The star. (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1874-1875, 1875-03-29
Praying in Tadford's Store.

Tadford wasn't bad man. When
they called him young Tadford be was as
ljolly fellow as you could ask to meet.
lThat was when the old man was alive
and kept the store himself, and Tad, in
q white apron stood behind the counter,
"the most obliging young fellow In tile
place." my old woman useu to say
''and, except the minister, the most gen.
teel.n
| He was quite beau then, and good
many girls set their caps for him, and
every one OF 'em said they couldn't see
what he saw in Fanny Perkins, to make
him marry her. Even my old woman
said it, and when suggested II might be
her pretty face and her nice ways, she
said Hbother."
However he did marry her, and she
kept house for him and the old man, and
they were as happy as two babies for
awhile.
Old Tadford was pleased too. be.
lieve he thought his daughter-in-law was
an angel.
He was kind-hearted body, old Tad.
ford was. He had risen from nothing
step by step, slow and sure, saving q
penny here and penny there, and put
ting it in the bank and never taking 1t
out again, SO that he had savings to the
amount OF ten thousand dollars, and all
that was to be young Tadford's when the
old man died-that and the house and
the store. ! don't suppose any man
would have been happier to have had his
father live forever than young Tad.
would have been. He wasn't waiting
for dead mems shoes, but still he knew
he was going to have it, you see, and ii
made him feel safe about the future. =.
l think, for my part, the old man was
getting childish about those days. How.
ever, a good many people that were not
did about the same as he did. What
say is, let we'll enough alone. There
was his money safe and sound in the
bank, when what should he do but 20
with it, every cent, and let all the tag
rag and bob-tail in the place know that
he'd done it, and had them in the house.
After that there was no peace. Now he
hid them. here, now ne hid them there.
lie put 'em in box and he put 'em in q
bag. He had 'em up chimney and down
cellar, and he had worried himself thin
over them. Worst of all was, he began
TO lose his memory, and couldn't always
remember where he had put them. And
at last, after burglars, had broken into
the store he made an oil-skin bag and
| tied it on his back, and walked about
|
! of course it wasn't safe to let him go
about alone with such temptation to
those that would murder man for such
o sum. But he wouldn't listen to rea-
son, he would do it.
1 never shall forget the day that little
Jack Richards came tearing past our
house with face as white as a sheet,
anG called out as he passed:
| "Uncle kigganl l say---Fm going for
| hao and
murdered old Mr.. Tadiord."
| darn't stop tor. my coat. ran over
| to the store without even stopping to
tell the old woman what I'd heard, and
there, sure enough, was poor old Tad
ford, with cut on his head on the floor,
and young Mrs. Tadlord, with baby
three weeks old in her arms, shaking and
sobbing beside him.
There was such grief and such excite
ment that it wasn't until after the fll-
neral had taken place that any one
thought of the coupon bonds. They
knew The old man had worn them on his
back, in his oilskin-bag that morning,
for he had asked his. .daug ghter-in-law to
sew q new string on, and Tom himself
had tied 1t about his neck, but no one
had seen it since. 1t was gone, and
whether some one had robbed the old
man of it before he died or after no one
knew. The customer who called Mrs.
| Tadford down stairs to tell her the aw-
full news said that the old mans neck
cloth was off and his shirt unbuttoned
when he found him; but the doctor
swore that the death was natural one,
and the house was full of strangers that
| day.
It was gone, and the ten thousand dol.
lars with it, and that was the end Off
After that somehow things took bad
turn with young Tadtord. A new man
started new store in the place, and the
people took to him because he bad biz
window and Chinese mandarin nod
ding in it. ,-
The girls liked him because he was
single, and the old women because lie
was a good talker. Toms customers
fell of, and think it was to save HIM
self that he began to make regular
man had always had ale and cider, and
now he added whisky and brandy and
gin. All the loafers OF the place began
to drop in, and Tom found himself able
TO pay expenses; but he wasn't comfort
able yet. At the height OF his trouble he
had mortgaged lhe place, and that was
forever on MIN like an incubus. There
is nothing like mortgage to worry a
man into his grave.
TOm chanSeQ great zeal. lie grew
cross and hateful. Poor Fanny looked
as II she had a hard time of it. There
was more children now, and they dan.
gled about the shop, and learnt bad
words, and saw tine drinking. Decent
people dropped the Tadfords; and they
felt that I expect; but what could be
done! Decent women couldn't go Wis
iting in house that was nothing but q
GROCERY, and wheret hey'd find some tip
sey fellow ready to insult them, likely.
Everybody pitied poor Fanny Tadford
but II couldn't be helped.
You've heard tell OF the Praying
| Band, haven't you?-those ladies that GO
about praying down the rum-drinking.
! 1t is Just four weeks ago that they
came down here. They tried the Widow
Mullins first, but they did nothing there.
Out she came with her Broom and drove
them from the place. They say she
tore one old lady's bonnet of. make
no doubt OF it. To see woman pre-
tending to be better than she is, is
enough to drive any woman to despera-
tion, and Maggy Mullin is pretty bad,
and those pure, fair, sweet-looking la.
dies must have been dreadful tor her to
bear the sight Of.
We men, now, expect 1t. The nearer
women are to angels the better we like
Penn; the farther of they seem from earth
I y -