Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1884-08-14

habitual with me. When was
through my wife looked quite serious.
Clara merely bit her lip between ..ah''
and 'yes." and atlength babe us good
night
..There is but one drawback in the
whole NATTER said when Clara had
gone; ''if we had only known it little
sooner! We might then have been
saved the expense of this parlor set.
What can we do with two suits of fur
niture.
Il suppose" said my wife, ..that we
can manage to find room for both in
the house. If not we can take this
back-exchange it for other goods"
Iopened the blind and looked across
the street. Mr. Bathurst, the chief
salesman in the establishment which we
had patronized, lived over the way. AS
l had supposed, and as was his wont at
this time of the evening, he sat on the
veranda smoking. l took my hat and
went across. Don't be too harsh in
your judgment, my friend; YOU have
the joke by my voluntary confession.
Remember, too, ''Whom the gods
destroy they first make mad l went
across.
Bathurst, do you suppose that your
folks could be persuaded to take back
some of the goods l bought the other
day, and let me trade it out in some
other line?'
"You see, have a good-hearted old
uncle who has taken it into his head to
send me parlor Set" etc., etc. Thus
l ran on in my folly.
We were up for an early breakfast,
after which l flew in fast haste to the
Office. l laid hold of Sam, who does
the draying for our house, thrust S4.S5
into his hand to pay the charges, and
directed him to proceed at once to the
freight department of the c. Il NJ. 1t
was very busy morning with me;
there were a thousand and one things
pressing for immediate attention; it
was out Of the question to think Of 60
ing home before dinner. But what can
a man do with an inheritance of six
hundred pounds resting on his mind!
l added column of figures and, being
conscious of slight wandering Of
thought. went down the column for a
test AS the result was different, l
climbed the ladder again, only to light
upon third value; and then down
down again, only to find fourth. Oh,
shocking! resorted to the backing
brush and applied it to my boots vigor-
ously for ten minutes. It is a capital
remedy for nervousness when one
hasn't the time for a ride or walk.
But the mental disturbance of this
morning was out of the reach of boot
backing So l took my hat and
pressed holly for home. wished to
reach home before the goods arrived
In this was successful. found my
wife posted at front window, and
there l also took my stand. We waited
for a half-hour. very cheerful, very hap
ply. and as serene as eager expectancy
would permit.
At lcngth--at length-there was the
rumbling and heavy grating of slow
wheels on the stone pavement. We
crooked our heads out of the window
and caught the first possible glimpse of
the horses noses and then their full
lengths as they turned the corner. And
there was Sam, Enthusiastically Sam.
ooh, well, wife," l said, ''let us not be
childish" So we took in our heads,
but stood watching just within. say
we stood watching, for we could not
for some moments do otherwise than
stand and watch. We could not look
at each other, but stood mute and mo-
tionless, our eyes fixed intently on that
vehicle and its contents. My throat
began to swell. Then came hot surge
rising at my cheeks and temples and
creeping through the roots of my hair,
down the back of my neck, down,
down, to my heels-to my toes; and
then another hot surge, and then an
other, while the perspiration flowed
freely. Oh, it was painful! And that
drayman - that drayman - having
thrown down his lines, sat on the end
of the high seat with his feet hanging
over the wheel, while with his viii p he
cut off the leaves of weed that grew
by the curbing; at the same time his
face beamed with malicious mirth.
Now and then he stole furtive glance
at the wares behind him and then went
on cutting the weed, his face wearing
alternately smile and squint of in
terrogation. OF course, l bolted out
upon the porch. AS shut the door l
heard one of the upstairs shutters on
Clara's side close gently.
"Well," said Sam, with a painful
effort to compose his features, II guess
there must be something wrong about
this"
''Take the stuff around by the back
alley" shouted, hoarsely. 1 slipped
through the house, and noticed on my
way that my wife, who had recovered
from her modification and disappoint-
ment, had dropped down in corner
and was laughing Historically. was
provoked enough, but my chagrin gave
way t. smile as Imet Sam at the back
gate. A smile was all that was needed
to touch him off. He fairly roared.
And, as abominable luck would have it,
that alley was full of people-my neigh
bors-going and coming have never
seen sucn concourse of people in that
alley, before or since. Boys climbed
over fences and ranged themselves
about, girls peered through chinks and
whispered to one another, and toddling
infants cried to be lifted to some place
of vantage.
Yes, there was something wrong"
Contrary to my wife's expectations
there was a kitchen-stove. And the
kitchen-stove had been used; in evil
dence Of which, there were elaborate
frescoes of grease ranging in more or
less detached flakes around the oven
doors and on the edges of the hearth
and along the overlapping margin of
the top. There was a bundle contain |
ing two or three joints of pipe whose
ends were raveled by rust and wear.
And there were chairs, several of them;
nnno If uorr offn,,;po<o ,ooLor, hr% |