The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1883-03-29
Hard is His T,ot;.

All trades and professions have their
disadvantages that are known only to
those belonging to the said trades and
professions The farmer 'envies the ed
itor, and Uice UersG, because neither OF
them know how many disagreeable
things there are connected with the
trade of the other; and so it is with all
other professions. 1t, however, must
have frequently occurred to the man OF
limited means, that the proprietor of the
small corner grocery has less trouble
with the cares of this life than almost
any other mortal. When his wife says
the coffee is out, all ne has to do is to 90
to the coffee barrel and help himself.
When the children bother him for candy
all he has to do to quiet them is to take
down the candy jar and tell them to
help themselves. We are aware that the
proprietor of the corner grocery has to
pay for his goods, but whenever his ex-
penses are heavy, he can even things
out by using a lighter weight, or by
giving back insufficient change to a
child, and pretending that it lost the
money on the road home. 1t seems,
however, that even the small grocer has
his woes
We noticed, few days ago, that
Peter Cooper, an Austin grocer, was sit
ting on his doorstep in a gloomy atti-
tude.
''What's the matter with the eminent
merchant prince?' we asked, in tone
of real concern, punching him in the
abdomen with our gold-headed cane.
II am feeling little bad this morn
ing. | have got the blues from eating
some Holsters in cans that were bulged
out at the ends. The lobster was spoiled
little, think, and now | am laborino
under a sense of Encouragement. I
will have to get partner who can assist
me in eating up the unsaleable goods. ="
''That's very ridiculous idea. Why
don't you throw the spoiled goods into
the street,"
81 tried that last summer when water
melons were in season, and | was SO
heavily fined that it took away all the
profits on the watermclons for the whole
season. After that | eat them up
Every day, after that, felt it a duty [
owed my family and myself to eat ND
from three to fifteen stale watermelons
that had been left over, every night be-
fore going to bed. My liver got I'M
hinged, or tangled up, somehow. and
I've never really relIshed ripe fruit
since"
''Why don't you keep a pig to help
you eradicate the unsaleable goolls?"
81 tried that. too, but there is an or
dinance against it, SO ! found out when
paid my fine. 1t seems to me as if the
city authorities wanted to either run me
out of town, or fill me up with second
hand vegetables,
'.Your's is hard lot in life
sit isl sighed Peter, ''hard, hard.n
''Why don't you give the unsaleable
stug away?"
II tried that, too, but it gave me
away. l thought it might make me
popular with the laboring classes If l
gave them the superfiuous garbage. /
even dreamed of being elected to some
high position of honor and trust on the
popularity l would acquire from Old
cheese and the like, but was foiled, as
usual. A can of old oysters / gave the
wife of laboring man caused him to
work on me with dray pin until he
raised a $15-doctor bill on me. No, sir,
l tell you the life of the grocer has its
dark sides, its shadows as well as its
lights. All, here comes the doctor to
tap me for the dropsy l caught while
trying to dispose of a barrel Of second
hand pigs feet
The unhappy man ambled into the
store, and as we watched his retreating
figure, we thought how much happier
was the editor, who rarely gets enough
to eat, compared with that of the grocer,
who revels in abundance, and is fed on
dainties. TEXAS SiftinQS