The Odd Man Out.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIIC, Issue 14221, 11 June 1910, Page 1 (Supplement)

The Odd Man Out.

(By Ward Edson in "M,ibuume. ■l'um-h."j j Daniel Emanuel Ash had received reliable iiilornialic-u, through a LiiUod ! literary friend in ihe begging Tetter | l.ne, that tiiere was a "cliinping-out ' party •■for ladies only" situated at < Rainbow Rend. The graceful litleru- : tear added valuable information: j "The thing's eon,in.' il fain, Daniel. They're a s\V!i^,. r bunch—beauty and I beans. The plumo hen dispensing j hospitalities is one of the beastly riciu | She has an income that would 'sink a ! mud seow. This lay-out was planned ior you, Daniel, who are ever my ! brother in alms. Good luek. Bui mark i y<m the buds arc athletic. The chief i •she' hath a dusty left."' | Daniel K. .Ash "took train to the nearest, station, and completed his pi!-] grimagc to Rainbow Rend a-foot. As was his custom, he travelled without ostentation and unencumbered with traps and ware. Daniel's experience taught him that a man could wander through life iraic-li more comfortahlv with two hare hands than weighted down with portmanteau and suit eases. Besides, the Odd man Out was oceassienally reduced to the painful necessity of running and dodging. In such cases pigskin hags and trunks would have been an encuiii- j hranee. Daniel owned what he stood in. no ! more. He had not always owned even that, hut he wore the mixed lot as jauntily as if it had been made for him by a Bond-street tailor, arid he flicked gaily at the vegetation as lie sauntered athwart the sylvan .scene, whistling like a particularly lighthearted canary bird. Mr Ash found the hen encampment without, diff.'-nltv "It. -»-.,* ~„,„,,+„!,

witnout. clirn-ultv. Jt was remotely situatod. .and the throe gay tents ; Haunting coloured streamer's from ! their ridge poles exuded sounds of revelry of a purely feminine note. Tlie hilarity was all soprano. Daniel was , oiea.sed with this. Hi' breathed -a ; benediction. He wanted no baritone or bass intruders. The adventure lie | had in mind excluded gentlemen, other ] than the talented organiser himself. I Daniel sat beneath a tree far re- I moved from the al fresco festivities, I and looked down upon the scene, the I bedecked tents, the smoke curling from : an out-door fire, where, no doubt, ! superior viands were being singed for , an early dinner, five sylph-like girls ' romping on the sward, and a more copious lady shaking a fan at herself in a blue hammock j The Odd Man's whistle was now j soft and gracious. He was wonder- , inp by what means Daniel E. Ash, j opportunist, was to obtain a big boy',; ! share of the goodies in that Amazon- i inn camp. He understood perfectly ; that lie was to come in for these bene- : fits, favours and advantages, but as yet be had riot arranged th» method. ! Presently the sylphs below romped ' into the centre tent with n shrill twit- : | tering, and Daniel's whistle softened ' into silence. i ; _ "Something sensational and devil - i ish afoot,'' lie murmured; "an ivej cream banquet or a game of n'ng-a-J rosy, pop down posy" What devils \ these women are when they lit their ; hair down!" In a few minutes the sylphs trocp- | ed_ out again, st.ll twittering like an § aviary of grey parrots, and now each j w;is clad from neck to heel in what j looked like a blanket. J "Peradventtire, we bathe!" said | Daniel. "Good, we do." i The girls went clattering <if towards the river, and the stout dame , in the blue hammock shrilled twentyseven warnings in ten seconds, i " 'T-is well," said Daniel. He arose ! and followed, keeping under cover : among the trees. He saw the girls : romping on the grassy hank in their fetching Canadian costumes, and then suddenly they took to the river like water hens. '•"lhe buds are athletic," musrd the Odd Man, emoting his literary friend. "They would be sudden and quick in quarrel. It is well." He took a pair of spectacles from bis pocket, pandered over them u inumeiit and returned them. Daniel Ash had made up his mind. He walked to the river bank, and deliberately seated himself beside the bath rs' wraps, and giving himself a wrapt expression, stared fixedly at the liver

A cry of expospulation came from, one of the bathers, Daniel did not heed it. His air of complete absorption deepened. Other cries followed. They became a chorus of complaint. The opportunist clasped his hands, and looked intent, but did not budge. "See here, if you don't get out of that we'll pitch {on in the river!" The threat came from a tall brunette.

"The chief bud with the dusty left, for a quid!" thought Daniel, but he heeded her not.

"Y r s, chuck him in!" said another girl, angrily.

"In with him! In with him!" It became a. chorus of fiery indignation.

The bathers swarmed out of the water, and up the bank; they laid angry bauds upon Daniel Emanuel Ash, and Daniel Emanuel did not resist. He seemed unaware of anything unusual happening. "AA"e progress favourably," said he in his wicked' inmost soul. "In with him!" The athletic girls rushed Daniel down the bank, and with a great hoist pitched him into the river. Daniel assisted their worthy effort to the best of bis ability, diving from their arms. Once underneath be swam straight to deep water, and came up w 11 out in the river. Ash's was greeto'l w'+'i n veil of <l°li<dit. but the veil faded in + o so—e thin"- l'ke a squeal of terror when the vi'tim tb'-ew up his (\r..-« ~nd cried. "HeH! Heir-!" and went down again, gurgling horribly.

In point of fact Daniel was an excellent .-,,» limner, but he uid "nr.t cliuo.se Id iiguiv ;ui amphibious marvel on tin* | occasion, lie eamo up again prwcniljr, i squealed "Help:'' m hear! rending ,n-> cents, gulped about a quart of river water ana sank lor tito thira and last time. i rom yood cover behind a tree trunk that had fallen into the river, Daniel was an interested spectator or the subsequent proceedings. "He's drowning! He's drowning!" cried one of the girls. "We did it! It's murder!" squealed another, on the verge of hysterics. 'J-he girls clustered together and gazed with horrified faces at the river. "We —we ought to do something," faltered the big brunette. "I'll try, if you'll help. Katie.'' "Wo must,-' answered Katie, miserably, "or we shall bo hanged." 'I he brunette waded in and dived, and after a little while Daniel dived to mret her, and permitted himself to be rescind. lie was towed ashore Viv half-a-dozen willing hands, and the anxions damsels carried his limp body up the bank, and spread it on tho giass. _ Daniel K. Ash did not move an eyelash, he lay as tbev dropped him—■wit. water-lodged, lifeless. "!—1 think lie's dead," whimpered the bysterieal subject. They stood in a rimr looking down upon their victim, white and terrih d. "FTe does look awfully like it." said mini her. "Whatever shall we do " "We must apnly the rules for the restoration of the anparent.lv drowned." said Katie, with sudden" onei'iiv. "lieu and <_-et them, Alice. Thev're on the dressing table. Tell Mrs Me-

Kav to warm' blankets and have the wlc-l.v read v. Oh! be quick. Be qu-k!" K:it;e set to work at once end presently Daniel Ash was being vigorouslv rubhod and rolled »nl p-onmled hv the t'••.•'!), d girls. After fift en minutesof this hi) encouraged them with a deep "Oh. '•- ;<Vt dead!'' cried the br''"- ! ft'-. "Thank he-v,-n. he isn't d-d !" | Tl, , brunette bo-m f> civ. Thre<- i ; f'-11-wed her imo'". The hysterical i .-n'-i-'-t w:nt of. and lav on the crass ;keki->" her heels .•-ml laughing insaneI lv. Nolv-dv her all were too busy on the Odd Man. | Presv-jitly Daniel opened his dark jcyis, looked wildly about him, murium rod ••.Mother!" and relapsed into J unconsciousness again. The giriU earned their victim to I tne camp, where the horrified matron | «a- iu.'Jnng about hk c a decapitated ; h 11, _ burning blankets and setting out whisky enough to Grown a camel, bhe | was cooled somewhat with assurances ] that Daniel would live and the poor man was made- comfortable between hot blankets in the best hunk, while Katie rubbed one hand ami Eileen rubbed the other am! Alice administered a whisky and Mrs McKay prepared gruel or some .similar slushy compound, such as women deem necessary in cases of snake-bite, sunstroke, old age, or general debiitiy. Again Daniel encouraged them by opening his tender, dark eyes and gaizjmg wonderingly into their faces; . again he moaned that most profoundly 1 touching word, '•Mother!" 'This ti:n<o _\!r Ash did not relapse, i He permitted them to give him quite a. long diink of whisky, and even ac- ' copied three spoonfuls of gruel, nlthough he had no intention of spoiling I his appetite with such stuff, j lie held the brunnette's hand. She. : was rather a pretty girl and so big j and strong. It was a great comfort j to him to "hold her hand. j "'AYhat has happened?" lie asked

weakly. '■ The girls looked guiltily at one an- ; other, but none answered. Daniel, lying there, fresh from the l«ath, with Jiis. long hair and his ])ale face and ; jvof-.und eyes, was not a bit like the '.-nalns tramp they had thrown into , the river. I "Ah. I know, I know," lie said, in jlow. lioken tones. "1 was hitting by j the river communing with I'atnre, ' " 'The river that full oft has told ! To oeean hoary ■ A mnu.VH.-oloured, sweet and old j T "nending story.' " when .some vidians attacked me iind thrnv me into the flowintr t-'«le.'' He looked about h : "i again and took _ tho brunette's liand in both of Ids. "And i you saved ni'." he said. "Von pini'g;- | rd in and rescued the poor poet. ; " T saw her host when tender, wan, Ureeii enframed her; j And in my heart the i'lower of Dawn j I softly named her.' " : God lilc'cS and reward you- yon are ■ as l)rave as vim are beautiful.'' lie kissed her hand. Daniel Ash was now out of danger, I but no \.,.s too ill to be moved, and after a serious coiisultat.on the girls resolved to aliuw him a tent to himself j for the night. I'Vr an invalid ho ate I an astonishing dinner ihat cveiring, but as his rrmiOie was chiefly rh< lima tie this was not remembered against him. \ Next forenoon Daniel sat out in tho ! .sun in a cu-.y deck chair, swaxliar in Ah.-, .McKuy's e.egant uivssmg g, wn. He looked emite a striking personality and recited a portion ol Thompson's j "11..unci of Heaven" in a somewhat : tire.l voice, but with excellent t ftect and the whole camp was quite interest- , o.d :n him. His whistling of. "Tho Last I Rose of .Summer'' was voted ex

qiiisite. Daniel Emanuel Ash had '.rented a deep impression and not a little perplexity, lluiv came it that one to gifted wore garments little better than those of a ramp? How came it that he had seemed to behave like a rapscallion':'

"Why didn't you go away when we a.-ked you to?" said Lucia, the brunette.

"When you ask d me to, dear lady?" said Daniel,' with an air of P^sit.Y"Yes. AA r e were swimming. You w.uld not go away."

"Ah, forgive me. I have the misfortune to ue painfully siiort-Siglited. ' fani.i produced his glasses. •• Without tln.su 1 cannot see a yard ahead." "But we appealed to you. You could hear." "i was absoibed in the river. I heed nothing else. " 'And gazing on its changing glow 1 saw, huil-sigliiiig, wondrous fairyland below its surface lying.' " Then Lucia spoke up: "It was I who threw you into tlie river."

"You!" Daniel's amazement was profound. "Yes. AYe are awfully sorry, but we took you for a nasty tramp and we did it to punish you." Daniel had a serious fit of coughing; he pressed the imaginary, agonised pain in his thigh and looked like a man who could suffer and endure.

"Ladies," he said m a sad, lou, tortur d voice, "I am a poor man. The poet is not appreciated m this prosaic age, too often he must dress like a tramp and it is not a new thing to me to be mistaken for one. I do not blame vou, ladies, I only r-member that you saved my life, that you have been my generous friends and gentle nurses." Daniel staved till after lunch and then he 1 t it be known that with a great effort and under stress of extreme pair, he could wdk. He bade them a touching farewell. Tt was Mrs McKay .did th? expected thin-r. "We are all sorry for you," she said, "and as we have done you a. gre->t wrong, we are anxious tint vou will permit "«s to do -ver so litfte to r-nnir it. Tins is hardly a gift it .'f +TP-. «n.).«"nc->finn : w : ll vou take it?" She offered a fat purso .

"No madam, I could not do it. The. ] proud sold " i ••Rut you wilkmake us very mi-j happy if you don't,." ' ' "Make you unhappy? Heaven for-! bid. 1 will take your money, sweet! Jadi"'s." I •' He did.