The Louisiana cotton-boll. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], Attakapas, La.) 1872-1883, 1873-04-02

+ 'lpb9hiIh htilttLS tiIdb q IuSI one Q
! many going up and down anil trucking
= around in business, sir
Tn" Iight-"ycd Swintou played Will
. bja Watch-ch0in ncrvously. An I'm
sophisticated old woman, this-bping
solicitor for her patronage was no
| agreeable, but in "busjno%s" very die
ogrneabIc things have sometimes to b,
/ DONE =
"'This deposit, then, was made fol
th" benefit Of your son, B"ubcu Uit
death was Il great loss to You: loss t.
the community. Rubo wn4 fuiI Of jlt
and enterprise tie would Hnvo made
It puhic-spirItod man. wish ho wrr,
alive now"
Artf0rd SwintonR small, light eyes
could detect human wcaIlnessns Art
ford Swinton'a quick apprehension and
tact enabled hmm to work mp those
wcakncsses for his own interests. When,
n half hour later, he passed out he,w
The lilac cIumpa, he carried on his pa
per UucI" LiphaIcts subscription, md
IN his pocket UucIo Ljphalot's bank
book.
g. Ny hand trcmbcs 80, hain't made
all the letters very good" Unclo Lip
haIct had said as no removed his spec
jacIcs and critically surveyed his labor
ed signature.
We must trust you to take care of
it for us, sir; fnthrr and I don't know
anything about business," Aunt Polly
had said as she relinquished the precious
little blue book.
Certainly, rely on me,-I do assure
vou,-T shall remember the circum-
stances. Any favor that is in my power
to confer" Mr.. SwintOn had snid
gibIy
Aunt Dolly stepped to the window
with her knitting, and watched the
man rs he struck light for his cigar on
her gate-post.
Il wish We hadn't done it, LiphaIot, /"
said she.
"Oh! don't say so, Dolly, don't"
81 don't like his eye, and for all he
talks SO open and honest he seems to
me like u close man o man who keeps
something back
"You mustn't be prejudiced against
him, Dolly. because he appears n leetle
vain and hashy. Men ant now what
they were in our days. He comes of an
honest, obieeging kind of family, and
they cali him very smart young man,
Dolly"
Time with its incidents and accidents
went on, and Aunt Dolly grew used to
thinking of Rube's money as in Swim
tons hands. This certificate of stock
in the "Native Village manufacturing
company" was carefully laid away, and
she no longer spent slaepless nights
over it, nor sighed when the matter was
mentioned.
Tho mill went mp and the operatives
came; real estate rose again, and the
Native Village hourished. Uncle Lip
halet peddled out early potatoes. sweet
corn, and mutton by the quarter; and
Artford Swinton, though he had presi-
dent, and directors, and clerks, and
heaven only knows what else around
him, was 1.-THE Company" and smoked
cigars--best brand or none-gavo the
c0mpauys note, and forever stroBed the
foxY-colored mustache. While he car
ricd on the cotton manufacture he did
still more hourishing business in the
manufacture of facts. He hcaped facts
upon facts on the head of the president
until he smothered that gentleman in
facts; he piled bales of facts before the
directors until they couldn't see over
the pile; he threw facts into the eyes of
the stockholders until they we're stone
blind he gave banks and creditors Sc
curity of facts, and his friends quafFed
uopcntho of facts in the social glass
Days when oroqneting was dull the
books were "fixed. Bookkeeping,
once science, designed to show the
pocuniury standing Of individuals md
now became an easy and
economical method of liking" things
Now and then q dividend was declared.
and the stream that turned the mill
glittered in the sun like the river Pacto-
lus. Uncle 'Liphalet put greenbacks
into the Contribution-box, and thanked
the Lord daily that He was giving him
increase of substance.
Then there began to be haze in the
mir through which had glittered the
river Poctolus. SwintOn said it was
smoke from the Boston fire. 1t grow
icnser and denser.
"Smoke from that.-Boston fir
wind blows this wav, yet, said SIN
ton, between the puffs of his cigar.
But smoke has an unpleasant Ctect
on mems eyes, aud meeting after L ct
ing was held to devise measures to get |
rid of it. Uncle Liphalet, at these
sat silent and trembling, lis |
tened to talk that he could no more |
than tho chattering Of Choc- /
b VS., aud was shown statements that he |
, uld no more comprehend than the in |
scriptions on Pompey's pillar. The |
man of facts lounged in an attitude of |
such elegance rs men are wont to as
sume when by themselves, and agreed |
with everybody. assured everybody, !
was putting his thing through. and |
offered his facts for this latter purpose |
With astounding iberality. Alack the |
5winton cigar smoke, though it rose
and curled around the heads |
lf the stockholders, naturally mingled |
With the smoke of the Boston FIRE, and |
mems visions became more and more |
,bscured.
All at once SwintoR was off for Eu- |
'ope for purposes of selt-cutture, per |
laps the man needed it, Then we're |
his layers of facts, his dividends in |
,apar and his dividends in money push
ID aside. 0, We gods, what a sight met
lie gaze of men, then Now the smoke
oiled mp in volumes from all quarters
darkness that might be felt set in, and
nen groped for each others hands. No
more did the Paetolus glisten and gilt
er and simmer before their eyes, but
n their ears roared a swollen, turbid
itream, foaming, tossing great cakes of
ce up and down, and threatening to
,ear them all away, grind them up, and
AIRY them out to open ocean.
Some OF the men there could talk,
md, though one have fetters on his
eet, letters on his hands, and bricks on
lis head, il he can talk his condition is
lot unbearable. But Uncle 'Biphalet
couldn't talk; so he picked his way
lown the icy steps, CROPPED his way
lome through the snow-storm and rat
led the back door rs a signal to Aunt
Dolly to let him in.