Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1878-03-01
MARRYING TO ACCOMMODATE.

MARRYING TO ACCOMMODATE.
At fifty, David Yopp was a simple,
child-like bachelor, with no more
thought of matrimony than newborn
baby. All his life he had lived with
his parents upon the little homestead,
and apparently it had never occurred to
him that they three might not continue
to live there unsevered till the end of
time; for when palsy laid low his mother
he looked about him in grieved aston
.ishment. telling each condoling friend
that he couldn't understand how she
came to die; she had never suffered any
exposure, and had always had plenty of
good, nourishing food.
At her decease the care of his blind
old father naturally devolved upon Da-
Yid, who, having recovered from his
first surprise that Providence should
have used him so, tied on his mother S
apron, and essayed to take her place in
the domestic department. All! those
were dreary days, chronicling culinary
results never before attained, let us
hope, by mortal man-results that tried
even the serenity of the sightless octo-
genarian who had borne affiiction and
bereavement without murmur.
"Seems to me, my son, wouldn' t
worry about the cooking" he at last
suggested, mildly. THAT comes more
handy to the women-folks."
But let cooking come ever so
"handy'' to the "women-folks," what
availed it to the Yoppses" so long as
the women-folks would not come to
them, or would come only to gop Jane
Burrill AN apple-cheeked country lassie,
hired out to David of Monday, and
left of a Tuesday before the clothes were
dry upon the line; the widow Mulliken,
her successor, departed at the end of q
week; Margaret Ramsay wouldn't stay
where there were no children; and Ell
len Dunlap wouldn't stay where there
was no matron. Thus one by one long
procession of females passed in and out
of the hip-roofed house behind the H.
lacs, till August found the Yopps again
alone. In this extremity David came
to my mother.
81 don't know what father and I'll
do for housekeeper, Miss Farnsworth
fact" said he, plaintively. "Do you
suppose Lovisa Braun would help us a
spell, just to accommodateP'
My mother smilingly shook her head.
"You forget how sensitive Miss
Lovisa is, David, and that you are a
bachelor. She'd be afraid people would
talk
"Sho, ma'am; you don't say SOP
and David face Redeemed furiously, till
it seemed to dram all color from his
tawny beard, leaving it positively pale.
Really, David, 1 don't see but you'll
have to marry" laughed my mother,
mischievously, going on with her sew
ing.
His lower jaw dropped as if the re-
mark had been blow, and had hit him
on the chin.
You don't think, now, Miss Farms
worth, shall be necessitated to 90 that
lengthp' he gasped.
20 no, no; certainly not. / only
spoke of it as the best means of secur-
ing permanent help"
II don't know but I'd oughter
marry mused David, uneasily. "But
the idee comes to me rather sudden. |
hadn't calculated on anything like that,
and seems s if twas too much to ex-
pect of me-fact."
A few days later he again appeared
before my mother, twitching at his
coat collar in the vain endeavor to hide
his embarrassment.
"If so be, Miss Farnsworth," he
stammered, with characteristic cork
screw twist of the neck-"if if so be !
couldn't get round marrying, what S
your notion about LovisaP According
to the best of your belief, would she be
favorable to changing her sitovationp'
He ended with his head quite to one
side, and tipped backward like chick
ems in drinking, which forced nv
mother to address her reply to his occip-
ital curls. She could hazard no opin-
ion on the subject, she said. She would
advise him to confer with the lady her.
self.
II hate TO, masterly," groaned he,
with engaging candor; "but this |
know: if | ask any woman TO have me,
it'll be Lovisa."
Oddly enough, our minister on the
morrow preached an eloquent sermon
on the duty and the joy of matrimony.
" 1t is not good for man to be alone, -
ran the text, and David, in the corner
pew, cast down his conscious eyes, feel
ing that he himself was the person in
dicated
1t was mot good for man to be alone:
! he had suspected this for some months,
and now the Bible confirmed his suspi-
eion. He wanted tobe good; he wouldn't
be alone any lOnger-fact; not if he
could help it; and he stole an inquisi-
tive glance across the aisle at the lady
Of his heretofore hesitating choice. He
did more. Benediction pronounced, he
sidled over to her, his face glowing like
the perennial carnatioA in her bonnet,
and asked her opinion of the discourse.
Didn't she think that was noble textP
Poor Miss Loyisa, taken quite by sur
prise, murmured something about IL be-
ing good sound doctrine, but hard TO
live up TO, and hurried across the way
TO open her house 10 her usual Sunday
guests. These were chiefly farmers
wives from distant parts of the parish,
who found in her tiny cottage con
venient retreat during the noon inter-
missions. Here they ate their lunch,
always remembering 10 present lib
eral Offering 70 their hostess, who in re-
turn poured out for them stesming IL
bation from the stumpy earthen teapot
which during the morning service stood