The Republican journal., 1869-06-17
THE MISTAKE OF A NIGHT.
From a st. Louis Paper

Yesterday we heard good Joke on a prom
inent business man in this city. whose name
1t Is not necessary to mention, but which. We're
it mentioned, would be recognized a. belong
ing to genial, sociable ton rirU1h. popular
| on Change, in the SalOn, and at the social
| board. The best part Of the Joke is its truth.
| We heard it where the victim was ondeavor-
ing TO drown it in the waves of sparkling
Wine, which he ordered with the understand
| ing that the story should 90 no further than
the little circle who were already possessed
| of it. AS we are not a wine-hibber, and de-
clined to drink oblivion to the joke we do not
fell that we are violating confidence in max
ing it public. We suppress all names, in OF
der to avoid hard feelings and scandal.
Our merchant friend does business on Man,
but lives on Olive street, somewhere between
Tenth and Twentieth That is about a> ex-
plicit as we care to be regarding locality. He
dwells in one Of two houses constituting a
block so precisely similar in architecture and
build that one can be detected from the other
| only by the numbers above the doors. 1t
seems that Saturday evening" after partakino
Of tea, our social merchant left home to meet
a party of country friends at the Southern.
and pass pleasant evening. Workmen had
been engaged that day in repairing the wa
terpipe ut his house, and he had noticed that
open. During his absence the worklnen had
completed the job at the house. and moved
next door. When they knocked off for the
night they lett the hose-plug open before the
other door, Just as our merchant had noticed
the one in front of his residence
At the Southern, the hours sped on rosy
wings. After spending an hour at De Bar
the party visited several fashionable saloons,
and then returned to the hotel. where wine
was imbibed, jokes cracked. and songs sung
until 1.-The wee sma' aynt thetwal" AT length,
when the small hours were pealing from the
tall beltries our friend started for his home
Obtuscated he certainly was, or he would not
have located his house by the hose-plup in
stead of the number. His latch-kev fitted the
lock, the stairway was all right, even the bed
room was in the proper location His wife
lay snoring, oblivious Of the ills OF life or the
absent husband. Noislesslv he disrobcd.
quietly he slipped into bed, and soon was
snorting nasal bass to the lady nasal tenor.
At length the "morning light was breaking"
and the lady first to awaken. Her asonished
| eyes opened on the we'll known face of her
| neighbor. Beinga sensible woman. she didno
scream and rave, and rouse the nciohborhood.
and thus furnish choice morse of food for
scandal. Oh, no. she caught him by the
shoulder and shaking him until he was fully
aroused, quietly observed:
Mr. =, isn't there some mistake ,
lIavnt you got into the wrong bed?"
Poor IS eyes almost popped from his
head, SO greatly was he astonshcd lie com
menced stammering an apology, an excuse
something or other, he had no idea what he
was saying-and backing out Of the bed.
The lady turned her face to the wall, and
allowed him an opportunity to dress and take
his departure.
She explained to him, while he was resum-
ing his clothing, that her husband was absent
IN the western part Of the State-a fact of
which he was already aware-bnt was to have
come IN on the morning train of the Pacific
road She had sat up waiting for him until
long after train time, and on his not arriving
had retired and slept unusually sound in con
sequence of her unwonted vigil After many
apologies and many expressions of his humii-
iation and shame, our friend backed out of
the room and house, and entered his own
domicil. How he bamboozled his wife with
q story of being on the committee for the Wis
itation of the sick of his lodge, and BEING
compelled to pass nj chit by the bedside of a
sick brother, he tells much better ovcra glass
of sparkling Moselle than we can possibly
write. The story is literally true and will be
readily recognized by the parties to it, ant
the small coterie of spirits who are cognizan
of it, and from whose iovial bantering of the
unlucky - we gathered it.
THE GUILFORD SILVER MINE. The Dover