Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1852-02-28
Ehe VANITY of Riches.

Mr.. Furguson, the noted bibuIant-he of the
| rublcund ylsage we mean-Was standing in
Washington street the other day, leaning
against an awning post to rest himself after the
| fatigue incident upon visiting and chatting with
a number pf publicans and sinners, when he fell
into the following train Of reticctons:
What's the use in being rich! In particular,
what's the use of getting rich? My wife she
says to me every time | get to work on a good
job--"Jim, why don't you try to lay up q little
money! says she. And then try to distil in
to her mind the evils of riches. There was
poor Mr.. Astor. worked hard to cumilate prop
erty, and when he had piled up a lot of it he
was pestered to death to take care of it. Then
there was poor rich Mr.. McDonough, in Louisia-
na, nigh about starved himself, and only had
one suit Of poor Clothes for the sake of buyin
all the land that jined him. reckon I've ct
and drunk about ten times as much good stuff
as Mr.. McDonough did in his life, with all his
property. live kinder independent, like. No.
body asks me to endorse notes or 60 bail for
nybody. No tenth cousins come to my house
a-vsitin, expectn, to live like fghtin-cocks at
my expense. Nobody asks me to subscribe a
thousand dollars for koshshoot. Nobody asks
me for money for party purposes. In fact, ]
get treated at other peoples expense-eVery
lection.
And now what's the use of my workin and
scrubbin around year in and year out just to
cumuate few hundred thousand dollars! My
wife would like me do it, know, SO she might
dress in silks; but calker is good enough for any
woman. enjoy myself just as if | was rich
Can't see all the pretty picters they put upin
the windows, around here, for nothin? And all
them watches and rings the other side Of that
plateglass, | can enjoy as well as if | owned
em. | have new patterns put out for me to
look at almost every day, and don't have to
worry nights about this gettin stole. Your rich
men 90 to great expense and much trouble
to keep their coaches and great lazy fellows to
drive them, but when want to ride up to South
End, Or almost any other part Of the city, just
becons with my finger, and four horse team
and coach haul up to the curb stone and jump
in and an. .of-only fourpence to pay. No, no!
You don't catch Jim Ferguson bein one of the
"Rieh Men of Massachusetts," no how! They
ant good members of society, they aint. Cause
and drink it at home, and there aint no public
spirit about that. That don't help the ehinery
of society. It's liable to raise a breeze in the
family circle, as know by experience, for if
carry home even pint-bottle, Mrs. Furguson
raises a blow that almost takes my hair of. If
followed The example of the rich men, should
lead pretty life with Mrs. Furguson. In fact,
rich men are humbug, and money is humbug,
so guess I'll carry this quarter to some gro
Gerry and invest it where thieves can't break
through and steal it. AS long as l carry it
about I'm liable to have my pocket picked, but
when Eve drunk itup nobody can cheat me out
of it-that's fact.
And DIR. Furguson, being fully impressed
with the vanity Of riches, spent his last quarter
at the nearest grocery.--Boston Museum.