The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1880-04-10
The Gem Fuzzis.

The gem puzzle or the boss puzzle, or the
bOss nuisance, whichever it Is, has played a
serious part in the history of my family and
of my friends. III an unfortunate moment,
some days ago (malcdiclions he on it) in.
vested ten cents in the "iftccn" puzzle.
thought had obtained my moneys worth,
but alas had purchased ten nights wake
fulncss and fifteen times more family fcud
than had rcckoncd on. though, as |
carried the wrctchcd little instrument of
torture home in my pocket how happy |
was to havcit, and instead of that, | have
not known what it is to be happy since its
shadow darkencd my doors. On tho first
night worked hard over it until A.. NJ,
although the hardest work / had was TO
keep my wife and eldest daughter from
sclZing it, went to bod with headache,
disappointed and mad, but determined.
awoke in the morning with n headache and
found my daughter of fifteen at "fftcen."
She was late at school that day, and reach
ed my Office two hours behiLl time. 1t
was tho 10th Of the month, but I dated all
my letters 10Th, and one of them after the
old style. "l3-15-l4.. That evening
was forced to use patcrnal and marital auth
orlty to keep the pcaccs, l may add. 1t
never occurred to lib to buy another puzzle
l worked all the evening hard, and got
pretty mad not because l couldn't do it,
but because that busybody Of wife per
sisted in telling mo how to move tho blocks
as IL she knew any better than did
Tho next evening my mo,hcr-in-aw
came to tea with us. She said she had done
tho ''hftecn" puzzle several times. 'Not
with lilo, ''nor with l5--14." .Oh,
yes" she replied. "Wcll, there must have
been some of tho other numbers out of &C.
quencc, too." said. ''No," she still in
sisted, "nothing but l5---l4." 'sAnd you
arc sure yon didn't lift ono out7 continued
|. skcptically. "Of coarse didn't" she
rctortcd with asperity; edo you think l
cheat and tell falschoods2 2" Whcrcupon
gulpcd down my sncaking suspicious on
that subject, and replied very blandly (bc-
cause she bas money and my wife, Fannie,
has only one sister,, Certainly not, mother
dear but then Thought perhaps it was
accidental. "Wcll. Mr.. o." sho said .cx-
citedly, and rising from the table. "You
must take me for an idiot to think that l
could lift a block by accident" "Can you
do the puzzle again7" l asked, moved by a
satanic Instinct to prove to her that shc was
wrong and utterly unmindful of her limit
loss bank account. II don't know" ehc
replied curtly, as she swept out of tho room
with that dignity which is born alone of
the consciousness of possessing cords of U.
8. registered 4s or other truck of similar
nature. Fanny came down very cross and
said, edward, think you were extreme.
ly rude" "possibly," said /, "but can't
do 15--4, was" Nothing moro was
said, and Fanny went off to bed carly.
did not.
Truthfulncss runs in my wifc's family
and consequently I was tortured with tho
belief that my mothcr-in.law had donc 80
Id" and If she had done it, it was possi
bic, and If 1t was possible, would do 1t;
30 worked until halfpast twelve. When
l went UP stairs Fanny was awake, but an
awkward silence rcigncd supreme. That
was the first night for sixteen years TINT
had failed to kiss her good night, except
when wo were not together. The Ecxt
evening my daughter declared she could do
u1--l0--" or 15--l4,' so after tea we
went at It VI CT arn,is, or in other words,
determined to vic without arms. She fool
cd around over those blocks for an hour un-
til got 90 nervous and 80 provoked with
the stupid way she moved them that would
have Alapped her had she only been yoans-