Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1886-10-05
4 Tale of a Bustlc.


They may say what they please,
said Mount Clemens belle, "abont the
nuisance of bangs and the agony of cars
sawed off with military collars, but all the
bother they ever gave me was just pure
fun to what | went through with last
Sunday with one of these new fashioned
bustles.'
Cant you tell US your experience"
we asked. The many readers OF the
Free Press"
No, no." she interrupted frowning,
you mustn't put it in the paper now.
But it was really to dreadful. You see
| had gone on TO Chicago to visit my
friend Katie b, and the first thing she
told me was that | needed building up. ="
You were in delicate health?" We in
CURED.
oh no, she answered impalieniIy
Il didn't set out enough. and where
did set out it wasn't in the right place
What needed, she said, was one Of the
new style bustles but it was Saturday
night and too late tn buy one. and
couldn't have gone to church the next
Gay if Katie hadn't offered 10 stay nome
and lend me her hustle The next morn>
ing she came into ms room holding up II
whitish brown bag
What's that" said / The new naL-
cnt, elastic, adjustible, India rubber in
tatahic hustle" said she. It's only
been worn once, and It's perfectly Splen-
did. You'll be certain to like IT,
But what makes it stick out?" said |.
Air" said she Look here
Then she put he; mouth to u little
pipe aud began TO blow and biO~. and
when she had pulled away about fifteen
minutes the thing had swelIed out to the
size Of meal sack. ITS as light as a
feather said she, giving it a little tap
tina; sent it bouncing across The room,
But don t think | should like such
an animated background, | objected.
It's rather too lively for me-"
Nonsense said she; when strapped
on its as firm AS a rock "
well, she fixed the hing on me and
said it made me look like another being,
which think, likely, it did. Its Just
gorgeous" said she, only, perhaps, Il's
little-very little too big But YOU
Htttlu l lullll tldt NUS Va EtlIc Htd tutul
even bigger"
so | wore it Just as it was, and ]
must say when ] looked at my shadow
going to church, and saw how stVli,hly
IL poked out behind. ! felt pretty Lofty
myself When | got TO church | had to
sit on the very edge of the seat, for, as
Katie had said, the patent inilatable'
was as firm AS "a roCk-Eneui But il
was such comfort to know that | Wa,
properly built up, Well, we got along
the hustle and pretty comfortably. al
things considered, until the sermon was
nearly through But just as the minis
ter was singing Finally. Brethren"
heard Ooh! mercy heard sound"
"A s0uHd?" we exclaimed. That was
strange indeed. Did the preacher droE
his Bible?"
'Oh, no, she answered. shaking her
head. 1t was most dreadtUS S0ond, like
-the-hissing of teakettle.
That must have been horrible" We
cried "Oh! you can never know. Every
body turned round-everybody. | meal
but me. | looked straight at the minis
ter. | suspected. | knew, | felt VIVA
was going on. and didn't dare to NOV,
for fear of worse explosion. ! looked
as cool as could, but really and actual
ly thought Id burn to cinder befor
that awful sound at last died away in
long. long fliz z, and | found myscl
still alive. When all was silent agail
tested the extent of the damage b
slipping back in my seat, and when
found | could sit up close to the yer.
back knew that the worst was true
Ny hustle, my beautiful hustle was
busted,
twas pitiful," we said, sympatheti
cally.
'tHhl ] should say it was. When