John Henry Smith: A humorous romance of outdoor lifeAdams, Frederick Upham
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John Henry Smith: A humorous romance of outdoor life
Adams, Frederick Upham
Humorous stories; Outdoor life -- Fiction
I had no idea that I would write so much as this when I started.
ENTRY NO. IV
BISHOP'S HIRED MAN
Miss Harding is still in the city, and I have added nothing to this
diary for several days. She is expected back to-morrow.
I do not know how to account for it, but since the coming of the
Hardings my game has fallen off several strokes. It seems impossible for
me to concentrate my mind on my shots.
Ninety-one is very poor golf for nine holes, and I am sure that with
practice under a capable golfer Miss Harding could do much better. She
has just the figure for a long, true and swinging stroke. I shall make
it a point to ask her to play before Carter gets a chance to forestall
me.
Unless I am entirely in error Carter is badly smitten with Miss Harding.
It also occurs to me that I have written enough about that young lady.
Mr. Harding is also in the city. I wish I had his opinion about the
future of N.O. & G. railroad stock. It has gone down another point,
which means the loss of two thousand dollars to me.
An odd sort of an incident happened yesterday morning. None of the
scratch players was about, so I accepted an invitation to play a round
with LaHume and Miss Lawrence. She is a very pretty girl, though in my
opinion she is not to be compared with Miss Harding. LaHume is devoted
to her, as much as he can be devoted to any one or anything, and there
have been rumours now and then that they were engaged or about to be
engaged, but since it has always been possible to trace these reports
back to LaHume I have had my doubts of their accuracy. Miss Olive
Lawrence has inherited a large fortune, and is the master of it and of
herself.
LaHume has been a persistent fortune hunter, and if patience be a virtue
he deserves to win. He had a tiff yesterday with Miss Lawrence, and it
came about curiously enough.
The Bishop farm adjoins the club grounds on the east, and everyone for
miles about knows Bishop. He has little use for anything but work and
money, and he always has difficulty in keeping farm labourers, or "hired
men," as he terms them.
About a month ago he employed a fellow named Wallace, who admitted that
he did not know much about farming, but who said he was strong and
healthy and was willing to do the best he could. It was in the haying
season and Bishop was short of men, so he gave this chap a chance.
I met Bishop one day shortly after he put Wallace to work, and he told
me something about him.
"He's strong an' willin' enough," said Bishop, as we stood talking over
the fence, "but he surely is the blamedest, funniest hired man I ever
had, an' I've had some that'd make a man quit the church. What do you
think he wants?"
I assured him that I could not imagine.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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