Idaho semi-weekly world. (Idaho City, Boise County, Idaho Territory) 1867-1868, 1867-08-31
DEAD BROKE.

The Fat Contributor" of the Cincinnati
Times gets off the following:
We found man seated on curb-stone near
the Postofice, last night, muttering to himself
apparently, as there was no one else to mutter
to. We felt constrained to ask what he was
doing here
Hain't dom nothln', . was the reply
"Where do you belong?"
Don't b'long nowhere, and nowhere don't
b'l0ng to me"
Who are you2''
"I'm Broke
"WeIl, suppose, you are broke, you've got a
Aame, haven't you. What is it Z"
al tell you I'm Broke-D Dead Br0ke-that's
myname, and that's my natur' My father
was born before me- If he hadn't been |
wouldn't be Broke now--at least, not SO bad.
My mother was a Peasley, but she wanted o
husband, and she got Broke-that's my dad
and Broke got me. I've been broke ever since"
For few moments the unhappy d. Broke
buried his face In his hands, and seemed lost
in the most doleful reflections Then, raising
his hands, he exclaimed bitterly
g / wish had been born colt"
why do you wish you had been born a
colt2'
Because colt amt 5roke until he is two
or three years old. Twas Broke the moment
saw the light, and never got over it. It is
hard to be broke so young"
How did your parents come to call you
Dead Broke 2"
"Wel, We see, as soon as was born, some
thing seemed to tell me that had got to be
Broke all my life, unless could get my name
changed by act of Legislature, and that, you
know, would be an impossibility."
:" How an impossibiity ~
90 rn Won such hlnoEhnad RI Sunn0Sn
that man can get anything through the LIE.
gislature when he is Broke ~
:" You are right. Go on" r f4
I" When the conviction forced itself upon my
infant brain, confused as it was by recent ex-
perience, that I must be Broke all my life,
felt that there was nothing left to live for, and
lost all consciousness at0nce i have found only
part of it since"
"He is dead,' cried my mother, wringing
her hands.
EYES, groaned my father dead Broket''
revived, alas! but Dead Broke became
my name, and have been dead broke ever
since"
MY name has been fatal to me all through
life. The smallest boy in school always broke
me in playing marbles l broke more windows
than any other boy in base ball. I always
broke down at recitations, and had my head
broke every day by the schoohmaster. When
Left school / went to clerk for broker. One
day there was. heavy deficit in the accounts.
was afraid he might think that / had some
thing to do with it--so l., broke They
caught me though, and put me in Jail, but I
broke outs
"Out of iai2"
"No, hang it, broke out Nth the smallpox !"
"What did you do next y
" After the court had disposed Of my CASE
i a. f0 intO fha hrnlr hr,os
ness again.
:. How was that ~
q broke stonein the Penitentiary, dog on it.
After I got out I broke everything. 1 broke
my promise, broke the Sabbath, and broke the
pledge"
'Was you ever married 2"
Yes, (sighing deeply matrimony broke me
up worse than anything else My wife was |
regular ripper. She broke up my furniture
and the dishes, nearly broke my back with a
fatirOn, and finally broke my heart"
"By running away ?"
No. indeed, by sticking to me-"
You have had hard time of it,
"All owing to my name. But bad as dis I
Ike it, it's mine / came by it honestly You
wouldn't think anybody else would want to be !
in my place, would ye? but there are thou |
sands of ilnposters all over the country tryingl
to.pass themselves off for ME"
q In what way p" W
"When they tel their creditors that they are
Dead Broke"
There was another pause, during which the
unhappy possessor of an unfortunate name |
could be heard to sob. At length he broke
cut
ut will be simple and fitting inscription
for my tombstone though"
"What ?'f
~ IN-,.r, Ilrrv1Y.