Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-06-10
A CHAPTER IN REAL LIFE.

hiuemen, rlnem5n, rluemen lOrW
A CHAPTER IN REAL LIFE.
On almost every day in the week,
upon the sunny side of the sidewalk in
Third street, may be seen an aged man
hobbling along on stiff, his whole
appearance indicating that if he knows
o single hope it is fixed upon coun-
try beyond the grave, where penury and
want can nevex enter.
The history of this old man was YES
terday narrated to US. For convenience
sake We will speak of him as Mr.. James.
Some time ago Mr.. James was man
of comfortable substance. He owned a
farm, with stone house and barns, and
cattle to match, in the fertile part of
Montgomery County. The devil, ill
in the shape of a Bank President, in
duced Mr.. Green, neigh5or of Mr..
James, TO mortgage his farm, get 4 note
discounted, and build Grecian cottage
with twcnty-four columns holding up
nothing. Mr.. Green went ahead and
built the cottage. Mrs. Green took on
airs, and allowed that she could no Ion
ger associate "with them James"
This angered Mrs. James, who in
formed Mrs. Green that she was "not
to Re tran pied upon" Mrs. James
allowed that her folks were as good as
'4hem stuck up Green's" and tina: she
had as much right to Grecian cottage
with twenty-four columns, as "them
ships on the next farm" Mrs. James
kept up her din fer some weeks, at the
end of which the subject of this sketch
struck his colors to his wife. Even a
wise man will often do foolish things to
escape curtain lectures. He borrowed
good round sum from the bank, gave
his note, mortgaged his farm, and built
a Grecan temple. For brief period
Mrs. James was as happy as dowager,
and nov that James had abundance of
money, and could get as much more as
he pleased, came on a shopping excur.
sion to Philadelphia every day in the
week, except Sunday. Mrs. James
purchased the most extraordinary bar
gains, and aattered herself into the be-
lief that she was cut out for commissary
general.
So far so good. In little time
Mrs. james began to fdget again
The rusty homespun carpets were as old
as Adam, didn't cover one-half the
floors, and were disgrace to Grecian
temple while the, store-keepers were
advertising Kidderminsters at triae
below prime cost. Poor Mr.. James!
He was a doomed man from the time
he obtained his first discount. Mrs.
James procured three hundred dollar
carpet for her parlors, while to keep it
company Mr.. James had to buy sew
enty dollar mirror, a set of fifty dollar
window curtains and a forty dollar
hearth rug. The rug was what the
dealer called gem. 1t had q very
happy design-a vulture eating an an
telope--a bank 6nancier "doing" Mr..
James.
All this "splurge'' carried beatitude
to the heart Of Mrs. James, and made
her as happy as fool at a freman's
parade. Despite all this, Mr.. James
run away with the idea that "Mr. and
Mrs. James, Of Druid's DELL" were
making asses Of themselves. Mr..
James became low spirited, and felt
that his farm was no longer his own.
The Grccian temple and his fertile
fields, instead Of being a source Of en-
joyment, only increased his regrets, as
he felt that ere long hey must inevita-
by pass from his possession. One Of
these periodical tornadoes to which the
credit system is subject, was heard to
rumble at distance. The bank began
to collapse, and James was apprised
by the cashier that his notes would OF
be renewed, and that there was no tell
ing how soon the institution would be
the subject of run,
The sequel of the history is that
James notes went to protest; tn,
mortgage was foreclosed, and the farm
and temple knocked down at public
sale, for just enough to pay the notes.
The property Was bought in by the
cashier, who thus converted paper
promises into land.
Mrs. James pinned away and died in
disappointed vanity, and poor James
was, at last, found sheltered by dis
tant kinsman, where he shares the COM
mon lot of age and poverty-reglect
and contempt. He is now upwards of
four score years of age, waiting pa
tiently for the call to world where he
humbly hopes to find rest in the pres
ence Of his Saviour. His history con-
tains moral, and that is, that snar-
ling and disconnected wife invariably
drives her husband to one at least Of
three Acknowledgements, demorali-
cation, or bankruptcy. There are
many women in the world having pre-
clsely the same idiosyncracies Of Mrs.
James.
How TO KEEP PooR.-Buy two
glasses Of ale every day, at FIVE cents