Lincoln telegraph. [volume] (Bath, Me.) 1836-1846, 1842-02-03
BATH MAINE, THURSDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY3 1912


" What do you want, fellow -
:, /, am no fellow. And, if was, want nothing
of you.
" You impudent scoundrel do you know
whom YOU are speaking to p
I" To be sure do; you are Mr.. Russel's fore
man, and great man dare say, to think your
self when he's out-but when he s to home, you
sing small enough,I warrant Now you see
did not come up here without knowing something
about you and your ways for when your master
bargaincd with me for my notions here, says he,
Garry them up into my printing Office, pointing
up here, 'and wait till | come to give you the
money. And says he, giving me a wink,
you'll see my foreman up there,-a tall chap,
with his head powdered, "a damned impudent
fellow but don't mind him-throw down your
load, and take CHAIR" and as this speech was
concluded, the mperturable intruder sat down in
the only spare seat there in the office crossed
his legs, and began tumbling in long, deep pock-
ct for piece Of tobucco
For two minutes there was silence, not in hea-
ven, but from the queer name given to at least
description. Of the pressman and compositors, it
may be truly said, that struck with amusement
at the fellows effrontery, /" the bodest held his
breath for time, p" while the devil skulked in
behind an old staircase that he might be out of
harms way in the row which he knew was to
come
Like most proud and irritable men, Russell was
for moment thrown off his guard by such
expected attack upon the sanctity of his roof, and
the dignity he had always maintained in the eyes
of his people He sprung on his feet-but for
brief space stood staring at the wire worker with
eyes that if they had been g baslisks, " would
certainly have struck him dead. One, two, three
bounds, and Ben had the tall man by the throat,
and would have dashed his brains out upon the
hoor-but jonathan saw him coming-braced his
right foot, firmly advanced his left, and was not
to be taken by surprise, The death-struggle be-
tween f'itz James and Roderick Dhu moth
ing to ito and fro, and round and round they
went sometimes stumbling over those msceIla-
neous ornaments whcllare to be found on a prn-
ng-ollice floor, and occasionally overseeing a
galley ofmatter, or kicking their heels through Il
standing form. The worhmen would have inter-
fered-but their master blood was up, and, with
the chva.fic spirit of that profession to which his
leisure hours were devoted, he wanted no odds
againsta single opponent.
The comJatants were all matched-but Ben
had perfect knowledge OF the ground, which
gave him the adyantage-so that, after upsetung
the countyman over sundry type-boxes and pa
per-heaps, with the exact localities of which he
was familiar, he succeeded in pushing him
through the door, with his back against stout
wooden railing, which protected the landing place
from those flights Of stairs up which jonathan
had wound so recently, unconcous ofthe prospect
before him of much more rapid decent. To
pitch each other over the bansters now the
coap de main to be achieved. Ben had got the
fellows spine twisted, and bis head and shoulders
overhangng the staircase-bat Jonathan had
hold of his collar with both hands-and, besides,
had his long legs twined round the small of his
back They had wrestled in this way for five
minutes and the wire workers strength was be-
ginning to fail from the twisting of his back
bone over the rail, when just as his legs began
to fall, and his grasp to relax, and as Ben was
preparing for mighty effort, by which the VIC
tory was to be secured, a horrible horse laugh
something between real guillw and yell, =
struck upon his ear-and looking through the
window of the Exchange Coffee House opposite,
shaking his sides as though there were a whole
volcano under his midriAP. In an instant Ben
understood the trick That Internal felloU
an inch Qfhis iDe!" he exclaimed as he drew
Jonathan in from the dangerous position where he
hung and stood him on his feet. But Russell
was too good fellow to bear malice long-and
moreover he was so reoced that he had not com
mitted homicide in addition to making himself
ridiculous, that after a few hours his resentment
passed. off and to the day of his death he never
was tired of telling the story.
OLDEN TINE. In 1897, there were but thirty
seven poughs in all Massachusetts, and the use oil
these agricultural implements was not familarto al
the planters, From the ANIMALS ofSalem, appears
in that year, it was agreed by the town to gram
Richard Hutchinson 20 acres Of land in addition to
his share, on conditinn that she set up ploughing
parcel ofyoung blades, one of whom was
carrying a well filled market basket upon his arm,
met crazy itinerant preacher, and requested OF
him prayer. He consented provided they would
all kneel They did so, whereupon he seized the
basket of provisions and run off with II before