Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1880-03-18
How a Yankee Peddler Settled His
Hotel Bill.

/ AAO" - 0A0VO / OAAAOA 0OOVAO0 LILO
Hotel Bill.
For ways that are dark and tricks
that are not vain the Yankee peddler
can give the heather Chinee points. A
bright young fellow who was driven not
long ago to travelling country roads with
a basket over his arm, selling little ar
ticle on which there was just trifie
over 1900 per cent. profit, fell in, down
in the wilds of New Jersey, one day,
with one of these Interesting specimens.
"That man." said the young fellow,
"taught me more about peddling in the
few days we travelled together than Il
ever knew before. He could turn a
jack-knife into horse and wagon. Late
one afternoon we were making for Q lit
tie tavern, kept by an elderly woman,
where we intended to pass the night.
The Yankee, as we passed little pile of
pebbles, stopped down and picked up
two round white ones, one about twice
as large as the other. Il am going to
pay for my supper and lodging said
he, with these two pebbles He put
them in his pocket, and I thought no
more about them till, after we had eat
en- our supper, we were seated in front
of comfortable fire-the Yankee, the
landlady, and I. He was a spectacle
| peddler, and carried his wares in little
green box. He had a charming habit of
saying to people whenever he got q
chance, your eyes are in pretty bad
way. They won't last you long, He
said this to the landlady, and she re-
| piled that she was afraid that was true,
for they had been troubling her good
deal lately. saw
"Then the spectacle man brought
out the larger of his two pebbles.
Look at that, madam said he.
what do you think of that?'
"The landlady said she thought it
looked like any other white pebble
that could be picked up anywhere.
The spectacle man, laughing at the poor
woman's ignorance, said if she could
pick up few stones like that she'd
soon make her fortune. It was genu-
inc eye-pebble imported from Germany.
Il make an eye-water from those peb-
bles,' said he, that strengthens the
eye and restores the failing sight. That
stone will dissolve to nothing in ten
minutes in salt and water The old
lady was incredulous, and for some
time nothing more was said about it.
Presently she asked: Is that eye-water
of yours very expensive?' NO. he
said, mot very expensive 'Then,'
said she, Il guess I'll have to get you
to make me a bottle of it.
"The peddler told her to bring in a
tumblerful of lukewarm water, with a
tablespoonful of salt in it, and tea
spoon. The articles were soon brought
and the peddler, dropping the larger
pebble into the glass, began to stir it
with the teaspoon with great delibera-
ton. For fully five minutes he contin-
ned to ssi-, tho pobbfe, vf cuurse, SHOW
ing no sign of dissolving.
eel thought said the old lady,
that that there little stone wouldn't
dissolve
"tIt does seem little stubborn,
that's fact, said the spectacle man,
'but the trouble is you haven't put in
quite enough salt. Just get me a tea
spoonful more salt and it will soon be
all right The old lady left the room
to get the salt, and the reddler quickly
whipped the large pebble out of the
tus1bler, and dropped in the small one.
s. declare, said she, when she returned
and saw the diminished size of the peb-
BILE, : it is taking hold, after all, amt
it?' Certainly said the spectacle man,
looking very wise, and pouring in the
remainder of the salt, it will be ready
now in about five minutes, and you'd
better have bottle handy to put it in,
for it spoils it to stand in the air.
"The landlady had him this time, for
the bottle was standing on the mantel-
shelf. It was necessary to get her out
of the room once more to remove the
little pebble, so he asked: Haven't you
a colored glass bottle?' NO. she said,
she hadn't one in the house, Then,'
said he, you had better paste some
dark paper around this one, for the
light weakens the eye-water, and in
time spoils it. The old lady went out
in the kitchen to hunt some thick paper,
and out came the little pebble. The
eye-water was made. 1
Rub your eyes well with this three
times a day. said he, as he corked the
bottle, land by the next time I came
around you'll have new pair of eyes
in your head
''Next morning as we were about to
pay our bills, the landlady inquired how
much she owed for the eye-water.
cit will be a dollar for the pebble,
just what it cost to import them from
Germany said he. Il won't charge
you any thing for making it, ar
ga dollar was just what he owed the
hotel. He and the landlay were