The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1882-09-15

"Ens' said Abel, looking very NAM h-t>.'<> =
some, in his shirtsleeves and scazet
necltie.
wish you very good morning, ST.
said the Professor, politely
Same to you, sirlo said Abel.
Il wish," said the Professor, ito 1n-
quire the price of that beautiful o!R
brnss-mounted chest of drawers in tle
kitchen of the house yonder- Ay>
daughters --'
No price at all, Eir,'' said Abel. rlt
amt for sale.
IF a liberal remuneration, sir, woaH
be any inducement to yoHlS' SIS
mot for sale, good-humoredly ri
peated Abel Nothing would indsF
my mother-in- law to part with il, =
I" An old family relic, ehpn remarli
the Professor
Exactly said Abel.
And he went on hammerfag. d.
swiriatfing the tune-of Robin Atf6if
while the Professor made his way back
through the prickly hedge of goose
berry-bushes and black currants.
Half an hour afterward, Mary, the
pretty first cause of all Abel Jones' ro-
mantle adventures, ran into the shop.
They had been married for over three
months now. but Abel's smile of well
come WAS no less bright than it had been
in the days of the honeymoon.
" Bless me, Pollyr' said he. What
is the matter? You look half scared TO
deathi"
..And.no WONDER said Mary. There
have been burglars at the house. Moth
er's chest of drawers is goner'
Whatr' shouted Abel.
"And these were left under one of the
volumes of Barnes Notes on the Cos
gel on the kitchen-tabler' breathlessl Y
added Mary, displaying five ten-dollar
bills in the palm of her hand.
i" Upon-my -Swordr' said Abel. It's
the old fellow with the bald head. Polly.
and the spectacles, you may depend upon
IL. / thought he looked like an old
furniture dealer.
( Alas, poor Abel not to be able to dis
criminate between a asecond-hand store
keeper and the Professor of 4Esthetics
and Bellies Lettres in Higley University!
But such is lifei
= But it's stealingr' cried Mary,
breathlesslv. H
'.well, not exactly" said Abel, laugh
ing. =. The old thing in itself wash
worth ten dollars. If they choose to
value it at fifty. why it amt bad for us
in the light.of. pecuniary transactions.
eh, PollyPn
: . But what viii mother gayP' pleaded
Mary.
i've gotanother one nearly finished y
said Abel. 81 was meaning to sell it
to Mrs. Harrington. But III just set it
up in the old place, and mother will
never care whether it's number one or
numbeEtwa- that is.there,
SO that when Mrs Bubble. came home
from the sewing society, Abel was Just
setting up a new chest of drawers, and
Mary eagerly related to her the tale of
the burglary, for so she still persisted in
calling it.
';Well. I neverr' said Mrs Bubble.
:. Fifty and twenty-five makes seventy
i've Il m glai I sC1ittn' g take tfrr- Death
of Jonathanr'
:. This means business, said Abel to
himself
And he set diligently to work to man.
ufacture still other duplicates of the
..chist o draws staining them a
dark, rich brown, and beating out odd,
'shell-shaped decorations to complete the
illusion. And when the curiosity hunter
came up the solitary road embowered
in elms, where it required considerable
engineering for one load of hay to pass
another, Abel sat whistling on his door
step, ready to drive bargain.
.sAny old furniture or antiques to
eh?''sthe hunter would blandly inquire.
"Not stickr' said Abel; and then,
after minutes blank silence on the
part of the pioneers of the aesthetic, he
would add: aUnless you'd like to look
at this ere ehist o. draws as I've inst
tinkered up. can't say, up and down,
you know, as it's old; but then it is.
You can look for Yourselves. There
amt no date init. don tcare whether
sell itor not. Nor yet don't put no
price on it. ain none of your bargain
drivers. If you like it, pay what You
think is right; if you don't, why there
amt no harm doner'
So that no less than seven editions of
the chest of drawers were sold before
the season was over They became the
fashion. Every person who bought one
had vague hope of having something a
little different from his neighbors. And
some of them have never vet ceased
looking for hidden treasures, old papers
or outlawed wills among the pigeon
holes and compartments.
And when the season ended and the
city boarders went back to their brick
and-mortar wildernesses, Abel bought
his mother-in-law a plethoric pocket.
book.
Three hundred and sixty-five dol
lars, MOTHER said he. Enough to nav
off the last installment of the mortgage
on the old farm. We couldn't have made
more money than that if we'd kept a
houseful of boarders, as Polly wanted to
do But don't mean Polly to be at the
beck and call of dozen fine ladies and
work her roses off, not while Tn able to
work for her-''
And the report of Abel Jones' good
luck spread far and wide through all the
country side. Mrs. Hopper, the Abb
gail. Ann of Mrs. Bubbles legendary
heard the great news and
drove down from Plum Hill to inquire
into it. 81 ~
..If it's true as you've found $780,
said she, dolefully, ..in that old chist o.
draws. it's the law as all the heirs
should divide equally, Sophiar Bubble''
eBut it amt true" said Mrs. Bubble
'.O," said. Mrs. Hopper, ssI told my
husband as it was all made-up story
s Not that exactly, neither, said Mrs
Bubble, laughing.
And then she related the precise cir
the case.
Mrs Hopperdrew long breath.
II wish hadn't chose the Death OF
Jonathan y said she. The cord
broke, last week, and it fell down and
smashed my best set of china 81 never
had no luck with it. = 1.
And served you right for your greed
and rapacityr' said Abel Jones, soto
roces to Mary, who, in the next room,
him to varnish set OF
hanging shelves ~ -
'.Hush-sh-shln whispered Mary.
While old Mrs. Bubble smiled, and re-
sagely, that nobody never
knew exactly how things was goin, to
turn cut 80 II
But" she added. wiping her spec
'acle' glasses, .sthat- chist o. draws GER.
'ain1y did bring me good luck. It'spaid
off the last of the old mortgage. and laid
a stock o. real black walnut for Abel
% work with and got q new narY-blile