The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1875-11-11
THE LOTTERY TICKET.

THE LOTTERY TICKET.
There was time when lotteries wer'
very common things, quite legal, and by
no means disreputable, and when very
worthy people bought tickets and made
no secret of the matter. 1t was q gooG
! while ago, of course, and you would have
to look for the elderly gentleman who
one night, about dark, walked into a lot
terry office for the purpose of buying q
ticket. He had tight boots and tight
trowsers with straps. The fur collar OF
his coat stood up above his ears; and he
wore that awful thing, stock about his
throat. He was in the height of that
years fashion, and was regarded by those
who met him rather with admiration
! than with the stare of astonishment with
/ which we should greet him now--with
which, indeed, we should greet any OF
the ladies or gentlemen of that year,
The gentlemen, habited as above, with
curly, bellshaped hats upon their heads,
and twisted canes in their hands. The
ladies in coal-scuttle bonnets and leg-o
mutton sleeves; and two straight
breadths and two cores in their skirts,
which were short, and showed low slip.
pers and silk stockings; and with long
stringed work-bags on their arms, and
big parasols over the big bonnets, before
which hung curtains of black or white
lace which they called wells.
Mr.. Rogers-for that was this gentle
mans name-stepped up to the counter,
and asked to look at tickets. Perhaps
he had the superstition that there was
luck in odd numbers-for, as soon as
they were spread before him, he decided
on number seven hundred and seventy
seven, paid its price, and walked off with
it in his waistcOat pocket. AS he turned
the corner, the poster on the wall seemed
to be written especially for him" The
capital prize, two thousand pounds.
Tickets, one pound each. Don't delay !"
l had dream that meant luck last
night, said Mr.. Rogers to himself; "and
I've fancy that l shall draw the great
prize. That's splendid number!"
Then he turned another corner, and
spied face peeping out of the window
of small hOuse-the face of Mrs. Rog-
ers, who feared Mr.. RS favorite dish was
spelling.
"That reminds me-" said Mr.. Rogers,
&c mustn't tell Esmeralda. The luck is
spoilt if one tells of the ticket. And
she'd talk so much of it-women will
talk 80 much %
So Mr.. Rogers drank his tea and said
nothing of his lottery ticket which he
hid at the bottom of his trunk-a bulg-
ing, hair-covered thing, with T. r. on
the side in brass nails. But though he
said nothing, his mind was full of it. He
thought of that capital prize while he
ate his breakfast he dined of it; he
dreamt of it. He was a schoolmaster /;
and while ruling the boys copy-books
and setting copies for them, he was so
filled with the idea that all the boys who
had reached "P" had "Prize" written
for them, and all the boys who had come
to cd" had "Draw, Drawn, Drawing"
before their eyes, while those in "T'
copied "Tick, Ticket-Tick, Ticket"
all the writing-hours.
Little Mrs. Rogers, who was much
younger than her husband, saw that
something was on his mind, but did not
dare to ask what it was. He tossed and
turned in his sleep, and scribbled sevens
on the newspapers, and on backs OF let
ters, and even wrote the magic figure on
his nails with lead-pencil. And once,
in a moment of excitement, caused by
somebody asking the day of the month,
he said with great fervor: -
"Ahl only wish it was the first of
next month";
I" Why, dear ?" asked Mrs. Rogers.
"OhP P' said Mr.. Rogers; "it's my
birthday you know" .lt -.,s.. :. i, q
"Oh, yes 30 it is, said Mrs. Rogers |;
"but never knew you cared for birth
days, my dear"
And Mr.. Rogers did not tell her that
theslottery-drawing took place on the
first, Of September. 1t was, breakfast
time when this remark was made.
Mrs. Rogers sat over the table long
after her spouse had left, wondering what
sort of present she could make him for
his birthday. -
She had not penny of her own, nor
had she any means of earning one. And
to send man q birthday present for
which the bill must come in to him,
might not be considered a delicate atten-
tion even from wife.
q don't suppose l can give anything
nicer than pen-wiper or q pincushion,"
she said with sigh; "but I'll do that,
at least" + 10 ..5'r tlpl
And then she rummaged out of her
bag of odd and ends black cloth and vel
vet, and few gold beads-gilt, rather
and hid them at the bottom Of her work
There. were only three days between
that and the first OF September. And
when she remembered the designlfor a
fine en-wiper-a butterfly gorgeous with
red and black wings and gold eyes and
body--she set 10 work on it diligently.
Needing card for the center of the
affair, she peered into boxes and drawers,
until, at the bottom of Mr.. Rogers hair
trunk, she found the very thing she
wanted--a yellow, dingy thumb-marked
thing with III upon it; and she made
useof at atonce. Then sweetly smiling,
and quite unconscious of what she had
done, she finished off the pen-wiper with
antenne of gold thread, and hid u until
the birthday should dawn. -
On that day-the wonderful first of
September-Mr. Rogers arose betimes ;
and 10 did his wife. She presented him
with his pen-wiper. He accepted 10 with
kiss, and pretended to feel thankful,
Though il only reminded him of his desk,
his copies, the slavery Of his life.
Now that the time had come, he felt
that he had only squandered money
that TIT was blank. He dreaded to