The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-12-01
90
NOVEMBER Is. 1859.

last quarters salary for the sake of learning
how, gracefully, satisfactorily, and honorably
"not to do it." Still, there are occasions when
the affirmative solution of the problem seems
not only desirable, but absolutely essential.
g.: An individual-whose name will not
divulge, and whose identity you never can con.
lecture, so II isn't worth while to exhaust your
self with guessipg-found one day while she
was in the country that she had walked hole
through the bottom of her boots. How she
discovered this fact is of no moment, but, upon
investigating the subject, she ascertained that
it could scarcely be said with propriety that
there was hole in her boots, but, to use term
which sayors Of the street, though | employ 1t
literally, there soasnt anything else. Now the
fact, in, OF, and by ITSELF is not worthy of re-
mark. That the integrity of pair of boots
should yield TO the continued solicitations of
time, oil, bone, and muscle, is too nearly
ainaiier of everyday occurrence to excite alarm.
The " irrepressible conflict" between kid, last
ing. and leather, on the one hand, and gravel,
sand, and alluvial deposits generally, on the
other, has, so far as | know, been suspended
but once since
Adam delved and Eve span,"
and that was only an amnesty Of forty years
while the Israeltes were wandering in the viii
derness; SO that we are not thrown into panic
byany sudden outbreak; and even dissolution
Of the union that should exist between soles
and uppers has been Invested of half its ter
rors BY frequent recurrence. But when you
are deep in the heart of the country, securing
woods, climbing mountains, and fording rivers,
having with your usual improvidence neglected
TO furnish yourself with stout boots, then
horrid chasm or series of chasms yawning
in the only pair that are of any use to you, pre-
Scents spectacle which no reflective mind can
contemplate without dismay.
Ii was i'm fact with good deal of dismay
that the individual in question sat down, one
morning on Webster's Unabridged" that
being the only available seat in an apartment
not over-capacious-a and went into committee
Of the whole on the state of her boots. The
prospect was not inviting. Heels frightfully
wrenched and askew, and showing indubitabe
symptoms of precipitate secession; binding
frayed, travelled, evidently stubborn in resist
ance, but at length overpowered and rent into in
Vulnerable assures; buttons dislocated, dragged
up by the roots, yet clinging TO forlorn hope
with a courage and constancy worthy of bet
ter cause upper leather glove kid once black,
now " the ashen hue of age" gray, purple, fay
ed, scratched and generally lacerated, but true
to the last; soles, all the soles There the
process Of disintegration eliminated. Curled,
crisped, Jagged, gaping, stratifed, laminated,
torn by internal convulsons, upheaved by eX-
ternal forces, they might have belonged to some
prae-A damic era, and certainly presented a Sc
4 1T
not. it must be confessed, highly entertaining
After arranging these boots in every possible
combinatiOn-si9e by side, heel 10 heel toe to
toe-and finding that the result of each and
every combination was
aNo IT. but rather Darkness visible
Served only TO discover sights ofwoe,n
the Individual, at length, with "A sigh, placed
them, keel upwards, on the floor in front of
her, and, resting her head in her hands, gazed
at them with such a 6xedness and rigidty that
she might have been taken for an old Ouate,
absorbed in the exercise of his legitimate call
ing. The old Druidical order were divided
into three classes, Druids Bards, and Ouates.
The Druids philosophical and Theological the
Bards harped and sang. and the Ouates di-
vined and contemplated The nature oftLings. ]
thought 1 would tell you, dear, as you might
not know. ] eXeCrate the selfcOHceited way
some people have of tossing of their erudite
items and illusions in a careless, familiar style,
If 1t is such {, native air, and mothers
milk to them, that they don't for a moment
tIuk s.f ---l-5-s J.tt Ufickh.lt, Dug up
from heap Of PatagUnian rubbish. flung at
YOU with "we have all heard off," or to be
turned of, just your cars are wide open to
listen TO an old prae-Thautc myth, with 81 the
story of -- is too familiar To need repeti-
ton" You haven't the most distant concep-
ton what the story is, yet you don't like to say
so, because II seems to be intmated that every
intelligent person ought TO know IL: so YOU
hold your peace. Ny dear, don't do it. Don't
hold your peace. Don't let yourself be put
down IN that way. Don't be deceived by any
bodys lordy air. 1t is very stupid fashion
OF doug things; and, besides, don't believe
word Of it. Half the time these people never
knew 1t Themselves, dare say, more than
week beforehand, and have been puzzling their
brains ever snce for a chance to get it in
Now, you see, didn't do so, though | might
have done II, for / knew about the Ouates a
long time ago; but l sacrificed the appearance
oil erndluon for your OBLIGATION. That is lust
my amiability!l
The Individual came at length TO the con-
ciuslon that something must be done. Mas
terly inactivity must give way to the exipen-
cles Of the case. With moral certainty that
no shop OF any kind existed within circle Of
zen miles IN diameter, she yet determined TO
De on the safe side, and had recourse TO the
Oldest lnhabitant.' series of questions
disclosed the important fact that
wen, mere was store at Sonose. about
fourteen miles away and Mr.. Williams. he
Kept candy, and slate pencils, and sich -
10 you suppose he keeps good thick boots?"
!" DO you suppose he keeps any kind of
DooisE lou see l have worn mine out, and
what am to do?"
mended" Se' CT"
individual brightens up. "Oh. do vou2u
les, there's Mr.. Jacobs, lives right ont
there, under the hill he makes mems boots
10 Know as he could do yours, but you night
Try thinks likely he amt got the tools nor
the stun to do that sort Of work with
l didn't care for the tools or the stnff
an wanted was the shoemaker; if I eould
IND nm, had little doubt that all the rost
would follow naturally from the premises So
arranged my "sandal shoon and scallon
shell, and departed on my pilgrimage. The
way had been carefully pointed out to me. but
never can remember such things more than
one turn, OF street, ahead; / made point
OF lnqulring of every one | met. where NJ To
cobs lived. Every one. bv the wav G1,;s IA
Of a little girl with basket of potatoes and
man carrying the United States mail ON bis
arm. 0'i MS
At length the Individual found the bouSe %
directed, and found also that II was NO LI,,,.o
but barn, and the shoemaker's sbon nos -,
stairs, and the stairs were OH the onts;da IL
they were firm and strong, all can CO., =
that their looks were against them. Ne;ibor
step nor balustrade invited confidence Tba
Individual stood on the lower one in a mad;to.
tive mood for while, and then gave a iumn
nv tvnr af souf IL 1