Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1858-06-30
ONE DAYS SHOPKEEPlNG.
BY CLARA AUGUSTA.

most fastidious among my lady readers would
Wlsn 10 see, and that is saying a great deal for
Vousin marry, when one takes into consideration
the taste OF the 10Th century.
Harry is a country shopkeeper-a urocerv
keeper, L mean that is, be sells pork, beef. 6sb,
OIL, molasses and such articles. on one side of
tne store, and calicoes, de laines sheetinp,
m9sins and few silks, on the other aide.
marry custom was very extensive. A hand
some young man in a store is in himself a sort
Oh sign, and good-looking clerk is worth a
hundred dollars year more than an uoIv one
LII Is lamentable fact and am sorry TO re.
cord it; but it is 80.
Last summer was up at Uncle Johns: but
the hne strawberries and raspberries with
which the Kitchen garden sbounded were not
despised by me-
One morning, Harry received an urgent sum.
mons to attend the County Court in a neighbor.
Ing town, as witness in an important case He
was Obliged to 60 off in hurry, and having no
time 70 look up substitute in his store appoint
ed me to the dignity. -,
You can't fail of doing right, Charley" said
he, patronizingly; "the goods are all marked in
plain hgures-that is, the dry goods and the n
mOlasses sells for fifty cents, sugar ten to four.
teen cents. and butter is worth a shilling store
pay; and, mind you, Charley, eggs are twenty
cents dozen, but don take any unless they Ill
SINK readily IN cold water-they may be rotten,
You know; and the butter, too don't take an "
without putting fork into each ball to try il;
1t might be rancid; and, above and over all, my
boy, be polite TO the pretty girls. Good bye.
and Harry put the big brass key of the store
IAN insignia of authority into my hand, and
leaped into the cab which was to take him to
the depot
L felt somewhat dignifed-as it were. pro-
NOTED from the rank of private to that Of a
Gaptsin-and went up to my room at Uncle
Johns, for survey Of my toilet | am rather
good-iookins fellow, myself, though some
people think 1t vanity in myself TO mention it;
put all the glrls say so, and it is generally con-
ceded that they are competent judges
By way of enhancing my personal attrac-
uons, L added to my dress a pair of wrought
wristbands, don't laugh, unfeeIing reader
they were embroidered and presented to me by
a lady friend) and giving a parting twist to
my moustache, L sailed out
The morning was fresh and fair-no grim
clouds cast their boding shadows over the
earth-and all promised fair for my success. I
arranged myself behind my counter, and
waited for Customers
Customer No. entered. She was a middle
aged woman, to buy de beige for her - darter' )
gownd."
was all alacrlty to fulfil her commands.
Pued the counters with what supposed to be
de beige, sort of thin, glossy, rattling stuff ::
ana with all my eloquenee expatiated on its
wonderful merits
There's silk in it, amt there ?'' ouerried
SDectacles a
closer examination, - Miss Moss, our dressma
ker, said sOl'
-" Silk to be sure there is :" said I, imme
dlately taking my cue, Gt doesn't do to con-
tradict LADY, silk why it's all silk, the
real, fine Italian boiled silk, sewing silk, marm.
imported expressly for your daughters wear
It'll last an agei''
Well, she II want it to wear a pretty good
spell, L reckon; body can't afford to b1y
goWnd every day, you know;
vi course not, marin; of course not But
this viii LOOK s"eeuy on your pretty daughter
NO doubt she g pretty-resembles her mother. /
dare say L heard it said that little iudi-
cious tattery never comes amiss with the
ladies '-'
Law, bless your heart, sir Sally amt no.
wise handsome! she amt nigh as good looking
as Was In my young days her nose is too
crooked, and her ha.r is red but then Sam
jackson thinks she's sp!eadiferous, That.
what he says at any rate"
=" No doubt, marin, but Mr. Jackson is a
man OF tsSte-probably 4 connection of An
Ore" jackson, the patriot and President How
many yards would you like :" and | fiourishel
the yard stick with a professional air, which
self.
Oh, stop mint, L ain't decided about il
yet. What's the price p"
Very true; there must be a price, sup-
posed, but had forgotten such a contingency
however, there would be no difficulty about
that, for Harry said they were all marked in
PLAIN hgures, so turned complacentiy to the
card attached to the cloth.
" Y. B. ?. 9"
Very explicit. Like the Hebrew Bible to
me, but took a moment to consider I'd on
II low enough, L thought, to induce her to trade:
ana IL would Mt do to appear il di mt un-
uers'ahu my business might lose cast with
Well, said 1, 80 though it's a great sa,ri-
nee, really giving 1t away-I'll let you have it
Tor one shilling yard. Dirt cheap but a, il
IS ior your pretty daughter, I'll put it down
below cost would mt do it, said 1, leaning
down over the counter close to the old lad y :
green calash--'' would not do il for anotbsr
persdn In the world
My answer seemed to please the old lady. and
sne turned the fabric over, felt of it upon both
sues, tired the strength Of its texture with her
tEuino aAd hnger, and at last gave the order :
Eight yards and half, good measure, and
slk TO sew IL up with
cut off the des, red op,n,itv fJ5o1
skelns Of sewing silk inside il, ibe I,Jv "a
iOf IL In ODD ninepences and sixpences and
bowed her out Of the store -
Enter customer No. = A seedy-Iookiny man.
~ grey blouse, to get two cents worth Of
,;dnS searched around awhile among the mystic
rioHs boxes aud barrels, aud at last pitched
upon 'he strong smelling articles. Wrapped
up a couple Of ounces delivered il 10 NV cn =.
lInef' ani received in return two coppers
winch Noah might have coined in the ark While
waiting for dry weather.
customers No. 3, were two pretty rcd
eheekad girls-one with butter to sell. the
Other win pail Of eggs, destined for the same
purpose as the butter. l remembered Harry,
Injunction about the eggs, butter, cold water,
1nu toi PrieKihS but for the life of me-
could mt recolect which was to be annI;ed ,o
The butter or which to the eggs However,
wanted 70 ob!ige the pretty girls, SO I took both
butter and eggs into the hack store, determined
70 Go sDme,hing with tn, IN.
Alter few moments consideration mo
cured fork, and pierced each and ali of the
eggs separately-and the result was astonisb.
ing out Of two dozen, six were positively in q
state oil decomposition; thirteen were occupied
by remarkably well grown juveniles of the
fowl race; and the remaining five were smell.
jng decidedly old.
abe butter wouldn't sink in the water-dc