The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1877-12-19
Eolter's Thanksgiving.


be thankful for" said Mr. BOlter. You
can all 90 home and chaW at your goo-
blers, and sing hymns, II you want u" !;
there'll be nothing to do IN the stort {,
anyway. EYerybOdy'il have TO stun
themselves TODAY, and OF course bus
ness must stop. l wish the man that IN
vented Thanksgiving Day mad turkey
gObbler tied around ms neck, ana hau 10
sleep and eat with I'll"
And then Mr.. Benjamin Bolter, mer-
chant. kicked over stool, and yeiled al
PeteI the office man, to look to the Hires
and close up or tue Gay.
The six men employed about the estab-
hshmenG silently left, except Peter, and
while the latter carried out his employ
er's instructions, Bolter sat down and
thought it over.
"Such an idiotic CUSTOM" said he to
himself. "It DON'T matter q CENTS worth
what the times have been, we've got to
nave thanksgiving regular, and go on
pretending we've been blessed, no mat
ter how we've been prosecuted. The
whole country might be on tile verge Of
ION, and - it, they'd appoint
one day in which Lhe provisions should
be all eaten up"
"rhis year has been the hardest one
Pve known. Every things shrunk. Pve
worked day and night, and il l get
through and make both en0s meet al
the end OF the year will be lucky. Yet
bney talk about thank sgivlng~
And then Mr.. Boiler got up and paced
about for moment, and saw Peter
standing by the stove.
"What are you standing there for?'
SAID Boter.
"rve closed up" responded Peter.
EWeIlW eX clalmed l3olter.
"If YOU halnt got no more for me to
DO" said Peter, "Pd like to get off,"
IOh, you wouldw replied Boiler. 81
s'pose you've got turkey to eat, too,
{ and thanks to giYeT
"NVt turkey, zackly," said Peter,
scratching his head, "but we has a
pigeon or two, sir."
"Humpn!' growled Bolter. "WelI, 90
on; but MIND you, you be back bright
ana early in the morning, and ready for
hard work."
HYes, SIR" said Peter, and he slipped
lightly out the back door and went on
his way cheerily.
| Then Boiler sat down awhile and re-
flrcted, and grew more bitter at Lhe
| hard lines, and grumbled at the slow
pace which he was compelled to keep IN
his march toward riches. BY and by be
grew sleepy, and he thought he would
| 20 home and went tor his oVeIcoat and
| shoes. SUmeway ne didn't seem to
recolIect anything after that, until he
| stppped of the street cars up town ana
walked away toward his residence.
! AS he drew near his home, Bolter was
| surprised to see a carriage at the door
and u crowd collected about it. Two
men were carrying burden of some
| kind up the steps, and glanelng at the
doorway he saw his wife ana daughter
Florence wringing their hands, ana gaz-
| ing at the moving hgures,
Better darted Toward, and in moment
was met by some OF his neIghbors, who
broke the painful news TO him.
| HIS only son, Pau, bis pride, his hope,
| on whose life conferred his ambition, hau
been thrown from a moving train and
| tearfully mangleQ. Life was not eX.
tiuct. but the breath came slow and
pa IL lui, and the end was nigh.
| They laid the bruised form on the
snowy bed, and BOlter threw himself on
his knees beside it in helpless agony.
The physicians came and looked and
turned away. There were Whispers il
the parlor, in the corridor; sadness
| everywhere for there was no hope.
| "5ave hlml' cried Bolter, "Save my
son, and take all l have-everyth1ug
| every tllnE y Dut Iuc uOClOIb only IOII
him 10 bear it manLully, and shook theiI
| neadS.
| "Deadr
Bolter never realized how much thai
word signified until he stood there anC
gazed into the face OF his earthly idol.
Allnigut he sat half dazed; nor C0ulC
he be Induced TO leave the room.
Morning. came, and he walked bewil.
tered about the house, noticing here
and there the preparations for the fu
neral.
He opened a closet and saw before hin
Il coat worn by the boy, and then h.
broke down again and ~ept until tn
tears would no longer come.
The next day Game, and the fun era
Sc vice was read.
O,d Peter was there, his sober, sol
emn face framed between others
from the store, but looking out alway
pItlulIy at his griei-stricken master.
Atiast came the lowering OF the col
fin, the fall OF tue cOds, and the Old, Oh
words,
"Ashes to ashes; dust to dust"
Bolter stood till the last cIod fell, an(
then following the others away, back t.
the silent home, back TO communion
with his bruised neart, back to The Wea
ry round oil existence.
His wife and daughter were left him
he former a patient, faithful woman
the latter sweet modest girl, but tn
idol of his heart W as gone, anu he SCENE
to have little to live tor now.
81 do not care TO get rlch,' he said /
himself again and again, now that h
IS gone. Business may take care or IT
sell. NO mis- fortune that can befall wi
affect me now )"
But Boiler was mistaken. There cam
sudden reversas. at first he almVs
smiled at them, but then came others
and he grew ANXIOUS.
Finally, affairs became desperate, an
he thoroughly reused himself. But
was idle. His goods were seized an
sold; his very home was levied upon an
/, soon passed from his possession. ii
gathered the little remnants OF propert
:. Lhat he had saved, and moved his tamil
, into modest quarters. Soon he wa
forced to leave these for humb er room
and necessity at last drove him to th
! ffth floor OF a tenement house, and star
} ed hIm out on The streets in search
work lor bread enough to save hlmse
3 ana tamny from starvation.
Oh, how he looked back then, 10 tt
I ght days when he had abundance,
} cheerful home, happy family; and no
/ ne wondered mat he could have repine
3 at such lot.
. so the days went by and anotht
o Thanksgiving Day came round. Sittir
{ by the dying embers in his bleak qua
I INsNI aR.