O. Henry - The Story Of William Sydney Porter

O. HENRY The Story of WilUam Sydney Porter BY JEANNETTE COVERT NOLAN Illustrated by HAMILTON GREENE JULIAN MESSNER, INC., NEW YORK Published by Julian Messner, Inc., 8 West qoih St., New York Copyright 1943, by Jeannette Covert Nolan PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA By Montmk Book Manufacturing Co., Inc., Neiv York CONTENTS 1. AFTERNOON ADVENTURE 3 2. ADVENTURERS RETURN 10 3. BY LAMPLIGHT 20 4. NIGHT VISITOR 3 2 5. AN EXPLORATION 42 6. SCHOOLBOY 5 1 7. A PERILOUS JOURNEY 61 8. MAGNOLIAS AND A FIRE 70 9. THE DRUGSTORE 79 10. HEART OF THE WEST 90 11. GOOD-BY TO THE RANCH 99 12. A YOUNG MAN IN AUSTIN 1 07 13. ATHOL 115 14. A YOUNG MAN MARRIED 127 1 5 . THE ROLLING STONE 136 1 6. A ROAD OF DESTINY 14 1 7 . VOYAGERS IN THE TROPICS 156 1 8. ORDEAL i v r 6111202 vi CONTENTS 19. THE INFLUENCE OF MISFORTUNE 176 20. By O. HENRY 185 2 1 . OUT OF SHADOWS 1 97 22. THE VOICE OF THE CITY 204 23. OPTIONS 215 24. CABBAGES AND KINGS 224 25. LETTERS 235 26. TURN UP THE LIGHT 247 BIBLIOGRAPHY 259 ARTICLES ON 0. HENRY 260 INDEX 261 ILLUSTRATIONS Run screamed Tom. Run or hell kill you 8 Oh, Wsyou, Wiir 13 Will would have two hours for reading before bedtime 26 Ill want you to hand me the instruments from my bag. Can you do it 3 3 The heavens were-split by a blinding flash of lightning 48 Earth and sky seemed to belong to him he was a monarch on a high, solitary throne 57 It was exhilarating and wonderful and terrifying 68 He could say so much with his pencil 83 He tackled the art of lassoing cattle 93 Serenading was the current fad . . . 117 No two persons could have been more dissimilar in character and purpose 139 He stepped lightly down to the platform of the station 153 We shot up the town in trueTexas fashion 163 He explored the bookshops ... 211 It was his last twenty dollars 232 In the midst of teeming life, his was the solitary path 236 vii O. HENRY The Story of William Sydney Porter 1 AFTERNOON ADVENTURE WILL PORTER WAS BREATHLESS AND PANTING. For fifteen minutes he had been chasing the turkeys a furious pursuit, with the big awkward birds dodging about like crazy things, uttering sounds of mingled fright and pro test. And now Will had them cornered. This wont hurt a bit, he said politely. Reaching down, he yanked a handful of tail feathers. The turkeys gobbled tumultuously, wings flapping, red wattles quivering. Then they subsided. Hey, Tom Will flourished the feathers. Hey, Chief Blacksnake Good work, Flying Eagle Tom Tate jumped from the fence, where he had perched on the topmost rail, and ran eagerly across the yard. Will wiped sweat from his brow. Pretty, arent they Mighty pretty. I would a helped you-only I promised Pa. Didnt need any help. That wasnt such a very hard job. Will busied himself dividing the prize. These are for you, and these are- He paused. Hey, your Pa didnt say anything about me, did he Never mentioned your name, Tom declared solemnly. 3 4 X HENRY No, sir. All Pa said was, Son, if ever you scare the daylights out o my turkeys again, Ill whale the daylights out o you. So I didnt. I just sat on the fence. But scared em, Tom. Id be sorry if your Pa was mad at me. He wont be mad. Hell never know. Will glanced ruefully at the retreating turkeys they were rather bedraggled as to plumage their beady eyes glinted reproachfully. Perhaps Mr. Tate would know. Besides, Tom said, you thought up the game. It was your notion. Yes, the notion had been Wills. Hesighed. The notions were always his according to popular opinion, Will Porter, aged eight and soon to be nine, had as many notions as a dog has fleas. And like fleas, the notions were usually vexa tious. I reckon turkeys dont really suffer, though, when their tail feathers are jerked. Oh, o course not, Tom said soothingly. And they havent the sense to remember. Turkeys are the foolishest birds there is. See, theyve quit remembering aready. Come on, Flying Eagle. The other stuffs in the shed...