Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1883-08-17
The WELL OF ST. KEYNE.

nv i'ii'"IliS "l'bdi'iii'N "ii'' '''i''
able questions:
is he a married man? Because,
if SO, the draught he has just in
bibed is surely the harpiret llr has
ever drunk in his life Or has he
a wife? Ard if So has She ever been
in Cornwall7"- adding with inuch
energy, this rosit!v" hut curious Is
SertiOn:
For if she has, I'll wager my life
She has drunk Of the Well OF 81. keyn".
The traveller. naturally surprised
and puzzled at the odd questions rr
plies that he has been married many
years, but that his wife has certainly
never been in those parts: and then
desires to know what constitutes the
special benefit said to be conferred
upon him by drinking the water
The peasant then tells him the lie
gend in the following pretty verses:
st Kvyne,' the Cornishman said i'll reply,
loft drank of this crystal Well.
And before the angel summoned he
She laid on its waters u Svsl!
II the IllSDtllu ut tiliS -illtu wen
Shall drink before the wife,
4 happy man h"nceforth Is he.
For he shall he master for life.
''Iiut if the wife shall drink it first
Lord help the husband them
And the traveller stopped to thc W ell of 81.
keyne,
And drank deep of its waters again,
The last two lines exhibit an
amount of prudence and forethought
highly TO be commended on the part
of the astute and cautious traveller,
who will be observed, although he
had already drunk copiously of the
crystal spring, resolves to place him
self entirely on the safe side. and
make doubly sure, by drinking
deep of its waters again.
The traveller then playfully rallies
the peasant by surprising as Il mere
matter of course-that he had taken
care to get drink of the water i'll
good time after his marriage, but
was rather surprised to find that
The other replied rs the stranger spoke,
And sheepishly shook his head:
IL fastened n soon IA the WeuulN., was
DER
And left my poor bride in the porch;
But, alas. good sir, she'd been wiser than
|,
For she took a botHc 10 chtuch''
Here, then, was Il specimen of Sd
gacious forethought and ready wit
quite worthy of that dainty sex
Whom man was born to please.
But although this exhibits a brill
ant idea as brilliantly and clcverly
carried out by the quick wittcd
bride, we are inclined to think that
the circumstance about to be related
quite equal to it. it not superior iii
some points.
The story goes that about thirty
years ago worthy couple, having
determined to enter the holy state,
and each having the usual desire to
obtain the "whip-hand" of the other
for the rest of their natural lives. Sc
cretly resolved-of course unknown
to the other to follow in the foot
steps of Southney's clever heroine,
and, like her, each to ''take bottle
to church"
The happy day arrived, and the
wedding service was duly said, and
the bonediction duly pronounced.
Now" thought the cunning bride
groom, "now's my time" and was
about to pull out his little bottle of
magic water and drink it there and
then; but, being man Of some L"
ligious feeling, he thought it would
hardly be decent to be seen drinking
out of a bottle in church, and, be
sides this, the friends present might
think that his heart ha6 at last failed
him at the thought of the magnitude
of the deed he had just committed,
and that he had fortified himself
with little Dutch courage and,
therefore, he very properly waited till
the wedding party reached the yestry
when he instantly swallowed the
contents of his flask, and triumph
antly exhibiting the upturned bottle
to his loving bride, exclaimed with a
broad grin: First drink. lass, first
drink; now l be maisterw But what
was the surprise of himself and the
assembled company at seeing the
fair bride quitely and demurely pro
duce from the bosom of her dress a
little bottle, with long straw insert
ed through the cork, which she i'm
mediately inverted, to show that the
bottle was perfectly empty, and said.
with knowing, self satisfied smile:
NAY, nay, Robin; first drink, first
drink. It's be matter, not Mec"
The Kings wellknown cxclama
ton to Hamlet
Bat see. amazement on thy mother sits,
would we'll have applied to the whole
company assembled in the vestry at
that moment. If the bride had really
empticd her bottle, how and when she
did it? for nobody saw her or had the
smallest conception of her move
ments. Every one seemed to look
for an explanation; and after n few
moments of awkward silence the
bride, evidently not a little pleased
with her own ready wit, proceeded
to inform the company that, taking
advantage Of the huge poke bonnets
and full wells worn at that day, she
whilst kneeling at the end of the
service, with her head bowed forward,
contrived, by the help of the long
straw. to drink the contents of the
bottle without removing it from its
hiding place in The bosom of her
dress or attracting the smallest 10
-tice from any one. This feat she
had managed to accomplish immcdi
ately on the close of the benediction,
thereby getting first drink after the
marriage service had been actually
finished, and thus securing accord
ing to this most fanciful Legend that
position of authority so eagerly
sought for by the ladies when they
have entered on the married estate.
Texas Siftings: In one of his re
cent sermons Talmagc says: En-
courage the newspaper men, for You
know not with what annoyance they
go through. That's a fact. One of
the worst annOVanceS the npWSDappr