After Twenty Years
After Twenty Years
O. Henry (William Sydney Porter) (1862-1910)
The policeman on the beat moved up the avenue impressively. The impressiveness was habitual and not for show, for spectators were few. The time was barely 10 o'clock at night, but chilly gusts of wind with a taste of rain in them had well nigh depeopled the streets.
Trying doors as he went, twirling his club with many intricate and artful movements, turning now and then to cast his watchful eye down slight swagger, made a fine picture of a guardian of the peace. The the pacific thoroughfare, the officer, with his stalwart form and vicinity was one that kept early hours. Now and then you might see the lights of a cigar store or of an all-night lunch counter; but the majority of the doors belonged to business places that had long since been closed.
When about midway of a certain block the policeman suddenly slowed his walk. In the doorway of a darkened hardware store a man leaned, with an unlighted cigar in his mouth. As the policeman walked up to him the man spoke up quickly.
"It's all right, officer," he said, reassuringly. "I'm just waiting for a friend. It's an appointment made twenty years ago. Sounds a little funny to you, doesn't it? Well, I'll explain if you'd like to make certain it's all straight. About that long ago there used to be a restaurant where this store stands--'Big Joe' Brady's restaurant."
"Until five years ago," said the policeman. "It was torn down then."
The man in the doorway struck a match and lit his cigar. The light showed a pale, square-jawed face with keen eyes, and a little white scar near his right eyebrow. His scarfpin was a large diamond, oddly set.
"Twenty years ago to-night," said the man, "I dined here at 'Big Joe' Brady's with Jimmy Wells, my best chum, and the finest chap in the world. He and I were raised here in New York, just like two brothers, together. I was eighteen and Jimmy was twenty. The next morning I was to start for the West to make my fortune. You couldn't have dragged Jimmy out of New York; he thought it was the only place on earth. Well, we agreed that night that we would meet here again exactly twenty years from that date and time, no matter what our conditions might be or from what distance we might have to come. We figured that in twenty years each of us ought to have our destiny worked out and our fortunes made, whatever they were going to be."
"It sounds pretty interesting," said the policeman. "Rather a long time between meets, though, it seems to me. Haven't you heard from your friend since you left?"
"Well, yes, for a time we corresponded," said the other. "But after a year or two we lost track of each other. You see, the West is a pretty big proposition, and I kept hustling around over it pretty lively. But I know Jimmy will meet me here if he's alive, for he always was the truest, stanchest old chap in the world. He'll never forget. I came a thousand miles to stand in this door to-night, and it's worth it if my old partner turns up."
The waiting man pulled out a handsome watch, the lids of it set with small diamonds.
"Three minutes to ten," he announced. "It was exactly ten o'clock when we parted here at the restaurant door."
"Did pretty well out West, didn't you?" asked the policeman.
"You bet! I hope Jimmy has done half as well. He was a kind of plodder, though, good fellow as he was. I've had to compete with some of the sharpest wits going to get my pile. A man gets in a groove in New York. It takes the West to put a razor-edge on him."
The policeman twirled his club and took a step or two.
"I'll be on my way. Hope your friend comes around all right. Going to call time on him sharp?"
"I should say not!" said the other. "I'll give him half an hour at least. If Jimmy is alive on earth he'll be here by that time. So long, officer."
"Good-night, sir," said the policeman, passing on along his beat, trying doors as he went.
There was now a fine, cold drizzle falling, and the wind had risen from its uncertain puffs into a steady blow. The few foot passengers astir in that quarter hurried dismally and silently along with coat collars turned high and pocketed hands. And in the door of the hardware store the man who had come a thousand miles to fill an appointment, uncertain almost to absurdity, with the friend of his youth, smoked his cigar and waited.
About twenty minutes he waited, and then a tall man in a long overcoat, with collar turned up to his ears, hurried across from the opposite side of the street. He went directly to the waiting man.
"Is that you, Bob?" he asked, doubtfully.
"Is that you, Jimmy Wells?" cried the man in the door.
"Bless my heart!" exclaimed the new arrival, grasping both the other's hands with his own. "It's Bob, sure as fate. I was certain I'd find you here if you were still in existence. Well, well, well!--twenty years is a long time. The old gone, Bob; I wish it had lasted, so we could have had another dinner there. How has the West treated you, old man?"
"Bully; it has given me everything I asked it for. You've changed lots, Jimmy. I never thought you were so tall by two or three inches."
"Oh, I grew a bit after I was twenty."
"Doing well in New York, Jimmy?"
"Moderately. I have a position in one of the city departments. Come on, Bob; we'll go around to a place I know of, and have a good long talk about old times."
The two men started up the street, arm in arm. The man from the West, his egotism enlarged by success, was beginning to outline the history of his career. The other, submerged in his overcoat, listened with interest.
At the corner stood a drug store, brilliant with electric lights. When they came into this glare each of them turned simultaneously to gaze upon the other's face.
The man from the West stopped suddenly and released his arm.
"You're not Jimmy Wells," he snapped. "Twenty years is a long time, but not long enough to change a man's nose from a Roman to a pug."
"It sometimes changes a good man into a bad one, said the tall man. "You've been under arrest for ten minutes, 'Silky' Bob. Chicago thinks you may have dropped over our way and wires us she wants to have a chat with you. Going quietly, are you? That's sensible. Now, before we go on to the station here's a note I was asked to hand you. You may read it here at the window. It's from Patrolman Wells."
The man from the West unfolded the little piece of paper handed him. His hand was steady when he began to read, but it trembled a little by the time he had finished. The note was rather short.
"Bob: I was at the appointed place on time. When you struck the match to light your cigar I saw it was the face of the man wanted in Chicago. Somehow I couldn't do it myself, so I went around and got a plain clothes man to do the job. JIMMY."
Questions for Discussion
1. Why is the policeman walking down the street?
A) He is searching for a criminal.
B) It is his regular job to patrol the street.
C) He is on his way home.
2. Which of the following best describes the man waiting in the doorway?
A) friendly and cooperative
B) shy and nervous
C) angry and rude
3. Why is the man waiting in the doorway?
A) He is waiting for the restaurant to open.
B) He wants to talk to a police officer.
C) He is waiting to see a friend.
4. Where does Jimmy live?
A) Jimmy lives in New York.
B) Jimmy lives in the West.
C) The story doesn’t say.
5. What is likely the main reason Bob comes back to New York?
A) He is trying to avoid the police.
B) He is sick of living in the West.
C) He wants to learn about Jimmy’s life.
D) He hopes to make money in New York.
E) He wants to show off to his old friend.
6. How does Bob realize that the man he is talking to at the end of the story is not Jimmy Wells?
A) He is shorter than he remembers.
B) His nose is different.
C) He has a different voice.
7. Which event causes the first police officer to learn the truth about the man in the doorway?
A) The officer notices the man standing in the dark doorway.
B) The man in the doorway tells the officer he is waiting for a friend.
C) The man in the doorway strikes a match and then lights his cigar.
D) The man in the doorway says it has been twenty years since he has seen his friend.
8. What is the waiting man’s connection to Jimmy Wells?
A) They are brothers.
B) They often travel together.
C) They were childhood friends.
D) They once worked in the same restaurant.
E) Both are running from the police.
9. Which word best completes the following sentence?
It was such an intricate design that only a _______ could copy it.
A) fool
B) child
C) patient
D) relative
E) professional
10. Bob says Jimmy was the “staunchest old chap in the world." What does this description mean?
A) Jimmy was really old.
B) Jimmy was a very loyal friend.
C) Jimmy did not like to spend a lot of money.
11. The story says that the man from the West had “egotism enlarged by success.” What does this phrase mean?
A) All of his worry about money gave him health problems.
B) He thought he was very important and was not modest about his success.
C) He was very nervous about getting caught.
12. What does Bob mean when he says, “You see, the West is a pretty big proposition, and I kept hustling around over it pretty lively”?
A) He often got lost.
B. He moved around a lot.
C) It was difficult to find a job.
D) Living in the West wasn't much fun.
E) Towns are bigger in the West than in the East.
13. “A man gets in a rut in New York. It takes the West to put a razor’s edge on him.” What was the man implying by saying, “It takes the West to put a razor’s edge on him”?
A) Successful businessmen spend a lot of time traveling.
B) Competition with other men will sharpen a man’s wits.
C) Familiarity with his environment will help a man settle down.
D) A man looks most respectable when his face is clean shaven.
14. “I’ll be on my way. Hope your friend comes around. Going to call time on him sharp?” What is another term for the word sharp?
A) exactly
B) quickly
C) painfully
D) pointedly
15. At the end of the passage, the letter to Bob revealed which piece of previously concealed information?
A) The first officer had recently been to Chicago.
B) The first officer was Bob’s friend from the past.
C) The second officer was Bob’s friend from the past.
D) The second officer had recently been assigned to Chicago.
16. Why does Bob’s hand begin to shake as he reads the note from Patrolman Wells?
A) He is frightened at the thought of going to jail.
B) He is trying desperately to think of a way to escape.
C) He is angry with himself for not recognizing Jimmy.
D) He suddenly realizes that Jimmy has become a coward.
17. The last paragraph of this story is intended to
A) leave the reader laughing.
B) provide a moral to the story.
C) add one more surprise to the story.
D) raise new questions in the reader’s mind.
E) change the reader’s opinion of the police.
18. The conversation the waiting man has with the police officer is what part of the plot of the story?
A) climax
B) resolution
C) exposition
D) rising action
E) falling action
19. There is an old saying that “All that glitters is not gold.” What does this expression mean in the context of this story?
A) Bob no longer knows the real Jimmy Wells.
B) To be successful, the police officer must trick Bob.
C) Despite his promise, Jimmy Wells cannot be trusted.
D) There are times when a person must break his or her promise.
E) Bob’s respectable appearance does not match his character.
20. Which is most likely the theme of this story?
A) Police work can be dangerous.
B) Travel provides opportunities for change.
C) Old friends can change considerably over time.
D) Financial success produces the most positive results.
Hearts And Hands
At Denver there was an influx of passengers into the coaches on the eastbound B. & M. express. In one coach there sat a very pretty young woman dressed in elegant taste and surrounded by all the luxurious comforts of an experienced traveler. Among the newcomers were two young men, one of handsome presence with a bold, frank countenance and manner; the other a ruffled, glum-faced person, heavily built and roughly dressed. The two were handcuffed together.
As they passed down the aisle of the coach the only vacant seat offered was a reversed one facing the attractive young woman. Here the linked couple seated themselves. The young woman's glance fell upon them with a distant, swift disinterest; then with a lovely smile brightening her countenance and a tender pink tingeing her rounded cheeks, she held out a little gray-gloved hand. When she spoke her voice, full, sweet, and deliberate, proclaimed that its owner was accustomed to speak and be heard.
"Well, Mr. Easton, if you will make me speak first, I suppose I must. Don't vou ever recognize old friends when you meet them in the West?"
The younger man roused himself sharply at the sound of her voice, seemed to struggle with a slight embarrassment which he threw off instantly, and then clasped her fingers with his left hand.
"It's Miss Fairchild," he said, with a smile. "I'll ask you to excuse the other hand; "it's otherwise engaged just at present."
He slightly raised his right hand, bound at the wrist by the shining "bracelet" to the left one of his companion. The glad look in the girl's eyes slowly changed to a bewildered horror. The glow faded from her cheeks. Her lips parted in a vague, relaxing distress. Easton, with a little laugh, as if amused, was about to speak again when the other forestalled him. The glum-faced man had been watching the girl's countenance with veiled glances from his keen, shrewd eyes.
"You'll excuse me for speaking, miss, but, I see you're acquainted with the marshall here. If you'll ask him to speak a word for me when we get to the pen he'll do it, and it'll make things easier for me there. He's taking me to Leavenworth prison. It's seven years for counterfeiting."
"Oh!" said the girl, with a deep breath and returning color. "So that is what you are doing out here? A marshal!"
"My dear Miss Fairchild," said Easton, calmly, "I had to do something. Money has a way of taking wings unto itself, and you know it takes money to keep step with our crowd in Washington. I saw this opening in the West, and--well, a marshalship isn't quite as high a position as that of ambassador, but--"
"The ambassador," said the girl, warmly, "doesn't call any more. He needn't ever have done so. You ought to know that. And so now you are one of these dashing Western heroes, and you ride and shoot and go into all kinds of dangers. That's different from the Washington life. You have been missed from the old crowd."
The girl's eyes, fascinated, went back, widening a little, to rest upon the glittering handcuffs.
"Don't you worry about them, miss," said the other man. "All marshals handcuff themselves to their prisoners to keep them from getting away. Mr. Easton knows his business."
"Will we see you again soon in Washington?" asked the girl.
"Not soon, I think," said Easton. "My butterfly days are over, I fear."
"I love the West," said the girl irrelevantly. Her eyes were shining softly. She looked away out the car window. She began to speak truly and simply without the gloss of style and manner: "Mamma and I spent the summer in Denver. She went home a week ago because father was slightly ill. I could live and be happy in the West. I think the air here agrees with me. Money isn't everything. But people always misunderstand things and remain stupid--"
"Say, Mr. Marshal," growled the glum-faced man. "This isn't quite fair. I'm needing a drink, and haven't had a smoke all day. Haven't you talked long enough? Take me in the smoker now, won't you? I'm half dead for a pipe."
The bound travelers rose to their feet, Easton with the same slow smile on his face.
"I can't deny a petition for tobacco," he said, lightly. "It's the one friend of the unfortunate. Good-bye, Miss Fairchild. Duty calls, you know." He held out his hand for a farewell.
"It's too bad you are not going East," she said, reclothing herself with manner and style. "But you must go on to Leavenworth, I suppose?"
"Yes," said Easton, "I must go on to Leavenworth."
The two men sidled down the aisle into the smoker.
The two passengers in a seat near by had heard most of the conversation. Said one of them: "That marshal's a good sort of chap. Some of these Western fellows are all right."
"Pretty young to hold an office like that, isn't he?" asked the other.
"Young!" exclaimed the first speaker, "why--Oh! didn't you catch on? Say--did you ever know an officer to handcuff a prisoner to his right hand?"
Questions for Discussion
1. This passage is written in the form of
A) a biography.
B) realistic fiction.
C) science fiction.
D) an autobiography.
2. The marshal probably pretended to be the prisoner because he wanted
A) to spare the lady’s feelings.
B) to draw attention to himself.
C) to impress other passengers.
D) to keep Easton from escaping.
3. When Easton talked about his “butterfly days” he was referring to days when he
A) was attending college.
B) had no responsibilities.
C) had studied butterflies.
D) was counterfeiting money.
4. “I had to do something. Money has a way of taking wing.” In this quotation from the passage, the phrase “taking wing” means
A) disappearing.
B) being stolen.
C) being lost.
D) flying.
5. What does Miss Fairchild most likely mean when she tells Mr. Easton, “You have been missed from that old crowd”?
A) He doesn’t value Miss Fairchild’s friendship.
B) Miss Fairchild doesn’t have the same friends.
C) Miss Fairchild is jealous of Mr. Easton’s popularity in Washington.
D) He is not like the other people Miss Fairchild knows in Washington.
1. B
2. A
3. B
4. A
5. D