Arlington High School - Indian Yearbook (Arlington, MA)

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6 The Arlington High School Clarion THE ECCENTRICITIES OF FATE IN the private office ot A. N. By a rip a lawyer in New York City, two men had been conversing earnestly for more than an hour. Finally, one leaned forward and took a piece ol paper which the other extended, affixed his name to it, and lighted a cigar with a satisfied air, saying as he did so the one word, Done.” I his paper provided that if within ten days after that date William Atonson executed a deed for certain real estate in New York to John Tyler, the man who had signed the paper, he, Tyler, would in turn deed a piece of property along the D H tracks in Eroy, N. Y., to William Aronson. It was further agreed that the transaction was to take place at the Renssalaer Hotel in Chicago. The two men shook hands, and Aronson remarked that as he had promised to take his wife to the theatre that evening, he must hurry home. As the two men stepped out on the street, a broad smile covered Aronson’s face, and he kept saying to himself, “ Fifty thousand at least, fifty thousand at least,” and each time he said the num- ber his smile grew broader, till the people who passed wondered what good fortune had befallen the tall dark man. In a moment or two the smile left his face, and a feeling of faintness stole over him, and, before he could hail a passing cab, he fell unconscious to the sidewalk. Tyler at once had the stricken man taken to his home, where he was put under the care of a new physician, the family doctor being off on his vacation at the time. When Aronson had been put to bed, his wife explained to Tyler and the physician that her husband had suff ered from attacks of this kind before, but that they never lasted more than an hour or so. When the attacks were on him he always took on the appearance ot death, and remained so until they passed over. sfTyl er remained an hour or more and then left, saying that he must catch his train for Chicago. II Tyler, lying in his berth in the sleeper, flying towards Troy, congratulated him- self on the disposal of his troublesome D H ” property. He felt that he had made a “ good deal.” With this thought uppermost in his mind, he dropped off to sleep, and did not wake tdl broad daylight the next morning. After finishing breakfast he was won- dering how to pass away the time before him, when a newsboy came through the train with the morning papers. He bought one and settled back in his seat to look it over. Finding nothing of interest, he was about to lay it aside, when his eye was caught by a small headline, “ l roy Depot Site Located To Be Built at ‘ D H I racks and Main Street.” Tyler read the article through twice before he fully compre- hended its meaning. It suddenly dawned upon him that this new depot site was on his own property. Then, with greater force, he remembered that he had just entered into a contract to trade that very property! He began to realize that the real estate along the tracks which had been worth perhaps fifty thousand dollars, was now worth at least a hundred thousand, and he had traded it for New York property worth about fifty thousand! His eyes narrowed; his face became seamed with lines as he tried to think out a scheme to block the trade. 1 hen his face lighted up a bit. There was

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The Arlington High School Clarion 5 EXTRACTS FROM HIS DIARY May ioth I guess I’ll keep a diary — all the fellows do an’ so does Sis, only she keeps hers locked up now ’cos one mte I got it and red part to Carl when he came to take her to the show. Gee, wasn’t she mad! An’ I got licked, two. May i ith They made me go to church. I mostly have to on Sundays — there was a funny man sat in front of us an’ he looked ’s if he didn’t have on his own hair an’ I wanted to find out so when we got up to sing I got up quick an’ bumped his head with the him book, an’ it wasn’t his own hair, it was a wig an’ Dad said, “ Wait ’til I get you home and I did an’ I wish I hadn’t. Sis has got the meesles an’ say, there’s spots all over her, an’ maybe she ain’t cross. I hear Dad — guess I’ll go to bed ! May 19th Its orful hot. Ma got my new suit. I went to Susy Smith’s party. We played post Oflfis an’ I kissed Susy twice. I like her. We had ice cream. Gee, I’m sleepy. Sis is better, the spots ain’t so big. May 20th Had to go back to school. We’ve got a new teacher an’ she’s pretty, but her hair is red. I told Sis an’ she says its “ tissu,” but it ain’t its hair an’ does Sis think she’d wear paper for hair ? May 26th Its Sis’s Birthday. Ted sent her some flowers — orkids — but she didn’t like ’em. Carl sent her a book named the modern house and it had pictures of rooms an’ Sis liked that and she got red. I give her a handkerchief. Me and Johnny played tag after supper. I was going to hide behind the piano when Carl came but they went out an’ I only got to the gate an’ Dad cot me but I heard Carl say kinder shaky, “ Are you sure, Little Girl ? ” An’ Sis ain’t little — she weighs 140 lbs. and she’s tall but she didn’t get mad when he said it an’ then Dad got me an’ I think lie’s mean. June 1st There’s a new girl at school an’ she sits near me — her hair is black and her name is Laura and I smiled at her an’ she smiled at me, to — I don’t think I like Susy Smith any more. June icth Sis is going to be married an’ I’m going to see it an’ Laura’s goin’ to carry flowers, I guess. They’re goin’ to Switzer-Land on a huney moon an’ I asked teecher why didn’t they go on a boat an’ she laughed and Mr. Adams he’s the principal said it meant a slushy moon an’ I shouldn’t think that would be nice ’cos slush gives you sore throats. June i 6th School has stoppt an’ I’m glad an’ I’m goin’ to Uncle Eds up in Main for all summer and I guess I won ' t take my diary with me, it takes to much time. I found a nice dog on the road an’ I brot it home an’ Mary the cook says, the saints bless us (an’ there aren’t any more saints ’cos I heard Dad tell Mother they all died |ust before she married him) its hidrofobia he’ll be givin’ us next.” An’ I asked Dad what it was an’ he said shut up an’ I did. I went down to say good-bye to Laura an’ she cried an’ I didn’t cos I’m a boy an’ I kissed her an’ I guess I’ll marry her when I grow up. Dad just said “ Alice, that child isn’t in bed yet,” so I guess I’m goin! Teddy, ’1 1.

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The Arlington High School Clarion 7 |ust one chance m a hundred Aron- son’s disease — well, time would tell. III Early the same morning the doctor examined Aronson and pronounced him dead, and advised that the undertaker be sent tor immediately. Mrs Aron- son, however, absolutely r efused, saying that he had had attacks of this kind before, when she had thought him dead, but he had always revived after several hours Thus six days elapsed, the doc- tor be:oming more and more certain that the man was dead, although mor- tification had not yet set in, and Mrs. Aronson herself gave up hope I hen the physi ian looking at the body noticed that a red spot had appeared on each cheek of the “ patient,” and within thirty minutes Aronson opened his eyes and said feebly: “ What is the date ? ” When he learned that seven of the ten dais had passed he began giving orders, and before night had caught a train for Chicago I hat morning he telegraphed to Tyler to meet him at the train on the evening of the eighth day. IV In his hotel in Chicago, John T)ler had spent most of his time walking up and down his room, alternating between hope and fear If Aronson would only die the fifty thousand would be his If he revived in time to be in Chicago on the tenth day — as, indeed it seemed most probable he would the fortune would he Aronson’s On the morning of the seventh dav he had persuaded himself that as he had received no word from Aronson this attack had proved fatal. He had eaten his first hearty breakfast since his return to Chicago, and was in a particularly happy frame of mind, when a telegram from New York was handed to hint He paled immediately, tore it open with shaky hands and looked at the signa- ture — Aronson. As he went up to his room he muttered his resignation, say- ing: “ It’s all off now. I may as well let things take their course I’ll meet him V 1 uesday night, the eighth day, ]ust after the train arrived, Tyler noticed the County coroner, a large man with a jolly smile, standing at the rear of the baggage car Aronson had not yet appeared, so he stepped up to the coroner, with whom he was slightly acquainted, and said pleasantly: “Going away, doctor?” The official turned around, shook hands, and replied: “ No, I got a message to meet this train Passenger died on the way from the East.” For some reason which he could not explain, Tyler felt a desire to see the body, so he stayed with the coroner, and when the body was carried to a room in the station, he was standing beside the jolly official 1 he sheet was lifted from the man’s face A cry escaped Tyler’s lips. The man was Aronson. “ Why,” he started to say, “ that man is not dead I know him,” when he remembered his thought on the tram coming to Chicago. “ One chance in a hundred One chance in a hundred rhe coroner looked up quickly? What did you say ? ” Tyler stammered, “ Why, I know him — at least I don’t know his name — talked with him all the way from New York ” he was lying easily now, and went on : “ He was telling me that he had no relatives in the world. After dinner I went into the smoker, and when I returned he was gone. He must have been taken ill and gone to his berth.”