The Plymouth Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1869-1941, 1869-09-16
How a New England Deacon Broke the
Sabbath.

A curious incident of Sabbath breaking
occurred in the parish of Hampton, Conn,
in the good old time. A certain jolly
farmer, who lived several miles from the
meeting house, was astonished to observe
one Sunday morning his near neighbor, a
pious deacon, hard mt work in his bayfield,,
with his sons and his "hired men," But
the truth was soon OWNED; the deacon,
who took no daily paper and owned no
almanac,-was in short, not a literary
man,-had mistaken the day of the week,
and his wcll-ordered family had adopted
his error | am sorry to add that being
more of a wag than a saint, our farmer de-
clined to cnlighten the innocent Sabbath
breaker, but drove on, chuckling, toward
the sanctuary. The deacon looked after
him, and, pausing in the midst of the
broad swath he was cutting, exclaimed
Eff there amt neighbor Doolittle, and
Mrs. DOOlittle, and all the children, dressed
up and gOin' visitin' Saturday mOrnin, in
the midst of hayin' time. That beats ALL"
The next morning the deacon and the
deacon's wife, his sons and daughters, his
hired man, the hired girl, and the "bound
boy" all arrayed in their Sunday best, set
out for meeting i'm good ordcr-the eldest
son on horseback, with the eldest daughter
mounted behind on piliOn; the deacon,
with the rest of the family, in the big farm
wagon, drawn by pair of stout roans,
who logged soberly along with their meek
est Sunday look on. The family dclusion
extended even to the yellow dog, who
trotted in the rear of the decorous turn
out, without secular frisk, or bark, or
gambol.
On the way To the village the deacon
was surprised and shocked to see several
OF his fellow -tOwnsmen at work in their
| fields. He invariably stopped to reprove
them but the joke of his own Sunday
work had spread through the neighbor-
hood, and was so much relshed that no
one cared to undeceive him. Each farmers
excuse for his impiety was the necessity of
getting in his hay before shower, which
he pretended was imminent, though the
| sky was cloudless Expostuations and re-
| plies were something after this sort:
| "Why, Uncle Zebulonl this here is
fine day, with no appearance of rain"
| Jes' so, deacon; but the winds little
unstiddy, and believe in takin' time by
| the fOrelock."
but uncle, it is the Lords time"
| Yes, deacon; but | intend to send a
load of this here hay to Parson Mosely,
and that'll make it all square, guess"
"Why, neighbor Barlow, where under
! the canopy do you find signs of rain to-
day."
I'm the corns, deacon When they be-
gin to shoot look out for damp spell /;
and il always comes, sooner or later"
"Why Ephraim Pcttingill an beat
You horse-shOeing on Sunday"
"Why, you know, deacon, a marciful
man is marciful to his beast"
After each specious response the deacon
shook his head mournfully, and drove on.
He reached the village, drove up to the
meeting house steps, where he and his
hired man handed out the women-fOlks
and children-his son and daughter had
already dismounted at the horseblock-
and together they marveled much at the
closed meeting house doors, and the va
cant wagon shed. There they waited
more and more amazed, till several loung-
crs from the village store gathered around
them, laughing and quizzing, till a terrible
small boy called out, what are you doin
here Monday mornin'? Did you sleeI
over Sunday, or did you forget to put yOul
beans into the oven Saturday night"
Upon that hint they went riding ant
driving hOmeward at quite festive rat'
of speed, albeit in deeply mortified an,
penitential state of mind.-Independent
( FRENCH ingenuity has invented new
9 amusement for persons waiting for TIL
+ appearance of those on whom they cal
A lady i'm Paris has had placed in he
drawing room an immense marble shell II
:, which are to be seen great number o
t fishes of various species. A gentleman