Amos Kilbright; His Adscititious Experiences: With Other StoriesStockton, Frank R.
Science
Amos Kilbright; His Adscititious Experiences: With Other Stories
Stockton, Frank R.
African Americans -- Fiction
This letter greatly satisfied us. "It shows that he has some heart,
after all," said Mrs. Colesworthy, "but as to that man Corbridge, I
believe he would have kept poor Mr. Kilbright dancing backward and
forward between this world and the other as long as a dollar could be
made out of him. But there is only one way in which he can do us any
harm now, and that is by materializing the first Mrs. Kilbright; but,
knowing us, as he now does, I don't believe he will ever try that."
"No," said I, "I don't believe he ever will."
Should you ever meet with Mr. Amos Kilbright, you need not hesitate to
entrust him with any surveying you may have on hand. Mr. Corbridge
cannot dematerialize him, the German scientist will not, and there is no
one else in the world who would even think of such a thing. Therefore,
you need feel no fear that he may suddenly vanish from your sight,
leaving nothing behind him but his clothes and the contents of his
pockets; unless, indeed, he should again be so foolish as to go to swim
in the ocean at a point where there is a strong ebb tide.
THE REVERSIBLE LANDSCAPE.
To look at me no one would suppose it; but it is, nevertheless, a fact
that I am a member of a fire company. I am somewhat middle-aged,
somewhat stout, and, at certain times of the year, somewhat stiff in the
joints; and my general dress and demeanor, that of a sober business man,
would not at all suggest the active and impetuous fireman of the period.
I do not belong to any paid department, but to a volunteer Hook and
Ladder Company, composed of the active-bodied or active-minded male
citizens of the country town where I live. I am included in the
active-minded portion of the company; and in an organization like ours,
which is not only intended to assist in putting out the fires of burning
buildings, but to light the torch of the mind, this sort of member is
very valuable. In the building which we occupy, our truck, with its
hooks and ladders, stands upon the lower floor, while the large room
above is used as a club and reading-room. At the beginning of the first
winter of our occupancy of the building, we found that this room, which
had been very pleasant in summer, was extremely uncomfortable in winter.
The long apartment had been originally intended for purposes of storage;
and although we had ornamented it and fitted it up very neatly, a good
deal of carpentry and some mason's work was necessary before it could be
made tight and draught-proof for cold weather. But lately we had spent
money very freely, and our treasury was absolutely empty. I was chairman
of the committee which had charge of everything pertaining to our rooms,
and I felt the responsibilities of my position. The necessary work
should be begun immediately, but how could the money be raised to pay
for it? Subscriptions for this and that had been made until the members
were tired of that sort of thing; and the ill success of the last one
showed that it would not do to try it again.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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