The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-04-19

THE OLD POT.

BtEBS dCiOSe ~ SOLnlAOil duNi th1OaSh {
meadow to visit neighboring farmer
friend. On the occasion of this visit
and Just as he was leaving, after having
partaken of the usual hospitalities of the
place, he espied in the corner of the
farmysrd an old iron-pot, nearly spheri
cal in shape, which had formerly stood
on three legs, but could now only boast
of two. Owing to its unsafe condition
it had long since been disused, and had
been assigned to its resting-piace on the
principle for all the ills of life preven-
tion is better than cure. A somewhat
minute inspection revealed the figures
16, followed by something which could
not readily be deciphered; and instead OF
concluding that these marks probably re-
presented nothing more than the size of
the article in question, my uncle, who
prided himself ON being somewhat of an
antiquary, concluded that the 16 with
the obliterated marks represented moth.
ing short of the date of its manufacture,
A pot whose early existence was prob
ably contemporary with Cromwell,
could not be permitted to remain in such
q place. Accordingly my uncle deter
mined to transfer it to Stanley Court,
there to keep company with many relics
Of days long ago.
But his burden proved more incon-
venient than he anticipated. After tax
ing his ingenuity to the utmost to dis
cover means of carrying it with max
imum amount of ease, it finally occurred
to him, that, inverted, it might rest on
his head. Accordingly it was so placed,
and my uncle proceeded with the queer
est helmet that ever pressed the brow of
a human being. His path lay along the
bank of small river, and so down to the
mill. Here, it may be mentioned in
parenthesis, lived an old sweetheart,
who, out of patience, I suppose, in wait
ing for the question" from my uncle,
had accepted his rival, the miller, fully
twenty years before. Across the stream
a dam had been erected for the purpose
of diverting the water to the mill, and
thus pond was formed at least five feet
deep. The water often flowed over the
dam, forming a beautiful cascade from
six feet to eight feet in height; and when
the water was low, people frequently
passed over the wooden platform of the
dam to save the walk to the bridge,
which stood more than hundred yards
below the mill. But doubtless my uncle
had another reason for selecting this
route; a reason which received addition
al force from the strange appearance
which he now presented.
As may be readily supposed, the
action of the water had rendered the
platform very smooth and slippery.
Along this dangerous path, however, my
uncle proceeded; but whether from the
effect of the aforesaid hospitalities, Or
from the weight Of the pot on his head,
he became unsteady in his gait, and sud-
denly slipped. A fall of eight feet to the
bed Of the river was no joke; besides
such fall could only end in the de-
struction Of the pot. Now, divided at
tention is always to be avoided, where
the possible issues are serious, as under
even ordinary circumstances a slip in
such place was no trifling matter; but
with the object of his solicitnde firmly
fixed on his head, what wonder that his
life was doubly jeopardized. Be that as
it may, the fact remains that he stum-
bled on the slippery platform, and the
pot slipping over his nose, enveloped his
entire head Practically blind, he was
now less capable than ever Of recovering
his footing; and his attempts to do so
ended in my worthy relative tumbling
head first into the mill-pond. Thus was
he brought literally face TO face with an
ignominlous death, no better than that
Of the vilest cur which leaves the world
with stone tied to its neck. But the
darkest hour is not frequently the hour
of deliverance. 1t proved so here. The
attention of Joe, the miller's man, had
been attracted to my uncle before he
reached the dandy the strange head
gear worn by my relative. The unsteady
gait, the slip, the fall, the plunge, We're
pond as quickly as possible, Joe sue
ceeded, after considerable difficulty, in
extricating my uncle from his perilous
position.
Having rescued my uncle, Joe carried
him to the house of the miller, where he
removed the wet garments, placed him
in bed between the blankets, and applied
those means of restoration generally re.
sorted to in cases of suspended anima-
ton. 1t was fortunate that Joe was
familiar with the treatment, as he was
the only person on the premises, and the
nearest house for fully half mile dis
tant. He persevered in his efforts, and,
ere long, was rewarded by returning con-
sciousness. But the pot-the terrible
pot, still canopied my uncle's head, in
spite Of every endeavor to remove it.
"The nose was the cause, you see," the
old gentleman would say, playfully tap
ping that protuberant organ with his
finger, "and appeared to be little short
Of bolt, which defed the removal Of
that ungraceful head-gear."
Now, Of all places, the mill was per-
Aaps the last which my uncle cared to
visit under the circumstances. He could
not endure the thought that the miller's
wife, his old sweetheart, should witness
such spectacle, and was really dis
tressed at the idea that her ewes mioht