The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1876-01-07
M i s C ella n g O III 8.
RUTH'S STEPFATUER.
Ky GEORGE MANVILLE PENN.

A curious trade to take to, but then it
has grown to he profitable. Things were
at u low ebb with me when | took it up,
while now
There won't boast, only say that I'm
thankful for it. Poverty comes in at the
door and love flies out of the window, so
they say {; but that's all nonsense, or else
you poor people would lie always misera-
BILE, while according TO my experience,
| your poor man is often more light -hearted
than the man with thousands.
was at my wits end for something to
do, and sat nibbling my nails one day and
grumbling horribly.
Don't 90 on like that, Tom" says my
wife; "things might be worse"
GLOW 2" said.
"Why, we might have Luke at home, and
he is doing well.'
Luke's our boy, you know, and we have
| him in merchants office, where he SEEM
cd likely to stay; but was in grumbling
fit then, and there was clickerty. click
noise going on in the next room that idg-
eted me terribly.
Things can't be worse" said unsrily ;
and was going to prove myself in the
wrong by making my wife cry, when there
was knock on the door.
Come in,n said, and IL fellow lodgcr
put in his head.
Are you good at works, Mr.. Smith 2"
lie said.
what works 2" said tieworks-gas-
works."
"No, no; l mean works ofthings as goes
With wheels and springs"
"Middlng," l said, for l was fond of
pulling clocks to pieces and trying to in
| vent.
81 wish you'd come and look at this
sewing machine of mine, for | can't get it
to 60"
Sewing machines were newish in those
days, and got up to look at it, and, after a
bit found the reason why-the purpose,
you know, of all the screws and cranks and
wheels; | found out, too, why our neigh
boris wife who was dressmaker, and had
just started one, could not get it to go; and
before night, by thinking, and putting this
and that together, had got her in the way
of working it pretty steadily, though with
my clumsy fingers couldn't have done it
myself
had my bit of dinner and tea with
those people, and they forced half crown
upon NE as well, and went back feeling
like new man, so refreshing had been
that piece of work.
There" said my wife, 81 told you some
thing would come"
swell, 50 you did," l said, but the
something is rather small"
But the very next day--as we were liv-
ing in the midst of people who were fast
taking to sewing machines-if the folks
from the next house didn't want me to look
at theirs and then the news spreading, as
news will spread, that there was somebody
who could cobble and tinker machinery
without putting people to the expense that
makers would, if the jobs didn't come in
fast, so that was obliged to get files and
drills and n vice-regular set Of tools by
degrees; and at last was as busy as a
bee from morning till night, and whistlng
over my work as happy as u king.
of course every now and then | got q
breakage, but l could generally get over
that by buying new wheel or spindle, or
what not. Next we got to supplying shut
ties and needles and machine cotton. Soon
after l bought u machine of man who
was tired of it. Next week l sold it at a
good profit. Bought another and another,
and sold them; then got to take them and
money in exchange for new ones, and one
way and the other became a big dealer, us
you see.
Hundred Why, new, secondhand and
with those being repaired upstairs by the
men, I've got at least 300 on the premises,
while if anybody had told me fifteen years
ago that should be doing this l should
have laughed ut them.
That pretty girl showing and explaining
the machine to a customer2 That's Ruth,
that is. No, not my daughter yet, but she
will soon be. Poor girl, l always think of
her and of the bread upon the water at the
same time
Curious idea that, you will say, but I'll
tell you why.
In our trade we have strange people to