The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1873-03-28
BY HoRsLEY BROS. & FIGUERs.

had said as she relinquished the precious
little blue book.
Certainly, rely on MEL do assure
you'll shall remember the circum-
stances. Any favor that is in my power
to confer" Mr. Swinton had said
gibly.
Aunt Dolly stepped to the window
with her knitting, and watched the
man as he struck light for his cigar on
her gate-pOst.
" I wish we hadn't done it, 'Liphalet, -
said she.
"Oh! don't say so, Dolly, doE't."
" 1 don't like his eye, and for all he
talks so open and honest he seems to
me like close man, a man who keeps
something back"
"You mustn't be prejudiced against
him, Dolly, because he appears leetle
vain and fashy. Men ant now what
they were in our days. He comes of an
| honest, obleeging kind of family, and
they call 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 sl9epless nights
| over it, nor sighed when the matter was
mentioned.
The mill went up and the operatives
| came; real estate rose again, and the
Native Village fourished. 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-gave the
company's note, and forever stroBed the
fOXy-colOred mustache. While he car
ried ON the cotton manufacture he did
still more fOurishing business in the
manufacture of facts. He heaped 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 were stone
blind he gave banks and creditors Sc
curity of facts, and his friends quaffed
nepenthe of facts IN the social glass;
Days when croqueting was dull the
books were "fixed. Bookkeeping,
once a science, designed to show the
pecuniary standing of individuals and
companies, now became an easy and
economical method of 90 king" things.
Now and then dividend was declared,
and the stream that turned the mill
glittered in the sun like the river Pacto-
lus. Uncle 'Liphalet put greenbachs
into the contribution box, and thanked
the Lord daily that He was giving him
increase of substance
Then there began to be a haze in the
air through which had glittered the
river POctolus. Swinton said it was
smoke from the Boston fire. 1t grow
denser and denser.
"Smoke from that-Boston fire;
wind blows this wav. yet" said Swim
ton, between the puffs of his cigar.
Bu5 smoke has an unpleasant effect
on mems eyes, and meeting after meet
ing was held to devise measures to get
rid of it. Uncle 'Liphalet, at these
meetings, sat silent and trembling, lis
tened to talk that he could no more
understand than the chattering of Choc-
taws, and was shown statements that he
could no more comprehend than the in
scriptions on Pompey's pillar. The
man of facts lounged in an attitude of
such elegance as men are wont to as
sumo when by themselves, and agreed
with everybody, assured everybody,
was "putting his thing through" and
offered his facts for this latter purpose
with astounding liberality. Alack the
Swinton cigar smoke, though it rose
gracefully, and curled around the heads
of the stockholders, naturally mingled
with the smoke of the Boston fire, and
mems visions became more and more
obscured.
All at once Swinton was off for Eu-
rope for purposes of self-culture, per
haps the man needed it. Then were
his layers of facts, his dividends in
paper and his dividends in money push
ed aside. o, We gods, what sight met
the gaze of men, then ! Now the smoke
rolled up in volumes from all quarters
o darkness that might be felt set in, and
men CROPPED for each others hands. No
more did the Pactolus glisten and gilt
ter and simmer before their eyes, but
in their ears roared swollen, turbid
stream, foaming, tossing great cakes of
ice up and down, and threatening to
bear them all away, grind them up, and
carry them out to open ocean.
Some of the men there could talk,
and, though one have fetters on his
feet, fetters on his hands, and bricks on
his head, if he can talk his condition is
not unbearable. But Uncle 'Liphalet
couldn't talk; so he picked his way
down the icy steps, groped his way
home through the snow-storm and rat
tied the back door as signal to Aunt |
Dolly to let him in.
"Are you frozen, 'Liphalet?" ?" asked |
Aunt Dolly in terror as the candle
light struck the white face.
Uncle 'Liphalet staggered in, and |
sinking on the lounge covered his face
with his wrinkled hands.
go, Dollyr'
"You needn't tell me, 'Liphalet, 1 |
know what it's I've felt twas coming. !
But, o, 'Liphalet, we've helped each
other through hard times these fifty |
years and we've got each other, yet"
Uncle Liph only groaned.
"Maybe the farm'll last US through; F; !
we're Almost worn out, and it won't be !
mfar and each other /
go, Dolly, Dolly, you don't know
the worst, and can't tell you. Inever |
oesA SSAA JOus NOAAys awe SASAC |
'Liph staggered part of the way across
the room, then turned suddenly.
"They're going to take it all, Dolly |
everything, strip us clean, clean as |
we were when we begun fifty years ago,
house and farm and cows,-every-
thing. There's been great careless
ness as well as great wrong; wrong and |
carelessness and wrong from the very !
baoiDDiDcr oD1 now fhav'Tn oopoipCr
The law'll let 'em, and it's got to co.
the back pastur', and the wood-lot, and !
the young orchard, and everything
even Rube's grave, Dolly. o God |
haven't served Thee these fifty years |
why shouldst Thou cast me off now?"
The grap, scraggy face with the gray, |
straggly hair around it, was turned to-
wards the ceiling. Aunt Dolly went |
out into the night
1t was stormy, and cold, and bitter.
The sleet cut against her cheek- the |