The weekly Shasta courier. [volume] (Shasta, Calif.) 1872-190?, 1873-08-16
Gardening for Pleasure.

to have garden. Ii he takes such a no.
ton he will tell his wife of it. This is the
first mistake he makes, and the ground thus
lost is never recovered. She draws her
chair up to his, and lays one hand on his
knee, and purses up her lips into a whistle
of expectation-the vixen-and tells about
her mothers garden, and how nice it is to
have vegetables fresh2tom the vines every
morning, and she will go right out and plan
the whole thing herself. And so she does.
He takes his spade and works himself into
perspiration, and she tramps around under
frightful sun bonnet, and gets under his
leet, and shrieks at the worms, and loses her
shoe and makes him first vexed, and then
mad, and then ferocious. After the garden
is spaded he gets the seed, and finds she
has been thoughtful enough to open the pa
pers, and empty thirteen different varieties
of vegetables into one dish. This leads him
to step out of doors, where he communes
with nature alone for moment. Then he
takes up the seed, and a hoe, and line, and
two pegs, and starts for the garden. And
then she puts on that awful bonnet, and
brings up the rear with long handled rake,
and a pocketful of beans, and petunia seed,
and daha bulbs. While he is planting the
corn, she stands on the cucumber hills, and
rakes over the seed pan. Then she puts the
rake handle over her shoulder, and the rake
teeth into his hair, and walks over the other
beds. He don't find the squash seed until
she moves, and then he digs them out of the
earth with his thumb. She plants the beet
seed herself, putting about two feet of earth
and sod upon them. Then she takes ad-
vantage of his absorption in other matters,
and puts down the petuna seed in one spot,
and afterwards digs them up and puts them
down in another place. The beans she con-
ceals in the earth wherever she can find
place, and puts the bulbs in the cucumber
hills. Then she tips over the seed pan
again, and apologies, and steps on tive of
the best tomato plants, and says. 40, my!
which in no way resembles what he says.
About this time she discovers better place
for the petunia seed but having forgotten
where she last put them, and proceeds to
find them, and within an incredibly brief
space of time succeeds in unearthing pretty
much everything that has been put down.
After confusing things 80 there is no earthly
possibility of ever unravelng them again,
she says the sun is killing her, and goes over
to the fence, where she stands four hours,
telling the woman next door about an aunt
VI hCio WIZ was COuuucu W HIT Ucu
eleven years, and had eight doctors from the
until on old lady-but you have heard it be-
fore. The next day man comes to his Of
flee to get the pay for patent seed-sower
which his wife has ordered, and he no more
than gets away before the patentee of new
lawn-mower comes in with an order fer ten
dollars, and he in turn is followed by the
corn-sheller man, and the miserable gardener
starts for home to head off the robbers, and
finds his wife at the gate with his own hat
on, and just about to close bargain with
smooth faced individual for two hundred
dollar moving machine, and pearl handled,
ivory mounted hay cutter. He first knocks
the agricultural implement agent on the
head and then drags the miserable woman
into the house, and locking the door gives
himself up to his emotions-DDaburyN eus.
AN IMPALrABLE HAT-RACK.-One of the
best things in the shape of practical joke
was not long since perpetrated by Tim
STARTER. Old STARTER, pdter fdn,iias, is a
merchant, wealthy aud arstocratic, and it is
his desire that nothing derogatory to his
dignity shall find foothold in his family, or
fasten itself upon any member thereof
In his boyhood, Tim conceived a strong
passion for the fine arts, and desired much
to become painter But his father would
not permit it. His son must either choose
one of the learned professions, or follow in
his footsteps and become a merchant. In
spite of the paterna edct, however young
STARTER cultivated his talent, and in the
studio of an artist friend he spent many a
pleasant hour with brush and pallet in hand.
A few weeks since Mr.. STARTER moved
into his new house. and, on the occasion, he
gave grand reception to party of select
friends. A hat-rack had been ordered for
the front hall, but it had not been delivered;
and on the forenoon of the day of the par
ty, word was sent up by the furnisher that
the rack could not be finished until the fol-
lowing day.
Tim heard the message, and straightway
the idea of joke entered into his head.
He got his paints and his brushes, and upon
the blank wall of the hall he painted hat
rack-and he did it with such force and &C.
curacy of effect that every part stood out in
relief as bold as though the solid wood had
been set there.
The first man to arrive there was pater
familios himself He saw the rack against
essayed to hang it upon one of the pegs.
The hat fell on the floor. The old gentle
man picked it up and tried another peg,
but with like result. Bless my soul !" he
exclaimed, picking up his hat second time.
4" What can this mean?" He was about to
try third peg, when his daughter, shaking
with merriment, informed him:
Dear papa, that is not hat-stand at
all ; it is only one of Tins tricks
Had Master Tim been at hand he might
have got taste of the paternal Indignation;
but when, later, the guests began to arrive,
and were in like manner deceived by the
phantom stand, old STARTER entered into a
keen enjoyment of the thing, and not only
fergave his son the trick he had played but
suffered him, fer amusement, to pursue his
artistic studies, which he has since been do
ing without interference from the old man.
A farmer in England gave the following
as his experience Of going to the races
Why. you see, sir, put GlO in my pocket
and my watch, and / went down atween the
races to get peep at the Prince. sees