Roxy Hastings — page 91: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

82 ROXY HASTINGS, “Who is to be my keeper?” “JT don’t. know. There’ll be two of ’em, off and on, I s’pose. ” “Well, if you can manage to get assigned to that place, so you can still let my old friend in to see me, once in a while, I’ll give you that!” showing one of the twenty dol- lar pieces. “T can get the place easy enough, but I think the provo will be around, giving new orders. I don’t believe I can eit the nigger in there.” “Well, you get it. I’ll take the risk of the rest. You're a clever fellow, and I don’t want a new man over me.” The jailer smiled grimly. “You mean to say that I’m to have that air piece ef I’m one of your ‘turnkeys’ for the day or two that you’re in there, whether I do you any favors or not.” “Yes, all other favors to be paid for.” “Tll git it. I know the provo well. You'll see, sir.” “ And now do you want to earn this other piece ?” “Course I do—if I can honestly,” said the man, with a greedy look. “Ag I said before, you may tell President Davis every word I say to you.” | “Go on.” I want Louis Hartley, my sick friend, with me, in my cell.” “ Wh-e-w !” “Tt isn’t a very small place, I suppose ?” “No, quite a sizable room, but—” “No ‘buts’ now. You can do it. Louis is my dear friend, and wants to be with me to the last, if lam to suf- fer. Besides, I want to take care of him, and give him medicine, etec.”’ The man looked at the two gold pieces eagerly, and per- haps made some mental calculation as to their value in Confederate bills. “The provost marshalis your friend, as you say,” Al- fred resumed, “and if he is a humane man, he won’t refuse this. It’s only another bed in the room, and we’ll be all aoe Perhaps it might even be done without his knowl- edge. oe No, it couldn’t, only I was thinkin’ that I might put him in there nights, if I couldn’t do more. No one would know that.” : “Well, that would be something, and would be worth something, but you will try to arrange it as I wish 2” : Eomicbooks.co