Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-04-10
The Three Gifts.

| There was once poor weaver who be-
! came known to three rich students, who,
seeing that the man was very poor, gave
! him for his housekeeping a hundred dol
lars The weaver was overjoyed at the
| gift, and resolved on employing it to the
| greatest advantage-but would first, for
a time, feast his eyes on the shining
money. He concealed it where no one
would think of looking for it, namely,
among some Old rags. One day, while
| he was out, rag collector came to the
house, and his wife sold the whole bundle
of rags for q few pence. Now there was
grief Of heart when the weaver returned,
and his wife, full of joy, showed him the
tritle OF money she got for her old rags.
! When a year had passed, the three stu
! dents came again, hoping to find the
weaver in comfortable circumstances
instead of which they found him poorer
| than ever, and on expressing wonder for
this, he informed them of his misfortune.
After warning him to be more careful IN
| future, they gave him another hundred
dollars. Now he thought he would be
| more prudent-so without saying word
to his wife, he hid the money in the dust
tub, and this time it fell out just as on the
former occasion. His wife exchanged
the ashes with dustman for two or
three pieces of soap, while her husband
Was just gone to carry some work to a
customer. When he returned, and was
told of the bargain Of the ashes, he was
so enraged that he gave his wife beat
ing.
When another year had passed, the
three students came for the third TIME,
and found the weaver in rags and misery.
They said, throwing at the same time a
piece of lead at his feet,
'Of what use is nutmeg to a COW? To
give thee money again would prove us to
be greater fools than thou art. We will
never come to you again."
Thereupon they went away in anger,
and the weaver picked up the piece of
lead and laid it on the windowsill. Soon
after his neighbor entered the room-he
was a fisherman-badeh him good day, and
said:
'My friend, have you perchance piece
of lead, or anything heavy, that | can
use for my net? for l have Just now
nothing at hand"
The weaver gave him the piece Of lead
which the students had left, for which
the fisherman thanked him, and promised
that he should have in return the first
large fish that he caught
Very well" replied the weaver, "but
it is not worth speaking about"
Soon after the fisherman actually
brought a fine fish weighing four or five
pounds, and obliged his neighbor to &C
cept it. He Immediately cut up the fish,
and found bright stone in his belly.
This stone the weaver also laid on the
windowsill. In the evening when it be-
came dark the stone began to shine, and
the darker it grew the brighter the stone
became, and just like candle.
That's cheap lamp" said the weaver
to his wife. 'Wouldst thou not like to
dispose of it as thou didst the two hun
dred dollars?" and he placed the stone SO
that it Illuminated the whole room.
The next evening a merchant CHANGED
to ride past the house, who. on seeing the
brilliant stone, alighted and entered the
room, looked at it, and offered ten dollars
for it. The weaver answered.:
cit is not for sale"
"What, not for twenty dollars?"
mot even for that" replied the weav-
The merchant, however, kept on bid
ding and bidding for the stone, till at last
he offered a thousand dollars, for the
stone was precious diamond, and really
worth much more.
Now the weaver struck the bargain,
and was the richest man in the village.
His wife would have the last word, and
took much credit to herself, saying:
'See, husband, how well it was that /
threw away the money twice, for thou
hast me to thank for this good luck!"
DENNIS A. MAHoNY, proprietor of the
Dubuque Daily Egening Telegraph, has en-
tered suit against the city of Dubuque for
$4,000 and interest, for injuries inflicted
on him, whereby his right arm was broken
and permanently disabled in fall, caused
by the streets being permitted to remain
obstructed with snow and ice.
A MAN recently broke off marriage
because the lady did not possess good
conversational powers. A cynical friend
commenting on the fact, says: He should
have married her, and refused her new
bonnet, and then he would have dis
covered her conversational powers"
LEAvENwoRTH, Kansas, is to have
new depot, which will be at least 600 feet
long and 1877 feet wide. Seven or eight
trains can enter it abreast, with album
dance of room for loading. The cost will
be from $500, 0G0 to 100000.
In one locality of O'Brlen County,
Iowa, thirty-four young bachelors have
opened up farms, and all they want is
cargo of feminine divinity to hedge them