Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1859-04-08
a CHAPTER of REAL LIFE.

On almost any day in the week. upon the
sunny side of the sidewalk in Third street may
be seen an aged man hobbling along upon staff
his whole appearance indicating that all his re-
hections are memories, and if he knows single
hope it is fixed upon country beyond the grave,
where penury and want can never enter.
The history of this old man was yesterday
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 farm, with stone house and barns,
and cattle to match, in the most fertile part of
Montgomery county. The devil, in the shape
of bank president, induced Mr.. Greene, a
neighbor of MIR. James, to mortgage his farm,
get a note discounted and build a Grecian
cottage with twentyfour columns holding up
nothing. Mr.. Greene went ahead and built the
cottage. Mrs. Greene then took on airs, and
allowed that she could no longer associate with
them Jameses.' This angered Mrs. James, who
Informed Mrs. Greene that she was mot to be
trampled upon.' Mrs. James allowed that her
folks were as good as them stuck up Greenes, y
and that she had as much right to Grecian
cottage and twenty-four columns as 'them
snips on the next farm" Mrs. James kept up
time 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 Il good round snm from the bank,
gave his note, mortgaged his farm, and built a
Grecian temple. For brief period Mrs. James
was as happy as dowager, and now that Mr..
James had an abundance of money, and could
get as much more as he wanted, came on shop
ping excursion every day. except sunday. Mrs.
James purchased the most extraordinary
bargains, and f1attered herself into the belief
that she was cut out for a commiss;try gen
eral.
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 the Gre
clan temple; while the storekeepers were adver-
tising kidderminsters at trifle beyond prime
cost. Poor Mr.. james He was a doomed
man from the time he obtained his first discount
Mrs. James procured a three hundred dollar
carpet for her parlors; while, to keep it COM
pany, Mr.. James had to buy seventy dollar
mirror, set of fifty dollar window curtains
and a forty dollar hearthrug. The rug was
what the dealer called a gem. 1t had very
happy design-a vulture eating an antelope
bank financier 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,
however, Mr.. james ran away with the idea
that "Mr. and Mrs James of Druid's Dell"
were making assess of themselves Mr.. James
became low-spirited, and felt that his farm was
ro longer bis own. The Grecian temple and
his fertile fields, instead of being a source of en-
joyment, only increased his regrets, as be felt
that ere long they must inevitably pass from his
possession. One of those periodical tornadoes
to which the credit system is subject was heard
rumbling at distance The bank began to
sink into a collapse, and Mr.. James was ap-
prised by the chashier that his notes would not
be renewed, and that there was no telling how
soon the institution would be subject to a run.
The sequel of the history is that james notes
went to protest; the mortgage was foreclosed
and the farm and temple were knocked down
at public sale, for just enough to pay the notes.
The property was brought in by the cashier,
who titus converted paper promises into land.
Mrs. james pined away, and died of disap-
pointed vanity, and poor Jamos has, at last,
found shelter with distant kinsman, where he
shares the common lot of age and poverty
neglect and contempt. He is now upwards of
fourscore years of age, waiting patiently for a
call to world where he humbly hopes to find
rest in the presence of his Savior. His history
contains moral, and that is, that snarling
snappish and discontented wife invariably ttrives
her husband to one of three things-intem-
perance, decentralization or bankruptcy. There
are many women in the world having precisely
the indios5nerncies of Mrs. Jalues.-Nort1s
american, Philadelphia.
He is fool who cannot be angry but he