The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1874-03-20
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spear. he wuznt agoin to allow no woman
~. ~ oictate to him wat he shoOd do with his
'lme or his money, nuther.
arer alu McPelter remarkt that ef his wife
u;sh l,ned IN sich demons trashun she'd
from tas;I tae naan T. His wife tried to stop him
his oats anS snother drink wunst, after he felt
,,e. n,s od.s ana he'd throwd a cradle with six
nioh,hs paDy out Nv the door. and The bl.ck
eyI sue Sos wuz warnin To her never to in.
'ei1eie Win MS prerogative no more
oor Dascom wuz cast down pa sa;d
Amerlkin iboerty wuz gone, when q n,ssni
Nv wiliui,n got 10 Soln about interferin with
mans biznis. But he shood adont "isn v;n.
orous measures. He'd never surrendere
never.
Friday come and Bascom wuz ready for
EN-. Evry wun NV our persuasion in the Cor
ners he'd ordered his wife to keep strkly in
doors, and oDs no akkount to vencher out
door in the day. Bascom asked us all to stay
with him, and see thro it. To wich we all
agreed Them eZ wuz married and kept
house, went home to fix up their doors and
nail boards over the broken glass Nv their
winders, so that their wimmen shOodn't see
outside. It's no small matter to close up all
the holes in the houses al the Corners.
Wen, at IL O'Clock procession NV women
uiu make their appearance at the lower end
NV the village. and they moved slowly to-
sheet.
&c: W." sed I, ''there is but one thing
yoo KIN co. Rally yoor friends about yoo,
and make head against this unholy croosade.
Inc regular frequenters of the place are fri
tend, and are not here. Bring EN- herel
Bring em here to wunst! Swing out pla-
| card which shel read:
"Likker free to all doorin the continyoo-
ance Nv this fanatikle campanel Ho! ali We
that thi-st. Come and drink without money
and without pricep'
This, G. w., will fetch EN- in, and ez long
ez the likker is free they will stay in and give
700 their moral support. Shell write the
placard?"
w. wavered. He cast one glace at his
kegs, and sighed hesitatingly. 1 cast one
glance at them kegs, and waz determined
that so good an opportoonity shood not be lost.
Hal sed /, ''the foe! they come! they
come! To hesitate now is to be lost. The
head Nv tn, invadin column hes turned the
corner. Shel write?'
"Yesp sed Bascom, bustin' into teers
'write. Eff they shet me up I'm rooined
and eff you hev free drinks I'm busted. But
I'd ruther take the free drinks part of it."
'Certainly," sed Issaker Gavitt, soothing
"; free drinks, by all means. Alter all,
Bascom, 1t amounts to the same thing. It's
free drinks anyhow, for yoo hev to charge EN-
10 us, don't yooP
And SO writ the placard and histed 1t up
at the door. The result was majical. In less
than ten minitt the glad noozc had reached
every house in the village, and there wnz
gathered together in Bascom's sich solid
mass Nv liberty-lovin men ez had never been
seen together at the Cross Roads,
Bascom appointed two NV us to draw likker
for the thirsty crowd, and then we throwd
open the doors, calkilatin to greet em with
such cheers. eZ would effectooay silence all
the singin and prayin they Good do.
The wimmin approached, We Good see
EN-. They wuz all closely vailed. Ez they
approached the door directed the likker to
be served out faster, so ez 10 get the boys tun-
didn't stop! They didn't stop to sing or to
pray Or nothin. They simply passed by, pull
ing their walls closer TO their faces, and snick-
erin. looked thro the vail NV one Nv EN-
and saw whiskers.
But with rare presence of mind / said
nothn.
will be back in moment"
By the time this drinkwuz down Bascom WIZ
so far gone that he didn't know nuthin. He
got lunatic, and springin from the counter in
sisted on everybody's not only drinkin but
that every man Nv Us should jill bottle and
| take it with us.
| 1t is unnecessary to state what followed.
| The revilry waxed furious, and by night the
|
other four deep. Every drop Nv likker in the
house wuz gone, for wat wuz'nt drank he'd
bin allowed to waste, for men drawed II who
| wuz too tite to shet the faucets. Bascom
wuz laid out, Deekin Pogram was snoring ez
tho he hedn't slept for week, and seasoned
vessel that / am, wuz the wust played out
Nv any Nv em.
| The next morning Joe Bigler venchered
around, and l asked him concernin the vim
| min
"Wimminr' sed he, "them wuzent wim-
min. They wus boys employed in the factrys
in New Boston, Nasby," said he.confldensh-
ly, my opinion is that that cuss, Pollock, put
this upon you with view to rooinin BascOm
heerd him talkin with one NV them factory
men, who is his brother-in-law and heeid
the brother-in-law say that it wuz too good
not TO do it. l presume that is what they re-
ferred to. But don't say that told yoo.'
Passln Pollock's an hour after, heerd him
| and and Biglsr latin vociferously, and 1
knowed that this wuz wat they wuz latin at.
But, thank Heaven, the joke isn't onto me.
l got twenty square drinks out wv 1t for
nothing. But do pity Bascom. His heart
is broke. His empty barrels, his broken
glasses and bottles, bear mute testimony to
his losses. May Heaven forgive Pollock an
Bigler.
PETROLEUM V. NAsBY, Pm.
p. ST. shel ishoo the first number Nv my
new DaDer NEXT week