Democratic Sentinel, Volume 3, Number 1, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 February 1879 — Hotel Deadbeat. [ARTICLE]

Hotel Deadbeat.

“Yes,” said the affable clerk at the Palace, the other day, as he lifted his stomach up on the office counter and selected another tooth-pick, “they are up to all sorts of dodger—these hotel beats —and we fellows have to keep a very sharp look-out for ’em, bet your life.” “Do—eh?” “Now, for instance, about four mouths ago a nice old gentleman came in with a rather fast-looking young man, who had just arrived from New York, he said, and who engaged a handsome suit on the fifth floor. The old man took me aside, and said he was forced to run over to Hong Kong himself on the next steamer, but that he would leave his son with us. The latter, he confidentially explained, was just then sowing considerable wild oats by the wayside. ‘ln fact,’ said the old gentleman, with much feeling, ‘he is so dissipated I dare not leave any money with him. and I especially desire that none be furnished him by your cashier—not one single cent, remember. For fear, however, he gets into any real trouble during my absence I will deposit in your hands this package of gold notes. Use ft freely if imperatively necessary, but do not let him suppose you have any such deposit, as he would be all the more reckless and dissipated.’ If anything should happen, we were to write to the old party, care Bothnchild’s Hong Kong agency.” “Well—and then? ” “Well, the young fellow raised merry Ned round this edifice for about three months. He beht Smith and I out of S4OO at pedr©; gave queer little supper parties in his room; got drunk, and tried to hold the elevator man’s head overboard so that the next landing would cut it off; was chased round the corridors by some married man with a pistol nearly every night of his life, and, in fact, was a regular snorter in every way.” “Should think so.” “Of course he never paid any board —we didn’t expect this, having his governor’s bundle of securities locked up all-right in the safe. But one day he did something so blamed outrageous that we couldn’t stand it—had a chicken fight in the ladies’ parlor, or something, —so we wrote him a warning note.” “What did he say?” “Nothing but ‘ta-ta,’ and left the hotel that very day; vamosed—disappeared. As we didn’t get any remittance from Hong Kong, we opeued the package last week, and what do you suppose was in it ? ” “Dunno—counterfeit money? ” “Not such luck. Something can be done with real good—ahem! Why, there was nothing in that bundle but a couple of old Morning Calls. Think of it, Morning Calls! Ugh! It makes me sick to think of it even now,” and the genial hotel official lifted his stomach down again, and went sadly to his fifth meal. - San Francisco NexusLetter.