Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1870-08-17
From Hearth and Home.l
Jethro TROOPS Night Thoughts.
BIZ JOHN THOMAS.

old mother, for me, and by deliberately
planned and coolly told lie! Sabbath
breaking. drunkenness, gambling. L
possessed these accomplishments week
ago. may now add to my titles liar
and robber, without stretching tue truth
a whit.
This money came bard. Father has a
mortgage on part of his land to I'M this
fall. and it was painfully earned, and
scrupulously saved for that purpose. l
remember, before / left home, how good
both father and mother would feel when
butter was up cert or two pound, as
the difference on the ten ortwenty pounds
ready for the market was something to
ward lifting the load which was bearing
them down. And one day when father
opened the paper, and saw that wheat
was up five cents a bushel, 1t was almost
made the occasion of jubilee. He had
one hundred bushels in the barn, aud it
was to him SIS.
All this money I got. Nv letter to
mother did it. 1t was buugling letter,
full of contradictions and absurdtles. l
asked for the money for too many pur
poses. In the beginning, | told her that
bad been s.let iuto" au operation in
which could double the money in
weeks time, and before got through. |
said tina. Dimity, Crash IL Co. only paid
salaries quarterly-that to ask for money
before quarter day would impair my
prospects in the house, and that / must
have it to pay necessary expenses. l
crossed and re crossed myself a dozen
times; but uhat Of it? Love suspects
no lies. Father was reluctant 10 part
with IT, but she worried it out of him.
He is cautious aud close. for what he has
accumulated has been by the hardest of
hard work, and be is 10th to part with
any of il, particularly when he has a
debt ahead which covers a portion of his
hard earned acres. But mother has faith
in me-good God J seven weeks ago 1
sCas sUorthy OF a-and size never let him
sleep till >he got it out of him. Her
mind was not easy though; for blinded
as she was by her love for me-dog that
| was, to take advantage of it-she saw
the contradictions in my statements. II
have promised father" says she, in her
letter enclosing the money. THAT be shall
have Il back in time to meet obligations
Oh! my boy, do not let my promise fail.
You have not de-" | know the word
she left unfinished. She would not write
it or let me know that it was in her mind.
One hundred and fifty dollars made by
growing wheat at fifty CENTS a bushel
How many days Of TOLL how many big
drops of sweat. how many strainings OF
muscle did it take to earn this sum OF
money! Each drop of liquor l have
taken cost my poor father a drop Of sweat.
The profits Of half year of the hardest
Of toll for both father and mother spent
by me in seven weeks! A busbel oil
wheat which took ploughing, sowing,
reaping, threshing, and cleaning, for a
single drink, and another bushel for a
cigar! Two pounds of mothers yellow
butter, MIXED, churned. worked, and
marketed, for a drink, and score oil
pounds staked upon cigar or the turn
az card! What work she did for that
drink How many times has she gone
;ired to her bed. worn out and weary, in
tho accumulation of that which SO sci
tishly. foolishly. wickedly threw away!
And now what am l to dol l had to
get money from home or somewhere else,
to pay my debts; but why did [ listen to
Jim Mason, and ask for more than just
enough to pay what must payg And
above all, why did the draft come on Sat.
urday, leaving me TO pass Sunday with
seventy dollars in nv pocket? And with
seventy dollars in my pocket, why did
take liquor in the morning? Why did
go Immediately, with my head upset with
what | had taken, ia search of Jim Ma
son and Jack Armsby, and permit them
to lead me into the same slough from
which this lied for-money was to extri
cate mes All gone in one day! The
same old game over again-the same
black moustached stranger-the same
game of cards-the same winning twice
more liquor-losing to the end of my
purse, and then Keeling half sober 10 this
den half conscious, and certain of only
one thing-that was fool and dupe
as well as the robber of kind father
and loving mother.
What can do9 Dare / ask an I'D
vance of Dimity, Crash & Coz heard
Jimmy Morse do that once, when it wa.
a case of necessity, and the look thai
Dimity gave him was enough to keep me
from doing it forever. Besides, should
do it. they would ask me what had
done with my salary; and how long
would it take them to find out all abou
my recklessness? My chances of holding
NY place wouldn't be one in thousand
if they knew as much of me as | know
of myself There is nothing to be hopet
for from that quarter. | asked Jacl
Armsby before l got home to lend me ,
couple of hundred. and he laughed a
me, with the remark that was al.ogeth
er too free with money to make lending
safe. Jim Mason hasn't cent, nor i
there a soul in the house, or anywher,
else that i know of TO helm me.