The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-07-27
Wrestling With a CARPET.

The pens Of some of the most learned
and able writers of the age have been
directed to showing up the horrible sui
ferlng man endures putting up stoves.
fitting stOve-pipe, and other delightful
and refreshing household duties, but the
grand labor which devOlves upon many
men about this time Of the year, of put
ting down a carpet has not received the
attention it deserves. II you see man
on the street at this season, with weary,
sad, detected look, on his face, his back
bent forward and weak, his thumbs and
fingers wrapped up in rags saturated in
arnica, and who walks with an uncertain,
limping halt, like knee sprung horse,
it is pretty safe to believe that he has
just been through the annual free-fOr-all
wrestling match with carpet. just at
this time this country is fairly swarmins
with unfortunate men, who have been
down on their knees for the first time in
year. and who swore more than they
can repent of in years time. There is
probably no other household duty that
devOlves upon man that he so heartily
despises rs that of tying his legs up in !,
dOuble-bOw knot, humping up i'm little
wad over Il carpet, and striving between
grasps for breath and muttered impre-
cations to hit 4 little insignificant tack
in the corner of the room. The tack
persists in standing on its head Just at
the time when the man plies the hammer
with frenZied effort, and he stops Il
moment to let about four gallons of per-
spiration soak out of him. 1t is worth
al no g a 4,
a man put down a carpet, and men who
are not troubled with such laboriOus and
heartrending duties, have been known
to go more miles to see man attempt
to ''dOwn' arebellious carpet, than they
would to see the biggest prize fight that
ever was. From the time the victim be-
gins to think about his prospective task
he is mad, and he grows madden, until
the grand tableau that usually takes
place about the time the task is half
finished, and putting like a whale, and
swearing at every jump. he goes down
town and hires man to come up and
tackle the carpet. But he usually COM
mences by taking the carpet in roll
and throwing it down in the center of
the room, where he stands and glares at
it and swears he will have it down in tif-
teen minutes at the outside. He drags
corner of the carpet up into Il corner
of the room, and puts in the first tack
'.just as easy and he keeps on along
one side Of the room, driving in tack,
pounding the .'mOp-boards, and knock
ing his thumb and fingers at every other
rap. Then he gets madden. He pro-
ceeds to stand or sit on the very part of
the carpet that he wants to stretch up
to the side of the room, and he pants
like a locomotive, and wears off some
more skin from his hands. His knees
get sorer every minute, he gets crick
in the back and he perspires like tin
water cooler on a hot summer day.
AbOnt this time he is SO mad that it seems
Is though he would burst. and his boots
are full of perspiration, and he makes
last cOnvulsive effort to lift the edge of
the carpet up that he is standing on and
hold it in place with his teeth, and with
his head wedged against the wall he
strikes wildly at where he suppOses the
Jack TO be, and mashes his thumb tiatter
than the proceedings of the star route
trial, he jumps up with yell and swears
that is the last time he will ever touch a
carpet, and goes and hires some one to
10 it. just as he always has done before
There are thousands of men in this coun-
Try who never will know what it is to
labor with 4 carpet and stand on their
leadS in 4 hot room for four hours ut
lime. but there is very large class of
deserving men who are compelled to sui
Ter at the hands of the treacherous car
pet, and they are worthy the warmest
sympathy of their more fortunate fellow
nen.-Peck's San.