. ma'am, who was the Infernal
skunk I beg your pardon, ma'am who
was the gentlemen you married?"
"Benton Sharp."
The commissioner plumped down agsin
into his chair, with a groan. This gentle,
sad little woman. In the rusty black
gown, the daughter of hi oldest friend,
the wife of Benton Sharp! Benton Sharp,
one of the most noted "bad" men in that
part of the state a man who bad been
a cattle thief, sn outlaw; a desperado,
and was now a gambler, a swaggering
bully, who plied his trad In the larger
frontier town, relying upon hi record
and the quickness, of hi gun play to
maintain hi upremacy. Seldom did
nyon take the risk of going "up
against" Benton Sharp. Even the law
officers were content to let him make
hi own terms of peace. Sharp was a
ready and an accurate shot, and s
lucky ss a brand new penny at coming
clear from his scrapes. Standlfer won
dered how this pillaging eagle ever came
to be mated with Amos Colvln's little
dove, and expressed his wonder.
Mrs. Sharp sighed.
"You see, Mr. Sandlfer, we didn t
know anything about him. and he can
be very pleasant and kind when he want
to. We lived down In the little town of
Goliad. Benton came riding down that
way, and stopped there a while. I
reckon I waa ome better looking than I
am now. He wa good to m for a whole
' year after we were married. He Insured
his life for me for rive tnousana uona.r.
But for the last six months be has done
everything but kill me. I often wish
he had done that. too. He got out of
money for a while, and abused me
shamefully for not having anything he
could spend. Then father died, and left
me the little home In Goliad. My hus
band made me sell that, and turned me
out Into the world. I've barely been able
to live, for I'm not strong enough to
work. Lately, I heard he was making
money In San Antonio, so I went there,
and found him, and asked for a little
help. This." touching the livid bruise
on her temple. "Is what he gave me. So
I came on to Austin to see the Governor.
I once heard father say that there was
some land, or a pension, coming to him
from the state that he never would ask
for."
Luke Standlfer rose to his feet, and
pushed his chair back. He looked rather
perplexedly around the big office, with
Its handsome furniture.
"It's a long trail to follow," he ssld,
slowly, "trying to get back dues from
the Government. There's red tape and
lawyers and ruling and evidence and
court to keep you waiting. I'm not
certain," continued the commissioner,
with a profoundly meditative frown,
"whether thl department that I'm the
boss of has any Jurisdiction or not.
It's only Insurance, statistics and his
tory, ma'am, and It don't sound as if
It oould oover the case. But sometimes
a saddle blanket can be made to stretch.
You keep your seat Just a few minutes,
ma'am, till I step Into the next room
and see about It."
The state treasurer was seated' with
in his massive, complicated railings,
reading a newspaper. Business for the
day was about over. The clerks lolled
at their desks, awaiting the closing
hour. The commissioner -of Insurance,
I statistics and history entered and
leaned In at the window.
The treasurer, a little. brliK. oia man.
with snow white mustache and beard.
Jumped up youthfully and came forward
to greet Standlfer. They were friend
of old. . ,
"Uncle Frank." said the commission
er, using the familiar name by which
the historic treasurer was addressed by
Ttnr Texan, "how much money have
' yon got on hand?"
' ..-.- ,amA th anm of th
last balanoo. down to the odd cents
something more than a million dollars.
The commissioner whistled lowly, and
his eyes grew hopefully bright.
"You know, or else you've beard of
Amos Colvln. Uncle Frank?"
"Knew him well." said the treasurer
promptly. "A good man. A valuable
citizen. One of the first settlers In the
southwest."
"His daughter." said Standlfer. 'In
I i i in mv ifrtn fihu'l n.nnllnnK
'She's married to Benton Sharp, a coy
ote ana a muraerer. no reuueou nor
to want and broken her heart. Her
v h.ln. t n tinllii im thin state and
It's the state's turn to help his child.
A couple OI tnousana aniiari win uuy
back her home and let her live In peace.
The state of Texas can't afford to re
fuse It. Give me the money. Uncle
Frank, and I'll give it to her right
away. We'll fix up the red tape busi
ness afterward."
The treasurer looked a little bewild
ered. wkv ntAn1IVr" he said, "vou know
I can't pay a cent out of the treasury
without a warrant iivim vi. a unn ,
I can't disburse a dollar without a
voucher to show for It."
The commissioner betrayed a slight im
patience. "I'll give you a voucher," he declared.
"What's this Job they've given me for?
Am I Just a knot on a mesqulte atump?
Can't my office stand for It? Charge it
up to Insurance and the other two side
shows. Don't statistic show that Amos
Colvln came to thJ state when It was
In the bands of Greasers and rattle
snakes and Comanches. and fought day
and night to make a white man's coun
try of It? Don't they show that Amos
Colvln' daughter Is brought to ruin by
a villain w Ira's trying to pull down what
you and I and all old Texanai shed our
blood to build up? Don't history show
that the Lone Star Btate never yet failed
to grant relief to the suffering and op
pressed children of the men who made
her the grandest commonwealth in the
Union? if statistics snd history don't
bear out the claim of Amo Colvin"a child
I'll aak th next Legislature to abolish
my office. Come, now. Uncle Frank, let
her have the money. Til sign th paper
officially h you say so; and then If the
ho controller or the Janitor
or anybody else makes a kick, by the
Lord rll refer the matter to tne people,
end see If they wont Indorse the act?"
The treasurer looked sympathetlo but
shocked. The commissioner's voice had
grown louder as he rounded off the sen
tences that, however praiseworthy they
might be In sentiment, reflected some
what upon the capacity of the head of a
more or less Important department of
state. The clerk were beginning to
listen.
"Now. Standlfer." said the treasurer,
soothingly, "you know I'd like to help
In this matter, but stop and think a
moment, pleaee. Every cent In the
treasury ts expended only by appropria
tion made by the Legislature, and drawn
out by checks issued by the controller. I
can't control the use of a cent of It.
Neither can you. Your department Isn't
disburslve It isn't even administrative
it's purely clerical. The only way for
the lady to obtain relief Is to petition
the Legislature, and "
"To the devil with the Legislature,"
said Standlfer, turning away .
The treasurer called him back.
"I'd be glad, Standlfer,' to contrib
ute a hundred dollars personally
toward the Immediate expenses of Col
vln's daughter." He reached for his
pocketbook.
i err mina, unciw r i
HONEY." Inquired the uoionei,
he lighted hi cigar, "do you
v.r ,. hicr black dog
-we used to have down on the farm?"
"Do vou mean old Snack?" asked his
daughter, Mrs. Rollins.
"Yes, that's the one. You know, i
named him Sennacherib, because ne
looked sa much like a wolf, but the
name waa too much of a mouthful for
everyday use and we cut it down to
Snack. Well. I was Just thlnkln aoout
that old dog. I remember one time I
was slttln' out on the big iront porcn
wlh my feet on the rallln', a smoking
my old meerschaum pipe an' thlnkln'
o' nothln' In particular. It was in tne
Summer time, 'long about four In tne
evenln', an' hot was no name, anaca
was lyin' down In the shade Just a little
ways off. tryln' to take a nap but not
succeedln' very well. One o these pes
ky mud dobbers was testln'' his sense
o" humor and I was gettln' pretty well
Interested In the experiment when
qne o' Mrs. Snack's last offerln's come
bouncln' around the corner o' the house.
He was one o' these sassy. smart-Aleck
pups that are always makln' trouble
for themselves, an' the minute he spied
Snack he made for him an' commenoed
to bark. Old Snack Just opened one
eye and looked at him at first, but the
fool pup kept on barkln' an' prancln'
around Just like he'd treed a coon.
Pretty soon Snack began to show his
teeth an" growl, an' when he found
after a while that didn't do any good,
either, he got up, shook himself,
grabbed that pup by the scruff o the
neck an' trotted off with him.
"It was a mighty hot day. as I said
before, but I was curious to know what
the old fellow was goln' to do with his
unruly offspring, so I up an' followed,
'ell. air. Snack want straight down to
?ffi!N A PfAM Of THS
,iL : " :
RESPECT FOR PARENTS AND OTHERS
COPYRIGHT
the Commissioner, In a softer tone.
"There's no need of that. She hasn't
asked for. anything of that sort yet.
Besides, her case Is in my hands. I
see now what a little, ragtag, bobtail,
gotch-eared department I've been put
in charge of. It seems to be about ao
Important a an almanac or a hotel
register. But while I'm running It, it
"ARE YOU AMOS OOLVIN'S DAUGHTER7"
won't turn away any daughters of
Amos Colvln without stretching Its Jur
isdiction to cover, if possible. You
want to keep your eye on the depart
ment of Insurance, statistics and his
tory." The commissioner returned to his
office, looking thoughtful. He opened
and closed an Inkstand on his desk
many times with extreme and undue
attention before he spoke.
"Why don't you get a divorcer' he
asked, suddenly.
T haven't the money to pay for
it," answered the lady.
"Just at present," announced the
commissioner, in a formal tone, "the
powers of my department appear to be
considerably string-halted. Statistics
seem to be overdrawn at the bank and
history isn't good for a squats meal.
But you've come to the right place,
ma'am. The - department will see you
through. Where did you say your hus
band Is, ma'am?"
"He was in San Antonio yssterday.
He is living mere now.
the pond in the barn lot. waded in a
little ways, an' I'll eat my hat If he
didn't souse that pup under four time
before'he let it go. Master Puppy was
always mighty respeotful to old Snack
after that."
The Colonel's son-in-law grinned.
"I suppose,' "he said, "that this story
has a moral which .concerns your cher
ished grandson."
Te-s." replied the Colonel with some
hesitation, "yes. It has, although I
didn't have him exaotly in mind. It
90 BY f t- H ELS ON
Suddenly the commissioner aband
oned hie official air. He took the faded
little woman's hands in his and spoke
In the old voloe he used on the trail
and around campflres.
"Your name's Amanda, isn't It?"
"Yes, sir."
"I thought so. Tve heard your dad
say it often enough. Well, Amanda,
here's your father's best friend, the
head of a big office In the state govern
ment, that's going to help you out of
your troubles. And then here's the
old bushwhacker and cowpuncher that
your father has helped out of scrapes
time and time again wants to ask you
a question. Amanda, have you got
money enough to run you for the next
two or three days.
Mrs. Sharp's white face flushed the
least bit.
"Plenty, slr for a fev days."
"All right, then, ma'am. Now, you
go hack where you are stopping here,
and you come to the office again the
day after tomorrow at four o'clock In
the afternoon. Very likely by that time
there will be something definite to re
port to you." The commissioner hesi
tated and looked a trifle embarrassed.
"You said your husband had insured
his life for $6000. Do you know whether
the premiums have been kept paid upon
it or notr'
"He paid for a whole year In advance
about five months ago," said Mrs. Sharp.
was that sassy youngster that lives
next door to me that made me think
of old Snack and the pup. I'd hate
mighty bad to see little Bill grow up
to be one o' that kind."
"Would you suggest ducking as a
corrective measurer' Inquired Mr. Rol
lins. "I might, if he got to the point where
he needed it, but he don't need any
thing like that now, and he never will
If you don't allow him to walk on you.
An", layln' Jokes aside. It's a mighty
serious matter. When I was a boy the
Fifth Commandment was looked on as
one o' the most Important of the ten,
and it was hardly ever broken, but
nowadays nobody seems to pay much
attention to It. I believe in keepln' up
with the times, and I don't think any
body can rightly say that John Sneed's
a back number, but when I hear a ten-year-old
boy bossln' his mother or
sassin' his father I I well, it makes
me all-fired mad, that's what it does.
"Back talk from a boy to his parents
is a sign of bad tralnln', an' bad
tralnin's worse for a boy than it Is
for a hoss even. That's puttln' It pretty
strong, but it's the way I feel about
it. For a boyN that doesn't show any
respect for his father and mother goes
Into manhood with a big handicap. He
goes Into the race hobbled, you might
say, and unless something big happens
to him, some great misfortune or a
hard lesson that shows him what he
really is, he's goln' to limp Into the
home stretch after the crowd's gone
home. For I want to tell you, my
children, that honorln' father and
mother Isn't Just a mere matter of
form. It's one of the foundation stones
of character, and I think that's why
the good Lord put It so near the top
when he was layln' out his command
ments. A boy should be trained to
how respeot to his parents not so
"I have the polloy and receipts in my
trunk."
"Oh, that's all right, then," said
Standlfer. "It's best to look after
things of that sort. Some day they
may come In handy."
. Mrs. Sharp departed and soon after
ward Luke Standlfer went down to the
little hotel whe re he boarded and lookej
up the railroad time table In the dally
paper. Half an hour later ho removed
his coat and vest and strapped a pecu
liarly constructed pistol bolster across
his shoulders, leaving the receptacle cloaa
under his left armpit. Into the holster
he shoved a short-barreled 4-callber re
volver. Putting on his clothes again,
he strolled down to the station and
caught the 5:20 afternoon train for San
Antonio.
The San Antonio Express of the fol
lowing morning contained this sensa
tional piece of news:
BENTON SHARP BIISF.TS
Ills MATCH
The Moat Noted Denpcrado In South
west Texas Shot to Death In the
Gold Front Restaurant Prominent
State Official Successfully Defends
Himself Against the Noted Bully
Magnificent Exhibition ef Quick
Gun Play.
Last night about 11 o'clock Benton
Sharp, with two other men, entered
the Gold Front Kestaurant and seated
themselves at. a table. Sharp had been
drinking, and was loud and boisterous,
as he always was when under the in
fluence of liquor. Five minutes after
the party was seated a tall, well
dressed elderly gentleman entered the
restaurant. Few present recognized
the Hon. Luke Standlfer, the recently
appointed Commissioner of Insuranoe,
Statistics and History.
Going over to the same side where
Sharp was, Mr. Standlfer prepared to
take a seat at the next table. In hang
ing als hat upon one of the hooits
along the wall he let It fall upon
Sharp's head. Sharp turned, being in
an especially ugly humor, and cursed
the other roundly. Mr. Standlfer apol
ogized calmly for the accident. Mr.
Standlfer was 'observed to draw near
and speak a few sentences to the des
perado In so low a tone that no one
else caught the words. Sharp sprang
up, wild with rage. In the meantime
Mr. Standlfer had stepped some yards
away, and was standing quietly with
his arms folded across the breast of
his loosely hanging coat.
With that Impetuous and deadly
rapidity that made Sharp so dreaded,
he reached for the gun he carried in
his hip pocket a movement that has
preceded the death of at least a dozen
men at his hands. Quick as the mo-'
tion was, the bystanders assert that It
was met by the most beautiful exhibi
tion of lightning gun-pulling ever wit
nessed in the Southwest. As Sharp's
pistol was being raised and the act
was really quicker than the eye could
follow a glittering 44 appeared as if
by soms conjuring trick In the right
hand of Mr. Standlfer, who without a
perceptible movement of his arm, shot
Benton Sharp through the heart. It
seems that the new .commissioner of
insurance, statistics and history has
been an old-time Indian fighter and
ranger for many years, which acoourits
for the happy knack he has of hand
ling a 44.
It Is not believed that Mr. Standlfer
will be put to any Inconvenience be
yond a necessary formal bearing to
day, as all the witnesses who were
present unite In declaring that the deed
was dono in self-defense.
When Mrs. Sharp appeared at the
office of the commissioner, according
to appointment, she found that gentle
man calmly eating a golden russet ap
ple. He greeted her without embarrass
ment and without hesitation at ap
proaching the subject that was the
topio of the day.
"I had to do it, ma'am," he said,
simply, "or get It myself. Mr. Kauff
man," he added, turning to the old
clerk, "please look up the records of
the Security Life Insurance Company
and see If they are all right."
"No need to look," grunted Kauff
man, who had everything In his head.
"It's all O. K. They pay all losses
within 10 days."
Mrs. Sharp soon rose to depart. She
had arranged to remain in town until
the policy was paid. The commission
er did not detain her. She was a wom
an, and he did not know Just what to
say to her at present. Rest and time
would bring her what she needed.
But, as she was leaving, Luke Stand
lfer Indulged himself In an official re
mark. "The department of insurance, sta
tistics and history, ma'am, has done
the best it could with your case. 'Twas
a case hard to cover according to red
tane. Statistics failed, and history
missed fire, but. if I may be permitted
to say It, we came out particularly
strong on Insurance."
much for what he owes to them as for
what he owes to himself. When you
allow your boy to speak disrespectfully
to you It hurts you, but It hurts him
a whole lot worse.
"It hurts him, first, because he's
defaultln' on the greatest debt a man
can owe, and the payment of debts, big
or little, is one of the first principles
of character. If you can plant into
little Bill's mind the feelln' that every
honest debt has got to be paid, you'll
give him a mighty big boost towards
the kind o' manhood that counts. But
the worst thing about the habit o' dis
respect to parents la that It never stop
at home. The boy who doesn't honor
his father and mother ain't likely to
show honor where it I due anywhere
else. He don't care a snap for gray
hairs or authority, and unless he hap
pens to be the exceptional person, who
can domineer his way through the
world by sheer force o' personality, he's
pretty sure to be a failure. For every
man of age or position wants to be
respected, and he Isn't goln' to give
much aid to the youngster who shows
him no deference. On the contrary,
he's pretty apt to size him up a a no
good, and freeze him out.
"That's how It hits him in his deal
ings with men, but In his relations with
women It hurts him more on the spir
itual side. One o" the finest things in
manhood Is Its attitude toward the
other sex. Call It chivalry or what you
pleaee, it's the attribute that marks
the gentleman, and the boy who loses
It or never gets It is minus something
that money can't buy or education
can't give. If he has no respect for
his mother, who should be to him the
first of her sex, he will have none for
any other woman. He may find one
after awhile that he will love, but love
and respect don't always go hand In
hand, and love without respect never
yet died of old age.
"I'd Hke to have that boy of ours
understand that manhood isn't Just a
matter of big muscles and a big voice.
There are a whole lot o' things that
enter into it that aren't learned in a
gymnasium or on a football field, and
one o' the most Important of them I
don't know but what you might call It
the most Important Is respect for
father and mother, first of all. and
after them wherever It Is due. Maybe
I've said It before, but It can't do no
harm to say It again the way to make
a man Is to begin at the bottom. If a
kid don't begin to honor his father
and mother pretty early In life he
never will begin, and that's Just ae
sure as shootln'."
Copyright, 1911. by . u. ti. xoai.