Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1879-01-15
JACOB MONTGOMERY'S CLOCK.
4 Tale of Three Christmasses.
Springfield Republican.


facts that are we'll known to many peo-
pie in a certain New England city,
where this queer man whom [ have
named Jacob Montgom ery-ived, and
of which his very unique house made
d part.
Mr.. Montgomery prided himself on
his eccentricities, and was always con-
juring up surprises for the wonderment
of his acquaintance. AS he had re-
manned single until he was an old, old
bachelor, because, as he said, matri
mOny was such common thing, these
surprises reached climax when one
summer day he announced that he
was soon to take unto himself a wife,
and immediately after the event sailed
for Europe. .tt
Accordingly the bride. q beautiful
Young woman in modish travelling cos
tune, arrived by rail one September
morning without escort, at the city
where her groom resided: and was
driven at once to St. Marks church.
Here her aged lover joined her, and
the ceremony was quickly performed.
The couple parted on the stone steps Of
the church, the bride being Rapidly
driven back to the railway station to
take the train for New York, whence
she was to take steamer for Liverpool
the next day, while the bridegroom,
waiting for two days, proceeded to the
same seaport and embarked IN a sailing
vessel for Lucca, Italy. E@
The people who always interested
themselves in Mr.. Montgomery's affairs
had hardly got over laughing at this
singular wedding tour, before the hus-
band and wife reappeared on the same
day, but by different routes, and forth
with settled down in Montgomery
manse. as the rich old man styled his
residence It was d large, two-story
house, painted green: with white, blinds.
The doors opened like windows, and
the windows opened like ordinary
doors. Instead of going up steps to the
front door one had to so down steps,
the immense hall consisting Of sections
of the basement and the lower story,
there being no intervening ground
floor. Its pavement was of white pol
ished marble, and looking far up to the
ceiling Of this huge apartment, one saw
that it was covered with a gorgeous
velvet carpet. The chairs were all
turned upside down, and packed upon
a dais at the further end of the room
The fine painting were hung wrong side
up on the reversed Gothic patterns of
the richly hescoed walls. From the
ceiling was suspended, heads down
ward, rare and beautiful statuary
Midway in one Of the long sides of this
strange apartment was a wide fire
place, where in a brightly-polished
CRATE rudy cannel-coal fire was kept
burning, summer and winter. A little
way in front of its not unweIcome
warmth, even in summer time, hung
by stout giided cords from hooks in the
carpeted ceiling swung a sailors ham
mock, wherein it was said its eccentric
owner, Whllom a sea-captain, always
slept that he might keep guard over his
money, which the most credulOus folk
believed was kept in iron chests be-
meath the marble floor.
Before his marriage Jacob Mont
gomery had never been troubled with
callers-indeed, none were ever invited,
But now he said to every one Of bis
acquaintance, { You must call and
see my wife," and a great many,
prompted by curiosity, and a few by
real interest, accepted the Invitation.
They were never asked to go further
than this great entrance hall, where
they were received by master and
mistress. The calls were necessarily
short ones, for the guests as we'll as the
host and hostess were obliged to stand
Whenever politely questioned about
their recent trip abroad, the host would
always reply, ave went for an object
and that OBJECT was accomplished" and
then would invariably call attention to a
wonderful clock in the room, to which
he pointed, that-he had purchased in
Florence On last Christmas day as a re-
minder of their wedding tour. "My
wife's name is Florence" he would then
say, and Christmas is her birthday, sc
bought the clock to commemorate both
the day and visit"
This clock, which was placed upon a
beautiful, malachite table, wax candles
in finely wrough-silver candlesticks al
ways burning before it, was In the form
of an e1quisitely-modeled church, witt
gilded spire. Above the belfry was
the clock for showing the day of the
week and of the month, as we'll as the
hour and minute. A very pretty affair
at any time, but when at midday and
midnight the hour of II was. denoted
on its face, its curious mechanism as
tonished the beholders. A wedding
march sounded out from the tiny chime
of bells in the belfry, the doors below
flew open, q bridal procession appeared
from side door, at the left of the en-
trance and glided up the aisle. The
bridal pair knelt at the altar before the
priest, then rising joined the. process.
sion, which disappeared through the
chancel door, while the tune changed tc
another lively air, and the entrance
doors solemnly swung together.
So many people desired to see this
wonderful clock that the owner was led
into another show of eccentricity. He
straightway turned night into day by
receiving his visitors at midnight pre-
clsely. 1t was not long before these
nightly II o'clock receptions became