Dayton daily empire. [volume] (Dayton [Ohio]) 1850-1865, 1860-09-08

cate that she had more interest in the matter
than she had in the number Of statute miles
between the earth and the moon.
II is a pleasant little fiction Of hers, that q
delicate hint in relation 20 the consumptiye
state OF that important ingredient in domestic
economy falls more lightly upon the ear Of the
moneyless than the plain and simple, though
appalling statement, "The -four barrel is emp-
ty;" and she will resort 10 all manner Of ex.
pedents for bringing the case to my mind rath-
er than state Il in plain English In fact, |
have sometimes thought Of teaching her to
say il in Spanish, and thus remove little of
its harshness, but as she had no aptness for
any tongue, except her own, have abandon
ed the idea
The purchase of barrel Of -four is an event
in our household economy not to be treated
lightly. 1t requires preparation and consider
alton In the first place, certain sum of
money is TO be provided TO meet the emergen.
cY, for what ever latitude the grocer may allow
in minor matters, when you talk to him of
Hour you must, produce the quid pro quo, or
there is no trade.
The next point to be decided is the selec.
ton of the brand" This leads TO n friend
ly interchange of views between the heads of
the home department, which always results in
est priced article in the market, and a caution
to avoid all attempts at false economy by in
vesting in ? cheaper quality In my younger
days once made a purchase OF barrel of
second quality Gas the grocer called it) 10 see
If my wife would know the difference; and !
believe | have had the biscuit that we're made
from it thrown at me ever since.
You should see my wife when she assists a,
the opening of the new barrel, and its snowy
treasures are disclosed to her gratifed gaze.
Smiles dimple her rosy cheeks, and pleasure
sparkles in her eyes, How tenderly she lifts
each dipperful from its receptacle, examines
it with the eye of judge, and pronounces its
quality with the air of an expert And what
glow of housewifely satisfaction mantles her
fair face, when the first baking confirms her
judgment And then as, day by day, she de-
scends deeper and deeper into its recesses,
each dipperiul, snowy though it be, leaves q
shade upon her brow, until, at last the -four
and the smiles and dimples disappear together. |
AS | sit reading of an evening, can hear |
that wooden dipper humping at the slaves or |
gently scraping the bottom Of the barrel as il |
descends in search of the wherewithal for the |
bread of the coming day, and know that my
wife is intimating by these means the necess- |
ty Of fresh supply as plainly as though she
told me in so many words, for she knows that
| can hear every thump. And by-and-by she
comes in looking as demure as a kitten, but
thu next day brings fresh barrel, fresh
smiles and dimples, and a renewed depletion
Of the already attenuated purse. The smiles
and dimples are always cheap at the price,
even if the -four is not
As | medtated on this momentous subject,
could see by the knitting of her brow and
the increased vigor with which she applied
herself to her task, that my wie's financial as
piration was still working in her mind, and
knowing by long experience that confined
thoughts like explosive gasses, must have
vent, and fearing that somo more violent re-
mark might be shot at me, like pellet from
gun, replied
"True, my DEAR know that the grocer will
only be satisfied with gold or its equivalent,
which he is much better calculated to appreci-
ate than purity of intention and loftiness of
soul, and fortunately for him, it is much more
plentiful in the market though scarce enough
With us. But for oil that we have untold
treasures, if we did but know it.
lcoNcLuDED MONDAY.