Mr. Pepper

“ He stopped down his tobacco, and drew the smoke, and seemed by his manner to be giving his undivided attention to his pipe. But that was Mr. Pepper's manner. He was short in speech, but always spoke with a meaning.
"Of course he doesn't really," said Ralph. "I don't suppose I shall ever see the old house again after next week. You see when a man has a place of one's own, if there be hunting there, one is bound to take it; if there isn't, one can go elsewhere and pick and choose." ”

“ There’s been more than one man gone into that dive that never come out arterwards, now I tell ye.”
“You are wrong, Caleb,” declared Mr. Pepper confidently “It was not luck—’twas Providence.”
“Mebbe you’re right, old man,” returned the mate. “Now, lad, come in here and tell us all about yourself before we do anything further. We want to get a thorough understanding o’ the case.”
They had arrived at the shipping merchant’s office, but it was locked and Mr. Pepper had to use his own private pass key.
“Weeks has gone out,” the old gentleman explained, ushering them in. “It’s his dinner hour.” ”

“ How on earth did Laviny ever come to let him out alone?”
Mr. Pepper, Mr. Abishai Pepper, locally called “Kyan” (Cayenne) Pepper because of his red hair and thin red side whiskers, was one of Trumet's “characters,” and in his case the character was weak. He was born in the village and, when a youngster, had, like every other boy of good family in the community, cherished ambitions for a seafaring life. His sister, Lavinia, ten years older than he, who, after the death of their parents, had undertaken the job of “bringing up” her brother, did not sympathize with these ambitions. ”

“ After this, business continued brisk for half an hour, when Sam Pepper found it necessary to go to a back room for some bottles.
Hardly had he left the saloon when the door was opened, and much to the astonishment of the men at the round tables a young lady, plainly dressed, stepped in. It was Gertrude.
"I say, that's a fine girl," remarked one of the men, a rounder named Worden. "She's a new one around here, aint she?"
"Reckon she is," returned another.
"How do you do, miss?" went on the first man, getting up and tipping his hat.
"Excuse me, sir," said the girl. "Is Mr. Pepper in?" ”

“ One man'd better carry the big roll with him." He made sure that they were not spied upon by any of the Pinkertons, and brought out a leather wallet from a side-pocket. "Here—he'd better carry it in this. Mine's two thousand," and he ostentatiously slipped four crackling notes into the wallet, and handed it to McHenry.
Sewall held his breath, his palms suddenly gone moist, and his heart pounding; but Pepper merely reached into his trousers, and inserted a thick sheaf of bills beside Mr. Green's contribution. Under his lashes he stole a glance at Myrtle—and was sorry for her. ”

“ He chuckled. "I'm a little shy myself, boys—the wires may not be working well yet, you know—we'll soon find out. And then—"
"By gosh!" said McHenry suddenly, "if I could double my wad, I'd buy that Packard!"
"Double it? My boy—well, we'll see! Now who's game for a good show?"
"I'm not," said Pepper, yawning. "We've been traveling a long time—I want to get some sleep!"
"Same here," said Sewall.
Mr. Green and the girls looked disappointed. ”

“ Lord love ye, he'll leap anything. A railway cut, a windmill with the sails going, a navigable river with ships—anything in short. This is the 'orse wot took the line of houses down at Beddington the day they had the tremendious run from Reigate Hill." "And wot's the grey in the far stall?" "Oh, that's Mr. Pepper's old nag—Pepper-Caster as we call him, since he threw the old gemman, the morning they met at the 'Leg-of-Mutton' at Ashtead. But he's good for nothing. Bless ye! his tail shakes for all the world like a pepper-box afore he's gone half a mile. ”

“ MRS. PEPPER ATTENDS TO THE MATTER PARSON HENDERSON shut the gate with a firm hand, and stepped out into the road.
The parsonage door opened, and the minister’s wife ran down the path. “Here, Adoniram, take this to Mrs. Pepper.” She put a clean folded napkin, from which came a nice smell of something newly baked, into his hand. “Oh, I do hope Mrs. Pepper will let you see that horrible Mr. Peters,” she began anxiously.
“Mrs. Pepper always knows her own mind,” said the parson, “and if she wants to attend to the matter, it’s not for us, Almira, to interfere.” ”

“ But to return to the Christmas of 1862, ever memorable in the annals of the Institute because Mr. Pepper brought out the illusion in quite a different manner from that contemplated by Mr. Dircks, and so improved and simplified the ghost that it could be shown in any lecture hall or theatre, if sufficiently large to contain the necessary apparatus. ”

“ When they were all lying ready on the dresser, an idea occurred to her as she was about to gather them up.
'I think,' said Miss Jenny with a silent laugh, 'he ought to have a little pepper? Just a few grains? I think the young man's tricks and manners make a claim upon his friends for a little pepper?'
Mr Fledgeby's evil star showing her the pepper-box on the chimneypiece, she climbed upon a chair, and got it down, and sprinkled all the plasters with a judicious hand. ”

“ But Grandma, having caught the word "letters," knew quite well what was in store, so, picking up her best gown by its side breadths, she waddled out and seated herself with great dignity in a big chair by the kitchen window. It was next to the little stand in whose drawer she used to let Joel Pepper look for peppermints.
When the Pepper children shut up the little brown house to go to Mr. King's, Grandma moved the small mahogany stand from its place next to the head of her bed out into the kitchen. She kept her big Bible on it, and her knitting work, where she could "have 'em handy." ”

“ You can’t kill a cat,” declared the stage-driver; “never heard o’ such a thing in all my born days. Well, she set up a screechin’ for you, Mis Pepper.” He whirled around again to Mother Pepper’s chair.
A look of dismay spread over Mother Pepper’s face.
“She’s in an awful bad fix,” said Mr. Tisbett [114] solemnly, “an’ there ain’t a neighbor that’ll go nigh her. An’ she keeps a-screamin’ for you,” and Mr. Tisbett leaned against the table.
“Polly, child, come here.” Mrs. Pepper was already folding up her work.
“What is it, Mamsie?” ”

“ Pepper has to be charming to a great variety of men, and is not often beaten, but occasionally there does fall to him ("for his virtues," he says) a man he can neither dine, wine nor take to a show, and I know the signs in him when he is at his most affable and most intensely bored. I may say at once that Mr Toothill has no connection with my tale other than as having been the cause of this visit. ”

“ Fisher gave him a resounding clap on the shoulder, that sent Joe flying off like a shot from a gun, while the little doctor stole off the back way, and got into his gig, and drove off as fast as he could, and thus escaped being thanked.
And the Badgertown folks got together and held a meeting in Mr. Atkins' store that very evening, and said that it was a pity that Mrs. Pepper, who was struggling so to bring up all those five children, should have such a hard time. So each man put his hand in his pocket and fished out some money ”

“ And Phronsie--" Mrs. Pepper looked down at Phronsie's yellow head, and smiled. It wasn't necessary for her to say a word. "Mr. Tisbett'll be goin' over," said little Davie, hopefully, "an' he can take us."
"And that would cost money," said Mrs. Pepper.
"Somebody will let us sit in behind," said Joel, confidently; "there'll be lots of wagons goin'."
"And ever so many people going in them," added Mrs. Pepper. "No, my children shan't ever be a burden to other folks," and she lifted her head proudly. "Polly, run into the bedroom and get the stocking-leg." ”

“ Bayley, rolling a fresh cigarette, “the Peppers are perfectly well able to take care of themselves.”
Mr. Bayley said something way down in his [298] throat, and got out of his steamer-chair for a turn or two on deck.
“Now, Celestine,” he said, coming back and rolling a fresh cigarette as he stood over her, “I want you to understand, once for all, that I’m not going to be drawn into collision with the Peppers, don’t you know. They are perfectly well able to take care of themselves ”

“ That’s th’ way they do; an’ although Mis’ Pepper is a hard-workin’ woman, it just beats all how pleasant they keep. You never’d know to look at ’em how they scrimp an’ pinch.”
The big woman unfolded her hands from the shawl-ends, and slowly regarded them. But she said nothing, and Mr. Beebe went on. ”

“ This admirable ghost is the offspring of two fathers, of a learned member of the Society of Civil Engineers, Henry Dircks, Esq., and of Professor Pepper, of the Polytechnic. To Mr. Dircks belongs the honour of having invented him, or, as the disciples of Hegel would express it, evolved him from out of the depths of his own consciousness; and Professor Pepper has the merit of having improved him considerably, fitting him for the intercourse of mundane society, and even educating him for the stage. ”

“ Pepper grinned, and prepared to dodge.
"I'll tell you the truth," he promised. "Remember that night when French bought out the phonograph business? And I said I wanted to go over to our little shop alone to make one set of records all by myself? Well, you'd told me you have a machine at home. So I just naturally went over there and filled up three records with what I thought about him and what a corker you are, and sent 'em to him. I told him how much money you were making and all that—and I knew blamed well he'd listen to a phonograph record when he might not have read a letter. ”

“ Sword. Carelessly he brushed aside the satire for the Lampoon—his soul was above such things. Out of a mass of similar papers he dug a bit of brownish pasteboard on which was his puerile record for the strength test—the test which every athlete must take before he may report as a candidate for any athletic team. And McHenry had accumulated 540 pounds out of the necessary 700!
"Deep!" said Pepper to himself. "Good Lord! What d'you mean—deep? What the mischief is deep? And clever?" He scrutinized the tell-tale figures closely, and pounded the desk again. ”

“ It was just on the edge of the twilight; and the little Peppers, all except Ben, the oldest of the flock, were enjoying a “breathing spell,” as their mother called it, which meant some quiet work suitable for the hour. All the “breathing spell” they could remember however, poor things; for times were always hard with them nowadays; and since the father died, when Phronsie was a baby, Mrs. Pepper had had hard work to scrape together money enough to put bread into her children's mouths, and to pay the rent of the little brown house. ”

“ Was a mere girl—a college widow at that—to keep his beloved Monk from the varsity baseball squad? Why, you must have failed to catch the name—it was James Pepper McHenry who thought otherwise!
II
"You see," said Pepper to John Phillips, "I wouldn't butt into a man's private love affairs for any amount of money, but this isn't serious at all! It's a regular thing with some of the girls around Cambridge—they're crazy to meet athletes, and have 'em to tea, and dance with 'em, and blow about 'em to their friends; and poor old Monk thinks he's found an affinity! ”

“ Pepper was our hero’s name. And Pepper was a dog; but I am unable to tell you anything about his birth or pedigree. I do not even know who Pepper’s father was, and I don’t think Pepper knew himself or cared much either; but had you seen him you would have had no hesitation in pronouncing him one of the handsomest little Skye-terriers ever you had beheld.
Pepper was presented to his mistress, the Hon. Mrs C—, by her mother-in-law, the late Lady Dun D—, and soon became a great favourite both with her and all the family. ”

“ Now we'll have them for dinner, and eat them up ourselves. We might as well.”182
“You better not,” advised Pickering. “Take my advice; you'll get your picnic all right; then where would you be with your cakes all eaten up?”
“You don't know Miss Salisbury,” said Sally Moore gloomily; “nothing would make her so mad as to have us get up a fuss with a new scholar. She was so pleased when Polly Pepper invited that Harrison girl to come to our bee for that poor family down South.”
“And now, just think how we've initiated her into our club!” ”

“ This man McHenry is a wonder! Whittemore, you're another!"
"I?" faltered Whittemore.
"You certainly are! Pepper put me in the way of making a lot of money—that is, a lot for me. I've made a wad tutoring this last year—all Pep's friends, and I know darned well he was responsible for it. And then it was the—you know—that made me get out and mix with the fellows. The track work helped, but that wasn't all. When Pep told me that leadership was one of the requirements, I hustled! ”

“ Now there was a curious bipartite personality in James Pepper McHenry. A ruthless joker, a keen and biting satirist, a man of perpetual humor, he was at the same time a very sympathetic listener when sympathy was needed; and his power of getting right to the heart of the trouble was almost uncanny. Spinden knew of old that he could confide in McHenry.
"I've known for a long time that you weren't right," said Pepper gently. "You're all but fired from the baseball squad, and you're only about half a D from a row with the office, and you're acting like a perfect idiot! ”