Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1876-02-23
THE LOST CHECK.
MIR. DObsOn and His Wife's Saratoga
Trunk.
From the Burlington Hawkeye.

Dobson and family got home the
other day. When they got out at the
depot he asked his wife for the check
for her trunk. She couldn't find it.
She looked in her pocket 1t wasn't
there. In the sachel. No. 'Twasn't
in her muff; nor in the big band box,
nor in the little band box; no, and it
wasn't in the travelling basket, nor in
either of the bundles. Well, where in
thunder was it? Dobson wanted to
know. r.
"Well now, Dobbie dear, you know
that [ didn't lose it," sobbed Mrs. Dob
son, and Dobson tackled the triaing
articles of luggage that Mrs. Dobson
had with her, in addition to her trunk,
and his own grip-sack, with its dirty
shirt and box of collars rattling around
in it, and started for the street cars,
saying they would look up the check at
the house and he'd come back for the
trunk. They got home and Dobson
spread everything out on the floor,
opened every bundle, and box, and par
eel, and turned it upside down, shook
every article that had been emptied,
and there was no check 1t was dis
couraging. But suddenly Mrs. Dobson
remarked that she laid the check on
the window of the car as they came
through Peoria. Dobson was inclined
to be mad about it, but his wife told
him he ought to be glad she hadn't lost
it, and he would have to go to the depot
anyhow after the trunk, and he would
find the check there, and with this bit
of philosophy he was appeased, and
hurried down to the depot, and sought
out the man who cleaned out the cars
on their arrival, and he hadn't found
the check. That looked bad, but it
might be on the window yet, and so
they went into the car and looked. 1t
wasn't On the window. Dobson went
over all the windows and examined
them through a pocket magnifying
glass, but there was no sign of a check
on any Of the windows. 1t is very GER
tain, if it hadn't been so near Sunday,
that Dobson would have got angry and
said things he would afterwards have
been sorry for, but he only talked
Spanish to himself a few minutes, and
the man didn't understand Spanish, so
that was all right. Then he went to the
baggage room and tried to get his trunk
without check The baggage man
said he couldn't give up the. trunk
without the check. Dobson got indig
nant; wanted to know if he looked
like scoundrel; offered to identify
himself, to give any security for the
trunk. He finally overpersuaded the
baggageman, and went up town for
friend. He came back ard everything
was all 0. K. Now where was the
trunk? He could not pick it out among
thousand. He turned around, and
there were two trunks as like as two.
peas, and one of them was Mrs. Dob
sons. He hesitated. The baggageman
grew suspicious. Dobson couldn't, for
the life Of him, tell which one he ought
to take, and finally the baggageman
told him he couldn't take either until
one Of the checks was presented. Moth
ing for it now but to go out home again.
He caught car and was soon in Mrs.
Dobson's presence in properly excited
frame of mind only to learn that Mrs.
Dobson had found the check and sent
it down town by a neighbor's boy who
was doubtless at the Office door waiting
in the cold now Dobson was in de-
spair The boy had walked down and
Dobson walked down SO as to meet him,
and the boy rode up, passing Dobson
On the way. Dobson left the Office for
the house again, declaring that the
trunk might 60 to Halifax, but when
he got home and Mrs. Dobson pleaded
that tomorrow was Sunday and what
should she wear, Dobson was overcome,
and as he now had the check in his own
pocket, he concluded to reconsider the
resolution and go after the trunk. He
did, and somewhat recovered his COM
posure as he rode down in the car jung
ling the check against his keys. But
when he got down town it was $50, and
he couldn't find a dray nor an express
man anywhere, SO he hired loafer on
a corner to help him carry the trunk to
the street car for half dollar They
went down and got the trunk and came
back just in time to see the last car
streaking out up the track, and the
hummer said his contract was filled and
he wouldn't renew, and there was Dob
son after 10 o'clock at night down town
with Saratoga trunk, and Mrs. Dobson
at home waiting for her Sunday Clothes
Dobson buckled into that trunk with
desperate energy. He tried to carry it
but it threw him. He pulled it along,
but that was soon too much for him.
then he got behind it and rolled it along,
and the first thing he knew it had rolled
down dozen steps. Then he got in
front of it and rolled it, and the next
time it went down stairs he went, too.
He was demoralized, so was the trunk.
Thinks were coming out here and there.
Dobson took some garments and tied
on the lid, and took the middle of the
street. The erratic old trunk suddenly
disappeared from Dobson's vision. It
had dropped into Hawkeye creek. He
got it out. He wrestled and toiled with
that trunk with vigor that was heroic
Precipitation poured from every pore.
He worked, and pulled, and pushed,
and lost his hat and his temper, and
broke his watch chain, and wet his feet,
and caught a fearful cold, and tore his
clothes and tried to carry eYeruthino