The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1881-02-01
SaYo tho Cider.

zone thing is CERTAIN" said Mr.. Hath
away, cmphatically, "forty gallons of eide
won't keep while we're drinking it,. Tbcr,
must be something to put in it to keep il
! from spelling, and lvc heard that mustard
seed is the article.
81 agree with you," said Mr.. Lefling
well. "If you don':take care of it, the eide,
will sour, and enclinc to the idea thai
horse radish Is the best. Put in horse
radish and your cider will keep all win.
ter"
"Lct me remark, gentlemen" SAID Mr..
Anderson, laying down a chicken wing anG
wiping his moustache, "that raislns arc
what you want. Dump in plenty of raisins
and you've got your cider where you want
1t. Think 80, Mr. Shcrwood2"
II can't say do" rejoincd Mr.. Sher-
wood"
'"There Is no doubt that the cider will
spoil unless you put in something, but
what you want is borax. A pound of
borax will keep that barrel of cider until
spring.
Each gentleman sustained his view with
potent arguments, but the dinner was fin.
lshed before any conclusion was arrived Mt.
and the party separated.
''Ihcy can talk about their borax and
raislns and horse radish until they're gray"
said Dir. Hathaway, as he Topped out of
bed at daylight the next morning, "but
LII have my mustard seed in before they
roll OUT" and cautiously stepping down
stairs, he extracted the bung and poured q
liberal dose of the seeds into the barrel.
"That will keep" lie muttcrcd, "for six
years, " and driving the bung home, he
went back to bed
Its clear to my mind that hathaway
Is trying to save that cider by faith, "mut-
tered 0lr. Leffingwell an hour later as he
gropcd around for his cloths. Mustard
seedl' Why, he might just as we'll put
in squash rlnd I'm going to fill that
barrel with horse radsh before he's up and
show him how to keep cider. Mustard
seed! I'll head the subscription with five
dollars to test his sanity" And Mr. Let
tlngwell shivcrcd down to the cellar
and cracked away with the hammer until
the bung flew out like bullet. s'Therc!"
lie calculated, as he pushed the horse rad
lsh in with his thumb, s'that'll DO the
business" and with chattering teeth he
prowlcd back to his loom.
zone would think to hear those pcoDlc
talk that they'd been brought up in an
orchard," said Mr. Anderson to himself as
he jabbed the right foot into the wrong
slipper. 'Borax! Horse rad,sh Mustard
What that cider wants is raisins, and that's
what it's going to get" Upon which Mr..
Anderson crept down into the cellar and
lnnoculatcd the barrel with couple of
pounds of rasins. SITS beginning to spoil
already" he soliloquized, eycing the float
ing seeds and radish suspiciously, without
identifying them. eff | hadn't been light
ming quick we'd have been drinking vinegar
by this time" And satisfied that he had
saved the beverage he went back to the
Sheets
"What Pm afraid off, remarked Mr.
Sherwood, as he opened the door carefully,
and slipped down stairs. "What Pm
afraid of is that those fellows will begin to
tinker with that barrel before can get
there. III they can manage to stick their
foolisllncss in first, Pm gone, but if l can
empty this borax before they're around
there's SO much cider saved. Mr.. Shcr
wood bclted away at the barrel until the
bung topplcd out, and in went the borax.
''fhat's The business" he observed with
great satisfaction. as he replaced the bung
''lt will teach those boys not to be so dog
matte with their remedies hereafter"
81 don't believe that cider was very good
in the first place." SAID Mr.. Anderson, as
he pushed his glass from him that night
at dinner. owe got swindlcd on that
cider
g. think so," said MIR. Sherwood. cit
had bad taste when we tapped it. 1t
isn't fit to drink now."
"I'd head a subscription with five dol
lars to send that cider man to the pentcn-
tiary," observed MIR Ieflingwcll, severely.
1t is not good cider. We couldn't have put
anything in it to keep it. What do you
think, Hathaway2"
81 had my suspicious of It from the
first,' said MIR. Hathaway. "It's old
stock, and think we'd better give it
away"
And then there was silence and each
gentleman wondered if it hadn't been bet
ter to have let the other gentleman try
their various recipes before zcalously ad.
ministcring his own.