attractions--yes, er even ef you'd ring in the full combination on me!
You see, there's no way of treatin' homesickness only one--and that is
to git back home--but as that's a remedy you can't git at no drug
store, at so much per box--and ef you could, fer instance, and only
had enough ready money anyhow to cover half the cost of a full
box--and nothin' but a full box ever reached the case--w'y, it follers
that your condition still remains critical. And homesickness don't
show no favors. It's jes' as liable to strike you as me. High er low,
er rich er poor, all comes under her jurishdiction, and whenever she
once reaches fer a citizen, you can jes' bet she gits there Eli, ever'
time!

"She don't confine herse'f to youth, ner make no specialty of little
children either, but she stalks abroad like a census-taker, and is as
conscientious. She visits the city girl clean up to Maxinkuckee, and
makes her wonder how things really is back home without her. And then
she haunts her dreams, and wakes her up at all hours of the night, and
sings old songs over fer her, and talks to her in low thrillin' tones
of a young man whose salary ain't near big enough fer two; and then
she leaves her photograph with her and comes away, and makes it lively
fer the boys on the train, the conductor, the brakeman and the
engineer. She even nests out the travellin' man, and yanks him out of
his reclinin' chair, and walks him up and down the car, and runs him
clean out of cigars and finecut, and smiles to hear him swear. Then
she gits off at little country stations and touches up the night
operator, who grumbles at his boy companion, and wishes to dernation
'six' was in, so's he could 'pound his ear.'

"And I'll never forgit," continued Mr. Judkins, "the last case of
homesickness I had, and the cure I took fer it. 'Tain't been more'n a
week ago neither. You see my old home is a'most too many laps from
this base to make it very often, and in consequence I hadn't been
there fer five years and better, till this last trip, when I jes'
succumbed to the pressure, and th'owed up my hands and went. Seemed
like I'd 'a' died if I hadn't. And it was glorious to rack around the
old town again--things lookin' jes' the same, mighty nigh, as they was
when I was a boy, don't you know. Run acrost an old schoolmate, too,
and tuck supper at his happy little home, and then we got us a good
nickel cigar, and walked and walked, and talked and talked! Tuck me
all arou