The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1883-11-24


always silent with strangers; but will
ANYBODY he was familiar with he was very
apt to get off some dry saying. He had
| great stock of stories about things on tn
farm; and he would tell them with per
fectly sober face, and really seemed sur
prised when you laughed at what he said
And to tell the truth, the stories themselve
didn't amount to much, but they seemed
droll from the way he told them.
81 remember one time his telling me, II
the most serious way, about hired man o
his that was up in the woods with thu
BOYS, digging out a woedchuck; and atte
| they had dug awhile the man laid down hi
| spade and kneeled down and put his ear &
| the ground to see if he could hear the wood
| chuck. So in a minute the boy asked hin
if he heard him.
"'Well, no. says he, mot quite; but
can almost hear him.
81 remember how John told me that, a:
grave as an owl, but with such a turn tC
his voice that it was impossible not tC
| laugh. And then he went on and advised
me to hire the man, he would be so valuable
| to me in various ways, he had such an ear
"Speaking of his being of a silent turn,
remember the only time that he ever spoke
l guess, in town-meeting. How many
times | have laughed to think of it, and
have often joked him about it.
SIT was full meeting, shortly after the
war-he was in the war with the rest Of
them-and they were putting through al
appropriation that was going to take 6
good deal of money. But it was popular
with many of the towns-people, and no one
seemed to have courage to oppose it. Sc
it was going through with a slide. just as
the chairmrn was about to put the ques
ton, to everybody's surprise, John Nelson
took the floor and talked about five min.
utes. And he put in the hard sense, and as
sure as you live he walked them right up,
and finally it was carried his way.
"But to get back to my story. In June,
every year, things would begin to look
lively about the Nelson place. There are
two great hundred-year-old elms in front
of the old house that seem to sink it down
to nothing. A swing would be hung from
a long branch of one elm, and hammock
would go from the other to great cherry
tree that stands there, and the Shaker
chairs would come out in the little fenced
in-grass-plot in front of the house. When
these things appeared everybody knew
that George Nelson-the lawyer-was
coming down from the city with his family
for the summer. George himself used to
drive three miles to Standish town, and
go and come in the cars every day.
"Well, that summer, ten years ago, l
was building a shcool-hOuSe at the Flume
village, and one August morning l was
driving along by, and John Nelson was
standing by the roadside leaning on a
pair of bars opposite his house, and strok-
ing the ears of a young colt he had in pas
ture there. | stopped as usual to speak
with him.
SIT was pleasant, told him, to see his
folks and his brothers. folks out there in
front of the house every night when |
passed on my way home, and to hear them
all singing together. 1 had heard it spoken
of, l said, in way that was delightful to
hear, because the two families got on so
well together.
"George don't seem TO be bit stuck-up,'
said |, 'if he does live in the city; he seems
as proud of coming down here to the old
place as if it was palace
"Well, John smiled little in his odd
way. eyes said he, that's so; but he's
getting a little over that. [ don't know
but you've heard that he's going to build
here.'
"'No,' said L; he isn't going to live here
the year round, is hep
$50 no. said John; he's going to build
him house just for the summer. I guess
his wife feels that the family has almost
outgrown the old one.'
"'Well,' said l, 'that'll be an ornament
here, won't it? No doubt he'll build a
house that'll be credit to the place?
$50 yes" said John; it's going to be
quite house. It'll rather cast my place
in the shade-that is, if l can say my
place. when l don't own but half of it,
$50 well, said |, you and [ that live in
the country are not expected to keep up the
style of city folks, or to have such houses.'
81 drove on, but [ could not help thinking
all day that John had not seemed as cheer
full as usual, and didn't talk quite the way
he usually talked about his brother.
Generally he praised everything George
did, and told how smart he was, and all
that: and began to wonder whether John
might possibly feel a little nettled to have
George build new house side of his, just
for summer use, placing it just where the
contrast would show how much better
George was getting on in the world than
John was.
'But it went out of my mind, and
thought no more about it.
"Well, few days passed, and one night,
as was going by the Nelson house in my
open wagon, with load of blinds, George
came to the fence and asked me to stop and
come in.
81 hitched my horse and went into the
house, and all of the family were in the
front room-they had just had supper-and
were talking and laughing. George went
to the chimney closet and brought out a
roll of plans and told me he would like to
have me build him a house. was Just
getting through with the school-house at
the Corners, and was about ready for
another job, and told him so.
livery WELL said he, that's good; now
let's look over the plans.'
HE spread them open. Now you know
we carpenters in the country don't very
often have an architects plans to work
from. Every town runs two or three STYLES
of houses, and man that wants to build
gives the carpenter his ideas from some
body else's house, and the carpenter
guesses what the man wants and draws off
plan himself.
"But George had been to first-class
architect in the city, and had him make
what they call elevations of the house
that is, pictures of it as it would look
finished; one of the front and one of each
end. And it was colored the way he was
going to paint the house, and was as pretty
as picture.
"And then there were plans of both floors
OF the IL, showing every timber-a regular
skeleton of the house; and then he had six
or eight pages that specified even to the
quality of glass and the window-fastenings
and the door-knobs, and how many nails to
board, and the kind of nails and all that.
"'John,' said |, for l thought I'd Joke
little, as usual, & don't suppose that even
when this house that we're in was built.
they had any better plans than these to go
by.'
$50, times have changed said John. sat
least with city folks; though we farmers
are glad to get roof over our heads, to
say nothing of architects plans and fancy
Smuggling in the gable ends.'
"'Well,' said 1, we shall have to chaff
you Off and on, when this house is up; it'll