The Opelousas courier., 1885-08-29
THE B0TT0MLESs JUG.


Of a thrifty, healthy, sturdy farmer il
Oxford county, Maine-a bottomles'
jugl The host saw that the curious
thing caught my eye, and smiled.
"You are wondering what that jug
is hanging up there for with its bot
tom knocked out" he said. "My wife
perhaps, can tell you the story better
than [ can; but she is bashful and ]
amt, so I'll tell it.
my father, as you are probably
aware, owned this farm before me.
lie lived to a good old age, worked
hard all his life, never s%quandered
money, was a cautious trader and a
good calculator; and, as men were &C.
counted in his day and generation. he
was a temperate MN. / was the
youngest boy; and when the old man
was ready to go-and he knew it-the
others sgTyeed that since / had stayed
at home and taken care of the old
folks, the farm should be mine. And
to me it vas willed. / had been mar
ried then three years.
swell, father died-mother had
gone three years beforehand left the
farm to me, with a mortgage on it for
$4,000. Tdnever thought Of it before.
! said to Mollie, my wife:
".Mollie. look here. Here father
had this farm in its first strength of
soil, with all its magnificent timber,
and his six boys, as they grew up,
equal to so many men to help him; and
he worked hard-worked early and
llate-and yet look at it'll A mortgage
of $1,000. What can [ do?'
And ! went to that jug-it had it's
bottom in then-and took a good stiff
drink Of old Medford rum from it.
IL noticed a curious look on the face
of my wife just then, and / asked her
what she thought of 1t, for I supposed
she was thinking of what I'd been
talking about. And so she was, for
she said:
Charles, I've thought of this a
great deal, and I've thought of a way
in which I believe you can clear this
mortgage off before five years are end
ed
Says I:
"'Mollie. tell me how youth do itp'
She thought for awhile, and then
said, with a funny twinkling in her
blue eyes-says she:
"aCharlie, you must promise me
this. and promise me soIemnly and
sacredly: Promise me that you will
never bring home for the purpose of
drinking. for a beverage, at any time,
any more spirits than you can bring
in that old jug-the jug your father
has used eVer since / knew him, and
which you have used since he was
done with it,
"Nell. + knew father used once in a
while, especially In haying time, and
In winter, when we were at work in
the woods, 70 get an old gallon jug fill
ed; so thought that she meant that I
should W buy more than two
quarts at a time. / thought it over,
and after a little while told her that /
would agrees TO it.
Nov mind, said she, you are
neyer-never to bring home any more
than you a bring in that
identical jug. And / gave her the
promise.
@And before ! went TO bed that
I took the last pull at that jug.
AS I was turning it out for a sort Of
nightcap, Mollie looked up, and says
Charlie have you got a drop left?
There was just about q drop left.
We'd have to get it filed on the NOR
row. Then she said, If / had no OBJ
i~ectlons, she would drink the last drop
me. / shall never forget how
he said It, that last dropi' However,
tipped The old jug bottom up. and
'ot about q great spoonful. and Mollie
that was enough. She took the
nmbler and poured afew drops Of hot
VasaF into II, and a Bit of sugar, and
hen ahe tinkIed her glass against
Just as she'd seen Us. boys do,
Whan red been drinking TO good luck,
ana .saya she: Here's to the old brown +,
''sakes allveI ] thought to myself ,
poor Mollie had been drinking !,
1aoEe q she run than va rooa for !.
laeE' and 4 ten you II kind ii cut me il J
ths heat ] forgot all about how !,
many times shed seen he When ~ 7
tongae was thicker than Il ouve.
" snd nly legS not u steadv 3 ~ |
lega ought b he; bat j said notbtns ]
drank tfae ssntinasnt-srhs oad brews :
lnnd ~ II gas !
We'll went out afteF that. and :
uag ehoras md chen went u bsa: /,