Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1874-03-19
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A PERFECT CURE.


me. A perfect Silly and Chary-bodice,
and I'm bobbin' in sperit, from one to
f'other ali the time. Why don't you
sav somethin. David" And Aunt Hep
sey squared herself around, hands en-
her hips, and glared fiercely at MN
Uncle David said nothing. Pernap-
because he did not understand exactiy
who or what Silly and Chary- bodlce'
might be, and wisely concluded to steer
clear of shoals. The irate old lady
went on:
There's John Brumer, too, settin
there all day by the fire, doin nothin
but pore over little mite of doctorin
Home -pathee' he calls it-and
take spccks of pills not bigger'n a pin
head; Jest as if they could do anybody
any goodv-and the old lady glared up
into the air as ifthere was a man up
there and she expected him to cOntro-
vert this covert condemnation, and
knock him out of time Immediately if
he did. Finding that no answ er made
its appearance, however, she looked
down upon the placid Uncle David
and continued:
You needn't tell me, David; s'posen
he is your old friends son, an is rich,
an pays well for his board. That aint
no reason whv he should sit down an
give himself up to notions. an make
up his mind he's got cancers on his liv-
er an goom-biles in his stomach, an
don't know what ailin him besides.
faint nothin the matter with him but
imagination, believe, an if he was
told of it 'twould do him more good'n
all his hOme-pathee, know. He's
jist as well as l am. Dispepee! umpb!
what bisness has strong young feller
like him got to have narves anyway?
An then he won't take nothin to do
him any good. / fixed him up nice
howl of boneset tea, an he would't take
it, but swallowed an extra dose of
them little pills instead And being
now pretty well out of breath Aunt
Hepsey rested her case and fixed her
eyes upon the clouds, as though giving
her opponent in the air one more
chance to come to time. Uncle David,
taking advantage of the pause, cut in
ahead and said:
Now, Hepsey, don't be so hard on
the young man. 1guess he's sick, and
we ought to have more charity'-(dear
old Uncle David; just as if he did not
hive charity for everybody)-'for him
than we do. You know he aint got no
mother, nor no father, nor no friend,
any way-leastwise' the old gentleman
added, thoughtfully, as he rubbed the
ED of his nose-a trick he had-'least-
wise none that will do him any good;
plenty of them wild fellers he knows
too many OF 'em for his good
What is the man talking about" in
terrupted Aunt Hepsey, apparently
much incensed at her failure to entract
a reply from the clouds. It's morn
two year since he's been with any OF
them wildcat chaps, an its my opin-
ion that if he'd kept away from 'em in
the first place he'd been tough now, in
stead of havin to take so many of them
little pill to brace him up. Umph. the
idee of them things bracin anybody
up!'
By The glances she cast heavenward,
it was evident the good lady was firm
ly persuaded this would fetch the an
swer she expected if anything would,
and, fguratively speaking, she prepa.
red TO leave it not leg to stand on,
Uncle David rubbed his nose slowly
and said nothing.
There's Kate, too. When we took
her in an adopted her, an made as
much of her as if she was our own dead
baby come to life'--a tear here glisten-
ed in the old lady's eye-'we expected
she wouldn't make us no trouble nor
nothin'. Now, look at her, I say, COM
ing home from church only last night
and that Tom Jones with her; he wear
i'm a mustache, too, and his father q
deacon in the church. This last seem
ed particularly dreadful to Aunt Hep
sey. Uncle David calmly smoked his
pine. rubbed his nose, and, somehow.
didn't seem at all horrified.
srhere, there, Hepsey, DON'T
THAT'S jist- like you. David Cum
mings; You wouldn't fret if earth sho'd
cave in. Next you know, that gal will
be a-gittin married; gals are SC foolish
.now-a-days they don't what they want
or what's good for them, neither
oBout the same as they used to be,
sHepsey; jist ABOUT the same, for what /
see. Better let 'em alone, an it'll all
come out straight, / guess;' and Uncle
David went off to the barn to see to
things, while Aunt Hepsey went into
the house, first looking carefully around
10 see il that answer was in sight any,
where.
Shewas far from being in as calm a
frame of mind as Uncle David about
both John and Kate. The former wor-
riedher with endless new diseases he
wasiust going to have, and endless
new medicines he was just taking to
cure them; homeopathic medicines.
too, which she couldn't see any sense
or use in. The latter troubled her far
more in the fear of her getting married,
and especially to that tom Jonts with
a mustache.' Aunt Hcpsey wanted
her to stay with them always, or at
any rate until some one came alongi
good enough for her; and as no man
was ever made who could come up to
her rigid standard, that and STAYING
always meant the same thing. KateI
was very pretty, and OF course had
msny admirers, which kept the good |
old lady IN perpetual fever of false
Just ds Aunt Hepsey sat down to her
sewing John came in; and handsome
fellow he was too, or would have beeni
if he were not wrapped and muffied to
the last degree for warm autumn day. |
He seated himself by the fire with |
groan.
whats the matter? rather sharply
asked Aunt Hepsey, who, although the
kindest woman in the world at heart.
had way Of speaking that made her
seem otherwise.
Pm afraid Pm going to have ty-
phoid,' solemnly replied the invalid.
tWhit makes you think SOP
Il felt cold chill run up my back
run up my back lust now. and THAT'S
one of the symptoms groaned John.
sOne of the fiddlestickS!' snorted the |
old lady. i haveth any time
'I'm afraid I've got it, was the lu-
yubrious reply. SLY heart disease is Il
worse to-day, too; it thumped quite S
bard as came up the hill. Just hand 1
me that box of pills. t
The pills were handed with an indig- a