The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1880-08-26
Bringing Them to Time.

There is no foolishness about some OF
the fathersof Dubuquecounty, Iowa, who
have manageable daughters, and they
know how to precipitate business when
the fruit is ripe for plucking, and hangs,
wasting its sweetness, when it should he
plucked. Matters were brought to a
climax with rush at certain farmers
residence in Vernon township, recently.
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
much in the company of girls, except
this one, that he had never been able to
raise his courage sufficiently high topop
the question.
He 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 in
variably ego back on him." and he
would return to his lonely room in great
er suspense than before. Upon the
evening i'll question he had determined
that, come what would, he would tell
his Mary that he loved her. He would,
once for all, decide 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 fool
ishness. 1t amt countin' expenses that
I'm lookin at, for coal oil is cheap, and
wood can be had for the harlin', but I'm
sick and tired of this billin and cooin
like a pair of sick doves, keepin me
awake of nights, and it's got to be
stopped right here. Do you love John
Henry well enough to marry him?"
"Why, father, I-I-you must"
"Stop that silly foolishin'," yelled the
old man. ANSWER yes or no. and
quick, too. It's got to be settled now
or never"
Well-but, father, don't you know
ii you IL Ouly Whit, ailu-
Dry up answer yes or no. Speak y
roared the old gent.
"Well, then, yes There, now," and
Mary again hid her face
"That's business that's the way to
talk. Now, John, look here-look up
here, or I'll shake you all to pieces. Do
you want that gal O. mine for wife
Speak out like man now"
why, Mr.. = amt this rather a
mean can't you-"
"Speak it out, or out Of this house
you'll go, head foremost. l won't wait
a minute longer. There's the gal, and
there amt ikelier gal in the State, an
you Just heard her say that she wanted
you. Now, John, won't stand bit of
foolin'. Once for all, yes or no?"
"Well, yes, sir. l have been pre-
sulnptuous enough to hope that /"
"Oh, stop your soft talk ; the things
settled now. You two fools would have
been six months more at the job that
have done in Ave minutes. l never saw
such foolin' as there is among young
people nowadays. Amt like when ]
was young-an' now, goodnight. You
can talk the thing over, an you an me,
John, Il go up to town an get the
license tomorrow. Soon be time to get
to plowin'.; no time for love-makin
then. Goodnight, goodnight; 1 hope
I wasn't too rough, but / WAS determined
to fix the thing one way or t'other," and
the old man went back to bed.
Now that the ice was broken the
young people laid all their plans for the
future, and John felt just little bad at
the comfort he had lost, when Mary
looked up at him shyly, and said:
"This would have been all right
months ago, John, If you hadn't been SC
skeery. I knowed all the time that you
wanted to ask me, but it wasn't my
place to say anything, you know"