Page 21
By Jack Joseph Smith
By Jack Joseph Smith
Original Scan
AI Interpretation
A speaker claims to be the fastest on town and mentions differing opinions. Later fragments describe a cold house, a woman in pain and a woman living in a canyon.
The narrator pairs a tall man with a pale woman and leaves the description of her unfinished. Unread words prevent identifying the opening speaker or establishing who leaves whom.
A quoted speaker begins 'My name was' (the name itself is unread), claims to be 'the fastest on town', allows that 'there are, different oppinions', and says it is all 'easy'. Later fragments turn to a cold house ('no wood in, no gas turned'), 'leaving a women like / that with pain', a life that 'is now flat.' and 'So beautiful.', and the page ends on 'She lives in a canyon.' and 'She is thin for you, but'.
Crowded handwriting leaves a number of words unread, so the reading rests on fragments: a boastful introduction, domestic hardship, a regretful departure and a flat verdict on life. The closing lines sketch a couple in short declaratives, 'He is tall. She is pale.', and break off on 'but'.