Literature.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVI, Issue 101, 3 May 1904, Page 4

Literature.

TUB SILENT SKIPPEU."

To live, even for a short time, in a city of the Western States of America is to earn a niclaiaime, and

"the Silent S'kip'per" wals the title which the "'boys" bfc' general consent had, bestowed upon me. It apparently had its origi'n, not so much in the fact thiit I told fewer lies than the rest, as in/the peculiarity than when 1 did tell them ,it was in a lower tone of voice.

Tnis reputation for reticence had gained me a sort of popularity ainopg wen who'were in the habit of saying the lirst thing that came into their heads ; ana the " boys" had arrived at the conclusion that there must be points about a man who smoked so much and talked so little. Awl when übey hud muiue up their minds on any subject it [was generally rush to contradict them.

Alter a life spent in knocking about the world in pursuit of wealth 1 had gone back to England with the intention of .settling' down and of speeding my "■pile." Hut at the end of a single Loudon Season a feeling came over me that I must go somewhere where there were real men and women for a cbaifget And so I had decided to pitch my tent once more in this city ,of the' Far West, where the hard swearing', hard drinking, and hard lighting population offered a not ucweloomo Exchange from the eternal pedantries and convuitionialities of that sour governess, Europe. Those of liie ''boys" who had known me before were good dnouigli to report 'that 1 was u " sfqjuiare " man—a man whom you could "'bet on all the time," and this, confined with my reputation for silence, gradually brought it about that men who were in trouble, or had anything serious on their minds, got into the 'lmJiX. of conn nig to* 'me as 'a sort of lay father, confessor. In this \vay I learned a number of curious stories, some sordid ami mean enough, some thrilling ami ghastly, but all ol them full of interest to a careful student of human nature like myself. Although I was never to any wny plvdgH.il to secrecy by the narrators of these stories, 1 need scarcely Kay that 1 regarded them as 'being, for ordinary purposes, strictly confidential, -and only oh one. occasion did I ever break through my rule of silence.

There was a man named Condon, who lived in a shanty not far from mine, a gloomy and taciturn individual whe had evidently seen a good deal of the world,, and, like myself, had found that the stale refinements of European civilisation soon produced a surfeit. He and I had struck up a close friendship ; and often, when I grew tired of smoking my, solitary evening pipe, I used to take it across to Condon's shanty for the sake of listening to his somewhat cynical conversation. When he was alone with me lie generally italked well, and his judgments on men »amd things were aihqays interesting, and often decidedly original. One topic, however, he always carefully avoided. Whenever women were mentioned, either collectively or individually, he imincdiatclv changed tfie subject. At last, one [night, I ventured to ask him the [cause of this, and he answered that the avoided speaking of them for for the some reason as Ire avoided discussing tiie plague or the devil. Now tins kind of thing I had heard scores of times from all sorts of men—mostly foola—in whom I took no particular' interest; amd, consequently, I had never attempted to argue the ]wint with them. CcJndon, on the other hand, was a man well wortih convincing ; and I determined to tell him a story which had come to my knowledge ailnout a year before in my character of '■' lay confessor" in the hope of making him change his opinion.

"You think that, on the whole, women are less constant and less loyal than men ?" f asked. Condon smoked in silence for a few minutes, and then answered, " ] am perfectly certain of it."

After another interval, in which 1 filled my pij>e with the minute care which so a'n important an operation deserves, I remarked, "You remember that man (lakes, who came here about eighteen months a'go ? lie called himself ' Colonel ;' but the 'boys' gave him the name of 'Shady Oakes' on account of various pieces of sharp practice of which he was rather more than suspected." "1 rcmemlier him perfectly," answered Condon—"a sneaking, shifty little 'Muckft'iiard, who would have robbed the church at his mother's funeral if lie got, tho chance. To call him a worm would be to insult the entire race of reptiles.'l '''Then perhaps you also remember the ciraimsijuiices under which he left us?" I went on. " lie was nailed chen'ting at euchre, and died of the effects in less than twentyfour -hours."

"Yes," said Condom, reflectively ; "he might have had the sense to try it on somewhere where men are a little less handy with their shooting irons."-

"tt'vll, when he was dying, the old woman who was looking after him asked him if there was anyone v he would like to sec 'before Iris depth. No doubt, if he haul knqfwn it, he would have quoted Browning's poem Ix-ginoing : What is he buzzing in my ears

Now that I come to die? Do I view this world as a vale M tears ? Ah, reverend sir, not I !

But, poetry not being much in his line, what he rdally said was, 'iNone of your priests for me, who pretend that when all the cards arc on the t'uililethey can still show you how to win the game ! 'Repentance.' is what they are always pattering about, and it seems mean wishing you hadn't, backed the favourite when it romps in last. That's a thing any man can do, I take it. But where the devil the special merit of -doing it comes in I'm hanged M I can see ! No, I don't want any priest ! But if anyone will fetch 'the Silent Skipper- here he .will earn the gratitude of a dying blackguard. ■" The poor devil sent for me, 1 suppose, because I had helped him out of a pretty tight place once before, i found, him , lying very still on his bed, looking wan and ghastly. But though his voice was weak, it was evident that his mind' was liWl.yin'g . him more than the bullet wound which was fast sapping his life away. I saw tlilrt he . had f.-omething which he wanted to tell ine. and liming assured him of my willingness to hear Iris confession, I prepared myself to listen. •"Skipper," he began, "I guess you know the Sort of man I've been. I

never was any particular Sundayschool taacher—Kjuitc the reverse. Ami I've been called some. pretty hard mimes in my time, but never half so bad as I've deserved. I toll you straight, Skipper, there's one incident in my life that I hardly dare to think of, 'but when I do think 'of it, (which i;s only totu often, God knows f 1 ) it seems to mo that 1 must be afljout the meanest thing that crawls." This sweeping condemnation of himself seemed to give him a sort of relief, las though lie were in some manner cheating the devil, and he started ou his story in a. somewhat firmer voice.

' When I was ujuite a child I was left' a'n orphan witiidut a' ndarj relation in the world except a sister two years younger than myself. We were brought up by a distant cousin of my mother's, who had no children of her own. Although she was fairly well off, she made no secret of the (act that she regarded ;my sister Violet and myself as a very unfair encum'bi'atice ; and she always managed to make us feel that she grudged every penny that was spent upon us.

"After being- sent to an infuruiail cheap school, where 1 lewnt all sorts of 'devilry, and precious little else. I rocuroaged by some miracle to pass my Sandhurst exams, and get my commission. It was then that 1 first came'across the man -who was to be my ruin. He was a. stockbroker, and a cad, but, he had, nevertheless, a sort of veneer of 'style.' which, 'backed up by tho possession of plenty of money, easily imposed upon a, yo\mjs folol like myself. "ill. 1 taught rne to gamtrtc, first on the turf and then on 'Change, with a result which I can kiaye' you to guess. He then did me the further kindness of intrtKlucing' me to several of Iris relatives, who were occupied in another branch of finance. "The first time that I found myself hopelessly stuck up for money I went, to my sister Violet, and told -her all ahViut it. She was a brick, unil by,some 'ine.tinK' or other she managed to get the money out of our elderly relative whom I have already mentioned ; hut the hitter gave me to understand that though she bad done this once, she would never do it again ; and [ had learned by experience that when she said a thing she meant it. "In six months J wap in a worse hole t'han ever, having adopted, the highly original scheme of soaking my troutbles in brandy. No doubt as a resullt of- this, I was one day seized with a brilliant 1 inspiration,, which seemed to show me the way out of all my difficulties. I forged tho rich devil's name to a oblique | for a large amount, and successfully cashed it.

' Then it was his turn. He bad known all along precisely the kind of fool that 1 was, and had waited Quietly for me Do give myself away. Two days aftierwflinds he camo to liio and (briefly sketched the situation for my benefit. I owed him money Wa lot. 1 owed other people money —more. Now I had given him proof of a forgery which was as clear as daylight, and, as he poetically expressed it, held me in the hollow of his 'band. "'Have you ever thought about penal servitude as an agiroeaihlle way of spending one's time If ho inquired, pleasantly. (To be continued.)