The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1881-01-06
A VALUABLE PACKAGE.

smiled very pleasantly when the pack
age was brought to him with directed
express tag properly tied on it. But it
was not so strange for him to smile,
since he knew all about that package,
and had foretold the exact time re-
quired for q package to reach New
York. But the clerk who pasted a
green label on the tag, and marked on
one end in blue ink No. 107, Paid'' so
and so much, why should he be amused?
And why should the two express-wagon
drivers who were in the Office at the
time declare that that package would
be something like a surprise?
Then an errand-boy came into the
Office to express a valise, having left
seven other boys standing on the near
est street corner before q hand-Organ
that was playing the newest airs, which
those seven boys were learning to
whistle. But why should that Grand
boy, who was usually very quiet boy,
Immediately run to the office street
door, and call, and beckon, and wgsve
his hat furiously for those seven boys to
come and look at package No. 10Y?
Then those seven boys, in spite of the
attraction of the hand organ, came on a
run, and stood eagerly around the ex-
press office door. And why wouldn't
those boys 90 away until that package
was taken with other packages to the
railroad station in one of the express
wagons? And what, also, greatly in
terested five other passing boys. a Chi
nese laundry-man, two apple-Women
and policeman?
Well, it was the same cause, which
will soon appear, that made curious and
smiling the express people of Omaha,
Chicago and other places where the
package was seen ON its way East to
New York.
About a month previous to this. Mr..
Benson had written to his wife from
California that, owing to the slow set
Element of the business that had taken
him there, he was beginning to fear he
and Guy would not be able to reach
home even by the holidays. "But Guy
saws" wrote Mr.. Benson, "that if we
only had mother here we would get
along splendidly."
A week later the unwelcome news
came to Mrs. Benson in New York eX-
planning that Mr.. Benson's business
would further detain him in California
until the middle of March-three months
to come. You may be certain that Mrs.
Benson was very sorry to think of pass
inr Christmas and New Years with
three thousand miles separating her
from her husband and boy. But she
was forced to smile as she read GUYS
letter-mailed with his father Sex
planning how they might dine together
on Christmas day, notwithstanding the
three thousand miles.
Il have found out" wrote Guy, in
his best handwriting, "that the differ
ence in time between New York and
San Francisco is about three hours and
a quarter. So if you sit down to your
dinner at a quarter past four o'clock,
your time, and we sit down to our din
ner at one O o'clock, our time, we can in
that way be dining together We are
going to have for dinner exactly what
we had at home on last Christmas. But
YOU will have the best time, for grand
father and grandmother will be with
YOU, and Uncle Tom and Aunt Mary,
and Ben, Tom, Bertha, Sadie, Uncle
Seth and all the rest of them"
A few days after this letter was sent
Mr. Benson mailed another one, in
which he told his wife that Guy had
made discovery on the previous day,
and thew were going to send her a
pleasant surprise-in fact. Christmas
present. 1.-The package will be sent by
express, directed to your address in
New York." wrote Mr.. Benson, land
we have so timed its journey East that
it will reach you some time on the day
before Christmas"
This was package No. 107.
Bnt didn't Mrs. Benson wonder and
wonder what was coming to her for a
surprise present? And didn't she i'm
agine that it might be nest of Chi
nese tables, or package of fine Russian
tea, or an ivory castle, or a bunch of
California grapes weighing fifteen or
twenty pounds. or five-and-twenty other
possible things? Then Guy New York
cousins, when they heard of that ex-
pected package, didn't they all fall to
guessing? And they Guessed and
guessed until, as we say in . Hot Butter
and Blue Beans, please come to Supper"
they were "cold,'' Every cold,' and
freezing"
Cousin Ben finally decided, after
changing his mind a dozen times a day,
that the package would prove to contain
either the skin Of the grizzly bear that
Guy, before leaving home. had thought
he might find, or a big piece Of gold that
Guy had been kindly allowed to dig out
of some gold mine.
"Heigho! this is the day the pack
age is to come" said Cousin Bertha,
the moment she awoke On that morn
inc. But at noon-time Bertha, Ben,
Jim, Sadie, and even little Tom, knew
that as yet the package had not ar
rived. 1t had not arrived as late as
four o. clock in the afternoon, when the
first three Just mentioned, together
with some OF their elders, went to Guy :
mothers to supper. There Bertha.
Ben and Jim took turns vainly watch
ing at the windows for the express