was goin' he'd mail back a postal card to Henry Smith
at Benton and not sign no name to it, but he'd write
on the card, well, somethin' like "Ask your wife about
that book agent that spent the afternoon last week," or
"Ask your Missus who kept her from gettin' lonesome
the last time you was in Carterville." And he'd sign the
card, "A Friend."
Of course, he never knew what really come of none
of these jokes, but he could picture what probably
happened and that was enough.
Jim didn't work very steady after he lost his position with
the Carterville people. What he did earn, doin' odd jobs
round town, why he spent pretty near all of it on gin and
his family might of starved if the stores hadn't of carried
them along. Jim's wife tried her hand at dressmakin',
but they ain't nobody goin' to get rich makin' dresses
in this town.
As I say, she'd of divorced Jim, only she seen that she
couldn't support herself and the kids and she was always
hopin' that some day Jim would cut out his habits and
give her more than two or three dollars a week.
They was a time when she would go to whoever he
was workin' for and ask them to give her his wages,
but after she done this once or twice, he beat her to
it by borrowin' most of his pay in advance. He told it
HYLAND
