Baton Rouge tri-weekly gazette & comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1865-18??, 1867-09-10
~ The Sugar Planter mentions the
death Of James L. Lobdell, Esq, one Of
the oldest and most respectable citizens Of
West Baton Rouge.
The Longest Story on Record.

The Longest Story on Record.
The following will amuse almost
any one who will take the trouble
and spare the time to read it through :
There was once q certain king,
who, like many Eastern kings, was
very fond Of hearing stories told. To
this amusement he gave up all his
time, but yet he was never satisfied.
The exertions Of his courtiers were
all in vain. He at last made a proc
lamation that if any man should tell
him a story that should last forever,
he would certainly make him his
heir and give him the princess, his
daughter, in marriage, but if any one
should pretend he had such a story
and should fail-that is, if the story
did come to an end-he was to have
his head cut of.
For such a price as a beautiful
princess and a kingdom, many can
didates appeared, and dreadful long
stories some Of them told. Some Of
them lasted a week, some a month
and some six months. Poor fellows,
they all spun them out as long as
they possibly could, but all in vain.
Sooner or later they all came to an
end, one after another, and the I'M
lucky story-tellers had their heads
chopped of. At last came a man
who said that his story would last
forever, if his Majesty would be
pleased to give him a trial. He
warned him Of his danger; they told
him how many others had tried and
lost their heads, but he said he was
not afraid; and so he was brought
before the King. He was a man Of
very composed and deliberate way
Of speaking, and after making all
necessary stipulations for his eating,
drinking and sleeping, he thus
began:
"Oh, king! there was once king
who was great tyrant; and de-
string to increase his riches, he seized
upon the corn in his Kingdom, and
put it into an immense granary,
which was built on purpose, as high
as a mountain. This he did for sew
eral years until the granary was
quite full to the top. He then stopped
doors and windows on all sides. But
the bricklayers had, by accident, left
a very small hole near the top of the
granary, and there came fight of
locusts and tried to get to the corn,
but the hole was so small that only
one locust could pass through at a
time. So one locust went in and
carried off one grain Of corn, and
then another locust went in and
carried off another grain Of corn, and
then another locust went in and
carried off another grain of corn, and
then another locust went in and
carried off another grain of corn.
He had gone on thus from morning
till night Except when he was en-
gagged at his meals) for about a
month, when the King began to be
rather tired with his locust, and in.
terrupted his story with:
swell, we'll, we have heard enough
of the locust, we will suppose they
helped themselves to all the corn
they wanted. Tell us what hap
pened afterwards"
To which the story.teller answered
deliberately: "If it please your
it is impossible to tell what
afterwards before l tell
what happened first"
And then he went on again: "And
then another locust went in and
carried off another grain Of corn, and
then another locust went in and
carried off another grain of corn, and
then another locust went in and
carried off another grain of corn, and
then another locust went in and
carried off another grain Of corn"
The King listened with uncon-
querable patience for six months
more, when he again interrupted
him with:
"Oh! friend am weary of vour
locusts. How soon do you think
they will have done :"
To which the story.teller made
answer: "Oh! King. who can tell :
At the time to which my story has
come the locusts have cleared small |