Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1858-10-14

4
been had he attended to it in season
John had often promised his wife that he
would reform. but he had not done it yet He
did not realize how much he lost; or if he did,
the effect was momentary. When he lost his
sheep he would never let such thing go again
And yet there was at this very moment bad
place in the floor of his tie-up, where the cows
were kept He had noticed three DAYS before
He saw one of the cows tread upon it and he
knew that heavy OK would break through
there at once. But the floor was not mended
yet, for all that.
When the ring, or the hub band came home,
Mr.. Boggs went to work and put it on. But
| it would not work. He had missed figure
| in his calculations The spokes had worn the
sockets SO much that all the straps in the
world could never fit that broken hub on agaiu
Jerusalemv muttered the disappointed man,
as he found that he could not make the thing
work. If | had only fixed the laundering
things when | ought to, this wouldn't have
been! It's too bad--too laundering bad
But there was no help for it. A new hub
must be made. He made out TO find an old
wheel which he could use while the wright was
fixing his, and in this uncomfortable way he
managed to get along without losing much
over a days time.
One morning about week after the break
ing of the hub, one of the little girls came run
! ming in while the family were at breakfast.
| Papa papa the white faced heifer's
broke right through the aoorl
What ? uttered Boggs starting up, Bro
ken through "
John Boggs knew that his wife was looking
sharply at him. and he avoided that peculiar
glance which he felt sure he should find there
if turned that way. He called up the two
men aud hurried out As good fortune would
have it, the heifer was not seriously harmed;
but John knew he could not claim credit for
her safety. When he came back his wife said
not word upon the subject At first John
was afraid she would reprmand him; but when
| he found that she kept silence upon the sub
! iect he felt worse than he would have felt had
she Just chided him a little. He knew she felt
! it-that she understood it-and her continued
J silence seemed 10 indicate that she considered
/ him incorrigible. From that moment he re-
solved that he lr0uld reform. Ah--he had
made just such resolutions before.
For two months no real accident happened,
| for John Boggs kept things pretty straight, but
still there were some shortcomings. The hab-
it Of procrastnatiou was too firmly fixed upon
him to be easily thrown of.
As autumn drew near, John BoggS began
to look around for an opportunity to carry into
execution plan he had been considering for
some time He had very choice stock of
cattle, and having received an excellent offer
! for them, he could buy in the spring to good
advantage So he sold eight oxen for price
which might by some be considered almost fab
ulous The same purchaser wanted horses
aud John sold his three heavy ones, keeping
only three year old colt, which he thought
would answer for all his riding through the
winter
Very near Johns farm was q large tract of
land covered with heavy pine treeS--moSt Of
| them magnificent white pine; and he had part
! ly contracted to cut those trees down, fashion
the logs, and haul them the distance of three
! miles 10 the river The contract would be o
! valuable one for him. besides he lived so near
/ to the woods. He supposed he could find
plenty of men who would be glad TO come on
and furnish teams if he would keep them. He
! had hay and grain in plenty, and Of course
| wished to have most of it eaten on the place
| Bv selling his oxen and horses he had made a
| clear profit of about one-half all he got for
| them; and now if he could get some one TO
! come on and furnish teams, and in return, take
one-half the proceeds of the job, and have their
animals kept, he would do we'll But he found
it more difficult than he had expected, to ob
/ tain the help. He could find plenty of men
who would gladly come with such teams as they
owned; but be wanted heavier ones.
At length he hit upon the very man.
| I've found him. he said 10 his wife, one
evening on his return from visit to a neigh
boring town I've found just the man. He's
got teams enough, and will come on as soon as
wanted
Who is he 2 asked Matilda, quite pleased
| at her husbands success.
Aaron Rolf You know him don't We ?
| He's got six yoke of oxen aud four good horses;
and he says if | will give him equal shares OF
| what am to have and take care of his ami
/ mails and men he'll come
Aaron Rolfr repeated the wife. know
I him we'll If he SAYS he will come then you
may depend upon him. He never makes
promise until he kRolcs he can keep it; and he
never undertakes to do thing which ne can
/ not do as it should be done Some people call
/ him odd; aud don't know but he is, in one
sense of the word; for he minds his own busl-
ness; has everything in Its proper place; aud
/ will have no one about him, if he eau help IL,
! who will not follow his example,
'Why-you seem 10 know him well, Tiddy ;
And why shouldn't | 4? You forget that /
lived in his fathers family several years
Ohio! Is he son of old Ben Rolf ?
! 'YeS-his eldest boy
Aha-that's it eh Well, I'm glad he's
such a man. It'll make it good for me.
i should like to have him here very well
this coming fall and winter-that Is If you
must have some one
So John Boggs gave himself no more uneas-
mess upon the subject of his falls work. Mr..
Rolf was coming over to look at the timber,
before he closed the bargain; but then John