billy baxter’s letters(比利巴克斯特书信)

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Billy Baxter's Letters

William J. Kountz, Jr.

Billy Baxter's Letters

PREFACE

In presenting this work, we believe that an explanation is due the

reader as to why the letters are given in their present form at this time.

The first book published, "One Night," was "issued by The Duquesne

Distributing Company to show its great love for the American people,

and to incidentally advertise the 'R--R--S--.'" Its success was

immediate.

"In Society" appeared February 1, 1899, and scored as promptly as

"One Night." The demand for the booklets was phenomenal, and Mr.

Kountz received thousands of friendly letters applauding him for his

humor. He also received flattering offers from the leading comic

weeklies, the metropolitan dailies, and great advertisers throughout the

Union. He declined them all, being primarily a business man, and

carrying literature only as a side line.

On May 1st "In Love" was given to the public, with the promise that

"In New York" would follow on October Ist. On the evening of August

9th, William J. Kountz, Jr., turned to the writer of this preface, and

referring to "In New York," said: "Well, I'm through, all but going over

it." He never returned to his office, and on August 18th he died in the

room where he was born not quite thirty-two years before.

We then conceived the idea of putting the letters out in their present

form, as a last tribute to the author, who in less than a year's work lifted

himself into a place among the nation's humorists.

We have reproduced only such of the prefaces and advertisements as

have been widely discussed for their humorous quality, and which the

author's friends insisted should no be omitted.

The two heretofore unmentioned letters were discovered after the

author's death, and are published in the rough, as they were found. "Out

Hunting" is based on a trip which actually took place, and from personal

knowledge contains a good deal of fact. It was doubtless written before

"One Night," and for that reason is given priority in the arrangement.

"Johnny Black's Girl" is merely a scrap, and is inserted as such. It

shows, however, that the author had a "tear for pity" as well as an eye for

Billy Baxter's Letters

the ridiculous.

Geo. McC. Kountz.

Billy Baxter's Letters

OUT HUNTING

Pittsburg, September 1, 1898.

Dear Jim:

I am just back from St. Paul, where I spent a couple of days with

Teddy Worthington. Teddy and Bud Hathaway of Chicago were going

on a shooting trip in the Big Woods of Minnesota, and they asked me to

go with them. It was new deal for me, so of course I was for it. I hired a

hammerless breech-loader for seven a week, borrowed a lot of fishing-

tackle, and bought a hunting-knife with a nickel-plated handle. It was a

beaut, and stood me three fifty. A fellow can never be too careful. Up

there you are likely any minute to come face to face with an Apache or

some old left-over Aztec rubbering around among the trees.

At the last minute Bud Hathaway's father had to die, so just Teddy

and myself went. After we left the train we rode twenty miles in a wagon

to Freshwater Lake, which was our destination. The house where we

stayed was kept by a half-breed guide named Sarpo, and with him lived

his two sons and his second wife, who was a young white girl, and not a

bad looker at that.

The next morning we started out after ducks. I made a horrible bluff

that I was one of the old boys at the business, and that I was on to

everything--till it came to loading my hammerless, and there's where I

went to the bad. I couldn't get the blamed thing open. Teddy handed me

a few of his kind little remarks, and I got back at him with something

personal. He got sore. No thoroughbred kidder would have grown

personal, but I couldn't think of anything else at the time. There was

nothing stirring in the duck line, and for two hours we sat all hunched up

in a little boat among a lot of weeds. It was getting to be a sad affair

for me, and I was thinking of Atlantic City, and the bands of music, and

the swell dances, and trying to figure where these hunters have the fun

they are always coming home and talking about, when suddenly along

came a drove of ducks. On the square, there must have been a million.

The other members of the party began picking them off, but your Uncle

Bill is one of those wise shooters. I waited till they were right over my

Billy Baxter's Letters

head. Say! they were so thick I couldn't see the sky. I let go with the first

barrel, right into the center of the bunch. Nit duck. Then the second

barrel went off of its own accord. I'll swear, Jim, I had nothing whatever

to do with it. Anyway, nit duck. I think if I'd had three barrels on that

gun I would have nailed a duck, a duck and a half, or two ducks, as I

was just getting good. I loaded up, and I must have been flustered a bit,

as I blew one of the decoys clear into the next block.

Then things again assumed their usual hunter's attitude, and after

sitting for another hour we paddled over to our sail-boat and started

down the lake for the house. It was blowing pretty hard, and the sky was

blacker than Pittsburg. The skipper said something about a squall, but it

didn't hit us until we were about two hundred yards from the dock. Then

we got it, and got it good. It was buttercups and daisies. Thunder,

lightning, rain, and all the side dishes. I'd have given eight dollars to

have seen a cable car coming along about that time. The skipper yelled

to me to ease off the larboard stay. Now, I might know something about

mince pie, but a larboard stay is not my long and hasty. Then some one

pushed me aside, and succeeded in putting things in such excellent shape

that we ran plumb through the dock. It was great!

That night we sat around, and Sarpo and his sons told some funny

stories. My, but they were to the saddings! I told one of my best, and

nobody filtered but Teddy.

The next morning at five we took the dogs and started out after deer.

They have what they call run-ways or deer passes, and the deer always

go the same route. They ought to have better sense, although as far as I

am concerned they are perfectly safe. They put me on one of the passes,

behind a lot of underbrush. Well, I sat and sat until I went to sleep, but I

slept with one eye open. Deadwood Dick and all the great scouts and

trappers had the one-eye-open habit. I was awakened by hearing

something crack, and there standing about twenty feet away with its side

turned to me was a deer. It must have belonged to the fair sex, as it had

no horns. Talk about shaking! I would have shaken my best friend. I

finally pulled myself together, and remembering the ducks, I let her have

both barrels at once. She kicked her feet up in the air, turned her head,

Billy Baxter's Letters

and on the level, she gave me the laugh and cut into the woods. I believe

she saw me all the time, and knew I was a lobster.

On the way back, I met the half-breed, and we walked together. On

reaching the house we happened to glance through the window, and

there was Teddy with his arm around the young wife's waist. Teddy

always was a rubber. It was lovely cards for a while, and Teddy

worked the old gag that he was showing her how they did in a play, but

she wasn't wise enough to follow it up, so we had to leave.

While returning on the train I made the horrible discovery that I had

been using my buckshot on the ducks and my birdshot on the deer. I can

see how the deer got away, but I'll say one thing, and that is, that if a

passing duck had ever reached his mitt out for one of those buckshot he

would have thought Rusie was doing the pitching. He would have got it

fine and daisy.

I am not for the country. They have ticks, jiggers, and gnats, all

doing a nice conservative business at once. You never had a tick on

you, did you, Jim? Well, a tick is a very busy little cup of tea. First,

he'll crawl all over you, and then select a spot on the back directly

between the shoulder blades, where you can't reach him. I talked to a

man who was up on ticks, and he said a tick was wiser than a bedbug.

Now, you take a bedbug whose head is perfectly clear, and who hasn't

been drinking or smoking too much, and there won't be many men on

Wall Street much wiser than he is. Well, after a tick gets his place picked

out he burrows in under the skin, then dies and festers. You wouldn't

catch a bedbug standing for that martyr game.

There should be some kind of a law against gnats. About two

hundred of them will stay right in front of your eyes until one of them

gets an opening; then he'll cut in and land a jab, and the other hundred

and ninety-nine will give you the Big Minnehaha. I had so many lumps

on me when I got back to St. Paul that they called me Pneumatic Willie.

Talk about your sylvan dells and sweet-scented fragrance! Why, an

asphalt street has a sylvan dell skinned to death, and a twelve-percent

soap factory is sweet enough for me.

Yours as ever,

Billy Baxter's Letters

Billy.

P. S.--Good night. I'm for the sleeps.

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摘要：

BillyBaxter'sLetters1BillyBaxter'sLettersWilliamJ.Kountz,Jr.BillyBaxter'sLetters2PREFACEInpresentingthiswork,webelievethatanexplanationisduethereaderastowhythelettersaregivenintheirpresentformatthistime.Thefirstbookpublished,"OneNight,"was"issuedbyTheDuquesneDistributingCompanytoshowitsgreatlovefort...

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