Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1878-05-04

once awakened is not easily put to
sleep. While Mr.. Brown was hand
ing his wife the bundle of news
papers, she was closely scrutinizing
bis coat-collar, and, after she had
laid the papers on her plate and
told the children not to touch them.
she quietly took too long red hairs
from her unfortunate husbands
coat and held them solemnly before
his face.
Mary, I give you my solemn
word" began the alarmed Mr..
Brown; but he was not permitted
to finish his sentence.
Don't say one word," exclaimed
Mrs. Brown. "Falsehoods won't
help you; l am a faithful and loving
wife, and I'll have you exposed and
punished if there is any law in Hi
nois."
Thus saying, she gathered up her
newspapers, and rushing to her
room, locked herself in. It was
not until later in the evening that
Mrs. Smith, as she was about to
turn down her husbands lamp,
which was smoking, perceived that
two red hairs were attached to his
shoulder. She said nothing, but,
after laying them on the table be-
fore him, burst into tears, and re-
fused to be comforted until Mr..
Smith solemnly swore that he had
not seen a red-haired girl for months
and years, and offered to buy her a
new parlor carpet the very next
day.
Of the two ladies, Mrs. Brown
was much the stronger and the
more determined. The next even
ing, when Mr.. Brown brought back
from the store not less than five red
hairs on his coat-collar, she broke a
plate over his head, and, leaving
him weltering in dried apples, put
on her bonnet and left the house.
Mrs. Smith, on the same evening,
found four of the mysterious red
hairs on her husbands coat, but she
refrained from violence, and merely
telling him that she would not be-
lieve in his innocence if he was to
swear till he was black in the face,
called loudly for her sainted mother
aud was about to faint when Mrs.
Brown burst into the room. Mr..
Smith, like a wise man, fled from
the scene, and the two ladies soon
coufded their wrongs to each other.
When Mr.. Brown and Mr.,
Smith met the next day, the form
er confessed to the latter that he
was ia terrible scrape. Conf
dence begot confidence and they
soon became convinced that they
were the victims of frightful
conspiracy to which some unknown
wearer of red back-hair was a
party. Their distress was increased
early in the afternoon by the ap-
pearance Of their respective wives,
who walked up and down the op-
posite side of the street for hours,
each carrying a conspicuous raw
hide, and evidently lying in wait
for the imaginary red-haired wo-
man. Messrs. Smith and Brown
felt that they were ruined men, and
that tremendous scandal was
about to overwhelm them. They
even wished they were dead.
About 4 o'clock pm, Mrs.
Smith clutched her companions s
arm and bade her listen to small
boy who was relating one of his re-
cent crimes to youthful compan-
ion. 81 just picked up that there
hair" remarked the wicked youth,
"and put some of it on old Smiths
and old Browns coats; / KEEP a
putin of it on every day, and you
just bet they ketched it from their
old women when they went home.
Smith, he is solemn as an owl, and
old Brown looks as if he was going
to be hung"
The remains of the boy were re-
moved by the constable, and the
Smith and Brown families are once
more united and happv.