A Newspaper Story by O
3
A Newspaper Story by O. Henry (1862-1910) AT 8 A. M. it lay on Giuseppi's news-stand, still damp from the presses. Giuseppi, with the cunning of his ilk, philandered on the opposite comer, leaving his patrons to help themselves, no dout on a theory related to the hypothesis of the watched pot.This particular newspaper was, acco rding to its custom and design, an educator, a guide, a monitor, a champion and a household counsellor and vade mecum. !rom its many e"cellencies might e selected three editorials. #ne was in simple and chaste ut illuminat- ing language directed to parents and teachers, depreca- ting corporal punishment for children.Another was an accusive and significant warning addressed to a notorious laour leader who was on the point of instigating his clients to a troulesome strike. The third was an elo$uent demand that the police force e sustained and aided in everything that tended to increase its efficiency as pulic guardians and servants.%esides these more important chidings and re$uisitions upon the store of good citi&enship was a wise prescription or form of procedure laid out y the editor of the heart- to-heart column in the specific case of a young man who had complained of the oduracy of his lady love, teaching him how he might win her. Again, there was, on the eauty page, a complete answer to a young lady in$uirer who desired admonition toward the securing of right eyes, rosy cheeks and a eautiful countenance.#n e other item re$uiring special cogni&ance was a rief personal, running thus( )*A+ A( -- !orgive me. /o u were right. Meet me comer Mad ison and -th at 8.01 this morning. 2e leave at noon. 3*45T*4T. At 8 o'clock a young man with a haggard look and the feverish gleam of unrest in his e ye dropped a penny and picked up the top paper as he passed Giuseppi's stand. A sleepless night had left him a late riser . There was an office to e reached y nine, and a shave and a hasty cup of coffee to e crowded into the interval. 6e visited his arer shop and then hurried on his way. 6e pocketed his paper, meditating a elated perusal of it at the luncheon hour. At the ne"t corner it fell from his pocket, carrying with it his pair of new g loves. Three locks he walked, missed the gloves and turned ack fuming. ust on the half-hour he reached the corner where lay the gloves and the paper. %ut he strangely ignored that which he had come to seek. 6e was holding two little hands as tightly as ever he could and looking into two penitent rown eyes, while 7oy rioted in his heart.)ear ack, she said, 5 knew you would e here on time.5 wonder what she means y that, he was saying to himself ut it's all right, it's all right. A ig wind puffed out of the west, picked up the paper from the sidewalk, opened it out and sent it flying and whirling down a side street. 9p that street was driving a skittish ay to a spider-wheel uggy, the young man who had written to the heart-to-heart editor for a rec ipe that he might win her for who m he sighed. The wind, with a prankish flurry, flapped the flying newspaper against the face of the skittish ay. There was a lengthened streak of ay mingled with the red of running gear that stretched itself out for four locks. Then a water-hydrant played its part in the cosmogony, the uggy ecame matchwood as foreordained, and the driver rested very $uietly where he had een flung on the asphalt in front of a certain rownstone mansion.
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Transcript of A Newspaper Story by O
8/10/2019 A Newspaper Story by O
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A Newspaper Story by O. Henry
(1862-1910)
AT 8 A. M. it lay on Giuseppi's news-stand, still damp from the presses. Giuseppi, with the cunning of his ilk, philandered on the opposite comer, leaving his patrons to help themselves, no dout on a theory related to thehypothesis of the watched pot.This particular newspaper was, according to its custom and design, an educator, aguide, a monitor, a champion and a household counsellor and vade mecum.
!rom its many e"cellencies might e selected three editorials. #ne was in simple and chaste ut illuminat- inglanguage directed to parents and teachers, depreca- ting corporal punishment for children.Another was anaccusive and significant warning addressed to a notorious laour leader who was on the point of instigating hisclients to a troulesome strike.
The third was an elo$uent demand that the police force e sustained and aided in everything that tended toincrease its efficiency as pulic guardians and servants.%esides these more important chidings and re$uisitionsupon the store of good citi&enship was a wise prescription or form of procedure laid out y the editor of theheart- to-heart column in the specific case of a young man who had complained of the oduracy of his ladylove, teaching him how he might win her.
Again, there was, on the eauty page, a complete answer to a young lady in$uirer who desired admonitiontoward the securing of right eyes, rosy cheeks and a eautiful countenance.#ne other item re$uiring specialcogni&ance was a rief personal, running thus(
)*A+ A( -- !orgive me. /ou were right. Meet me comer Madison and -th at 8.01 this morning. 2e leave atnoon.
3*45T*4T.At 8 o'clock a young man with a haggard look and the feverish gleam of unrest in his eye dropped a penny and picked up the top paper as he passed Giuseppi's stand. A sleepless night had left him a late riser.
There was an office to e reached y nine, and a shave and a hasty cup of coffee to e crowded into the interval.
6e visited his arer shop and then hurried on his way. 6e pocketed his paper, meditating a elated perusal of itat the luncheon hour. At the ne"t corner it fell from his pocket, carrying with it his pair of new gloves. Three locks he walked, missed the gloves and turned ack fuming.
ust on the half-hour he reached the corner where lay the gloves and the paper. %ut he strangely ignored thatwhich he had come to seek. 6e was holding two little hands as tightly as ever he could and looking into two penitent rown eyes, while 7oy rioted in his heart.)ear ack, she said, 5 knew you would e here on time.5wonder what she means y that, he was saying to himself ut it's all right, it's all right.
A ig wind puffed out of the west, picked up the paper from the sidewalk, opened it out and sent it flying andwhirling down a side street. 9p that street was driving a skittish ay to a spider-wheel uggy, the young manwho had written to the heart-to-heart editor for a recipe that he might win her for whom he sighed.
The wind, with a prankish flurry, flapped the flying newspaper against the face of the skittish ay. There was alengthened streak of ay mingled with the red of running gear that stretched itself out for four locks. Then awater-hydrant played its part in the cosmogony, the uggy ecame matchwood as foreordained, and the driverrested very $uietly where he had een flung on the asphalt in front of a certain rownstone mansion.
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They came out and had him inside very promptly. And there was one who made herself a pillow for his head,and cared for no curious eyes, ending over and saying, #h, it was you it was you all the time, %oy:ouldn't you see it; And if you die, why, so must 5, and -- %ut in all this wind we must hurry to keep in touchwith our paper.
3oliceman #'%rine arrested it as a character dangerous to traffic. <traightening its dishevelled leaves with his ig, slow fingers, he stood a few feet from the family entrance of the <handon %ells af=. #ne headline hespelled out ponderously( The 3apers to the !ront in a Move to 6elp the 3olice.%ut, whisht: The voice of)anny, the head artender, through the crack of the door( 6ere's a nip for ye, Mike, ould man.
%ehind the widespread, amicale columns of the press 3oliceman #'%rine receives swiftly his nip of the realstuff. 6e moves away, stalwart, refreshed, fortified, to his duties. Might not the editor man view with pride theearly, the spiritual, the literal fruit that had lessed his laours.3oliceman #'%rine folded the paper and poked it playfully under the arm of a small oy that was passing. That oy was named ohnny, and he took the paperhome with him. 6is sister was named Gladys, and she had written to the eauty editor of the paper asking forthe practicale touchstone of eauty. That was weeks ago, and she had ceased to look for an answer. Gladys wasa pale girl, with dull eyes and a discontented e"pression. <he was dressing to go up to the avenue to get some raid. %eneath her skirt she pinned two leaves of the paper ohnny had rought. 2hen she walked the rustling
sound was an e"act imitation of the real thing.
#n the street she met the %rown girl from the flat elow and stopped to talk. The %rown girl turned green. #nlysilk at >? a yard could make the sound that she heard when Gladys moved. The %rown girl, consumed y 7ealousy, said something spiteful and went her way, with pinched lips.Gladys proceeded toward the avenue. 6ereyes now sparkled like 7agerfonteins. A rosy loom visited her cheeks a triumphant, sutle, vivifying, smiletransfigured her face. <he was eautiful. ould the eauty editor have seen her then: There was something inher answer in the paper, 5 elieve, aout cultivating kind feelings toward others in order to make plain featuresattractive.
The laour leader against whom the paper's solemn and weighty editorial in7unction was laid was the father of
Gladys and ohnny. 6e picked up the remains of the 7ournal from which Gladys had ravished a cosmetic ofsilken sounds. The editorial did not come under his eye, ut instead it was greeted y one of those ingenious andspecious pu&&le prolems that enthrall alike the simpleton and the sage.
The laour leader tore off half of the page, provided himself with tale, pencil and paper and glued himself tohis pu&&le.
Three hours later, after waiting vainly for him at the appointed place, other more conservative leaders declaredand ruled in favour of aritration, and the strike with its attendant dangers was averted. <use$uent editions ofthe paper referred, in coloured inks, to the clarion tone of its successful denunciation of the laour leader's
intended designs.
The remaining leaves of the active 7ournal also went loyally to the proving of its potency.
2hen ohnny returned from school he sought a secluded spot and removed the missing columns from the insideof his clothing, where they had een artfully distriuted so as to successfully defend such areas as are generallyattacked during scholastic castigations. ohnny attended a private school and had had troule with his teacher.As has een said, there was an e"cellent editorial against corporal punishment in that morning's issue, and nodout it had its effect. After this can any one dout the power of the press;
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