Smyrna times., 1879-01-08
How 1 Got My Wife.
Ry WILLIAM COMsToCK.

ho ontskirts of the hourishing village
,W;llwater M stands large, yellow house,
Of ~ I took board in early life, while
TnJ, .njent with physician in the neighbor-
hO0G site was pleasant. There we're
IL tn ;sIes. dells, and grassy glades on
NoH! side of US; while at short distance
eve! eve; onr front gate was large rock that
HUI nO-ored above the roof of the house.
low hod not been an inmate of the estab-
..tr,snt long before heard Silas Norton,
-rorthv host, complain that stranger
NY IN the habit of loafng about that rock,
was ,ot;mes climbing to its summit, as if to
sOnlt'; view of the surrounding country.
TTS oould not prevent the man from spend
no Lis time on the rock and in its vicinity
.ue 4.a was no law against his lounging on
.Lot .So+T snot. but Norton could not understand
"ST .In tbe man should spend the greater
,rt of every day so near his domicile. He
tad three daughters, and they complained
.bst thew were often prevented from going
ont If doors by the presence of this sIran-
,ar. not that he had taken any particular
ssotco Of them but it was sufficient that
he was always there.
.oomed to be about twenty. three or twenty
Eve wears of age. There was nothing
racuiiar about his appearance except that
Ills dress was a little in the military style,
PARTICULARLY his cap.
The man did not appear to take much
notice of passers-by, so that one would
scarcely have him for spy. He neither
sbunned nor courted observation, but cer-
hiply stuck very closely to the big rock,
and therefore he must have known that he
vas in full view of our boarders and the
Young ladies whenever they looked from
the windows.
At length it was reported that he had
been seen on the rock at midnight by Al
pbeus Reed, who passed the spot with his
team. Even that might have been for
given, but when one of the young ladies
reported that she had seen him make
strange motions and gestures, Mr.. Norton
thought it was high time for him to inter
fere
Accordingly, having creased his Ions
winter boots, and brushed his salt anC
pepper coat, my host went forth equipped
in such respectability as a man who take!
hoarders at five dollars per week may bC
expected to command.
On arriving at the big rock, Mr. NortoI
found nobody there, and he sat down t
await the strangers return, as his terms o
absence were never long.
In few minutes an individual presented
himself whom my host had not expected
to see. This was Mr.. Globose, the riches
man in the township, as he was also tn
most eorpulent. Those readers who hav
lived in that part of the country will re
member him better as Elder Globose. II
was one of the pillars of the Presbyteria
Church, and a stout pillar he was, measul
ing some six feet in girth.
Ny host fastened to pay his respects
this important parsonage; but he was 9
once cut short by torrent Of abuse, rollin
like thunder, from the lips of the worth
elder, who charged him with harborin
"that man. on his premises.
In vain Mr.. Norton tried TO make tn
elder understand that he knew nothin
about the man, and that he had come tn;
very day to inquire an explanation of b
conduct. Elder Globose would hear notl
ing; he preferred to do all the talkin
and, therefore, whenever Norton tried
speak he raised his voice and drowned thi
Of the would dbe-interlocutor. But eve
then Norton could gather very little fro
the words os his impetuous assailant e
cept that he didn't want "that man"
that place; although Norton was muC
puzzled to find out what harm the your
man could do to that rock, and why Il
elder was SO indignant at the idea of b
being harbored there.
Finally Elder Globose shot away into {
adjoining copse without giving Norton q
opportunity to ask or give any explanatio
All that my host could say was that he h;
oeen terribly scolded for harboring a m;
On his premises to whom he had nev
spoken, and whom he knew nothing abol
But 1t was now evident that the stran
iOiterer had deserted his post; he came
more; and we all attributed his absence
ae TACT that old Globose had discover
DIS location.
For my part was curious to know W
Llaer Globose objected to the young maj
'lslIs at the rock and, accordingly, | we
tne spot one afternoon to see wha
could lind out there.
walked around the huge rock seve
umes, closely examining the premises,
nothing Was discovered except small p'
~ which the young man had probal
dropped during one of his visits.
l next assembled the rock, and whe
Iau reached its summit looked in ev'
alrectlon; but | detected nothing of
%fest until | was about to descend, VIII
looking far away, perceived the gable {
~ huge mansion just visible through
inteFstces of the foliage.
1t was only one spot that this view co
e obtained; by moving a few inches
sue right or to the left you lost sight of
Iouse entirely. 1t was therefore, by
sueerest accident that my eyes came
.ahge OF the narrow vista through VIII
could be discovered at considerable
question.
:. whose house was it2 In all probabi
lives the mansion of Elder Globose,
,I Ie young stranger might have repaire'
euis spot-he might have assembled
,TSck-for ,S:for the purpose of looking thro
ns vista, and, at safe distance, NAL
Ishais to some person in the Elders no
~ might have been the discovery of
.Iat caused the furious rage Of the el
anu led him to suspect that my host
thheouraged the young man in his visi
oe rock. He had probably come to
nS oA In the hope of catching the yc
;na Sn 10 the very act of telegraphing t.
S'e OF his mansion, and finding mol