Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1839-10-24
'uttcr, you bought of Miss Barton this morn

butter, you bought of Miss Barton this morn.
in"
And away goes your golden store, to be re-
paired, perhaps, with some cheesy, greasy
stuff, brought i'll dirty pail, with, ''Iere's
your butter!''
! "A girl came In to borrow ''wash dish,'
because we've got company Presently
she came back: Smother says you've forgot
to send towel.''
"Ihepen and ink, and sheet o. paper and
d wafer, Is no unusual request and when
the pen Is returned, you are generally inform
cd that you sent San awful bad pen.''
have been frequently reminded of one of
Iohnson's numerous sketches. A man re-
turning broken wheel-barrow to Quaker.
with, ''Here I've broke your rotton wheel
barrow usin' ont. wish you'd get it mend
ed right off," cause 1 want to borrow it apain
| this afternoon. The Quakcris made to reply,
"Frend, 1t shall be done:'' and wish pos
sessed more of his spirit.
But did not intend to write chapter on
| involuntary loans; have a story to tell.
One OF my best neiglbors is Mr.. Philo
Doubleday, long, awkward, honest, hard
working Maineman, or Mainote | suppose one
might say; so good-natured, that he might be
mistaken tor siinpleton, but that must be by
! those that do not know him. He is quite an
old settler, came In four years ago, bringing
with him awife who is to him as VINEGAR bot
Tie to oil cruet, or as mustard to the sugar
which is used to soften its biting qualities
Mrs. Doubleday has the sharpest ewes, the
sharpest nose, the sharpest tongue, the sharp
est elbows, and above all, the sharpest voice
that ever penetrated the INTERIOR of Michi-
gan. She has tall, straight, bony figure, in
contour, somewhat resembling two hard oak
planks fastened together and stood on end :;
and, strange to say! she was full iive-and-
thirty when her mature graces attracted the
eye and won the affections of the worthy Phi
10" hat eclipse had come over Mr.. Double
day, usual sagacity when he made choice of
his Polly, lam sure l never could guess; but
he Is certainly the only man in the wide world
who could possibly have lived with her; and
he makes her most excellent husband.
L was sitting one morning with my neigh
Dor Mrs. Jenkins, who is a-sister of Mr.. Dou-
bieday, when Betsey, Mrs. Doubleday IS 'shir-
ed girl" came in with one of the shingles of
Phlio's handlwork in her hand, which bore in
Mr.. Doubleday well-known chalk marks:
Come quick, Fanny!
And bring the granny,
For Mrs. Double
days in trouble.
And the next intelligence was a fine new
pair of lungs at that hitherto silent mansion.
called very soon after to take peep at the
--latest found 5" and if the suppressed delight
OF the new papa was treat how much more
was the soitened aspect, the womanzed tone
of the proud and happy mother. Inever saw
abeing so completely Transformed She would
almost forget to answer me in her absorbed
watching OF the breath of the little sleeper.
Even when trying to be polite, and to saw
what the occasion demanded, her eyes would
Sn,r ba hi al. a..
versatlon on any subject but the ever-new
theme of ''babies' was out of the question.
Whatever ebegan upon wnrled round soon
er or later to the one point. The needle NAV
trembe, but it turns not with the less con-
stancy to the pole.
As pass for an oracle in the matter of paps
and possets, | had frequent communication
with my now happy neighbor, who had for
gotten to scold her husband, learned to let
Betsey have time to eat, and omitted the
nightly securing of the floor lest so much
dampness might be bad for the baby. We
were In deep consultation one morning on
some important point touching the well-being
OF this sole object of Mrs. Doubleday's
thoughts and dreams, when the very same
little lanthe Howard, dirty as ever, presented
herself. She sat down and stared awhile
without speaking AL oRDINAIRE; and then in
formed us that hermother s'wanted Mrs. Dou-
bleday to let her have her baby for little
while cause Benny's mouths SO sore that
but she had no time to finish the SEN
tence.
''LEND MY BABY !! !''-and her utterance
failed.-The new mothers feelings were for
tunately too big for speech, and Ianthe wisely
disappeared before Mrs. Doubleday found her
tongue. Phiio, who entered on the instant,
burst into one of his electrifying laughs with:
''Ask my Polly,
To lend her dolly ~
and could not help thinking that one must
come ''west' in order to learn aiittle cfeyery
thing.
The identical glass-tuhe which | offered
Mrs. Howard, as a substitute for Mrs. Doub-
leday's baby, and which had already, failed
asst is, threaded the country for miles i'll all
directions, is, even as write, in demand
man on horse back comes from somewhere
near Danforth' S, and asks in mysterious whis-
pers ior---but l shall not tell what he
calls 1t. The reader must come to Michigan.
COUNTING BY PRoxY.-The Paris cores
pendent of the New York Star relates the fol-
lowing story in his last published letter: