The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1880-07-24
Brought To Time.
How an Iowa Father Facilitates Business.
[St. Louis Republican,

[St. Louis Republican,
There is no foolishness about some of the
fathers OF Dubuque county, Iowa, who have
marriageable daughters, and they know how
to precipitate business when the fruit is ripe
for plucking, and hangs wasting its sweetness
when it should be plucked. Matters were
brought to climax with a rush at a certain
farmers residence in Vernon township re-
Gently. A young tiller OF the soil had for
months been paying most assiduous attentions
to one of his daughters, but he was such a
bashful, modest chap, never having been mu ch
in the company of girls, except this one, that
he had not been able to raise his courage suffi-
GENTLY to pop the question.
BE had gone to the house in which the lady
lived at least on twenty different occasions,
resolved to know his fate; but when ushered
into the presence of the fair one, in whose
keeping he had placed his heart, his courage
would invariably ego back on him. and be
would return to his lonely room in greater sus-
pense than before Upon the evening in ques-
tion he had determined that, come what
would, he would tell his Mary that he loved
her He would once for all determine the
matter, but, as upon each former occasion, he
could not get the proposal further than his
throat There it stuck, and he determined to
gulp it down and give up the siege when the
door opened and in walked the girls father,
who advanced to where they were sitting, and
thus addressed them:
81 came out to put stop to this foolishness
1t amt cou1tin' expenses I'm leokin at, for
eoal is cheap, and wood can be had for the
h@lling, but I'm sick and tired of this billin
and eooin' like pair of sick doves. keepin' me
awak. of nights, and it's got to be stopped
right ,ere. Do you love John Henry well
enough marry him?'
why, father, I-I-must-''
Stop that foolishness," yelled the old man.
Answer yes or no, and quick, too. It's got to
be settled nov or never.''
"Well-but, father, don't YOU know?-If
you'll only wait, and
DRY up; answer yes or no. Speak,"
roared the old man.
"Well, then, yes! There, now," and Mary
again hid her face.
"That's business: that's the wav to talk
Now, John, look here-kok up here, or I'll
shake you all to pieces. ID, Won want that gal
o mine for wife? Speak ct like man.
why, Mr.. -, amt this nther al mean
can n'teyou2' tN1
Speak it out, or out of this hose vou,l, oo
head foremost 1 won't wait mi,ute longer
There's the GAL and there amt Ikelier oai
in the State, and you Just heard hel saw that
she wanted you. Now, John, won't stand
bit of foolin'. Once for all, yes or no?'
''Well, yes, sir, / have been presum,tious
enough to hope that u
"Oh, stop your soft talk; the thing is setled
now. You two fools would have been sx
months more at the job that I have done il
five minutes. never saw such foolin' al
there is among young people nowadays
Amt like when | was young-an' now, goot
night. You can talk the thing over, an yo,
an me, John, III go up to town an get thu
license tomorrow. Soon be time to get t.
| ploughin'; no time for love making then.
Good night, good night; hope I wasn't too
rough but was determined to fix the thing
one way or t'other;" and he went back t6
bed.
Now that the ice was broken the young peo
pie laid all their plans for the future, ant
John felt just little bad at the comfort he
had lost, when Mary looked up at him slyly
and said:
This would have been all right months ago
John, if you hadn't been so skerry. 1 knowed
all the time that you wanted to ask me, but il
wasn't my place to say anything, you know"