Wichita eagle., 1888-06-02
THE GOOD OLD TIMES.

IL,
comforter around his neck and red flannel
ear lappers on his plug hat when he went
to meeting in winter. He was always
ready to argue that these modern times
were awfully bad. and that the good old
times of hundred years ago were jus,
right he would decry invention and i'm
provement and say that the world would
be better without them. He took news
paper on purpose to count the murders re-
corded In it and tell how bad the world
had grown He would stand for hours on
corner in the village and retail his de-
auctions on the present and his regrets
for the past
One day he had whipped the minister In
argument, and as he had had his dinner
land the minister had gone away mad and
the women were at work In the kitchen,
he tipped back in his chair. drew a red
silk handkerchief over his head to keep
off the flies and went TO sleep He had
not slept over FIVE minutes before his son
John came in and said
Come, father, we must get at that
piece of wheat and cut it..
Blewitt got up and yawned and fol-
lowed his son to the barnyard, where his
two sons sat on q log fling couple of
sickles
What in the nation are you doing with
those old sicklesY" said Blewitt.
One of the boys looked astonishcd and
said ''DoinT Why, we are getting ready
to cut the wheat. D"
Blewitt stared moment and then said:
"Why in thunder don't you hitch on to
that reaper and stop foolin' with them
sicklesT'
L.
prise, but said nothing Blewitt ran to
the shed. but there was no reaper there
He came back The boys had got over the
fence and were on their knees reaping the
wheat and carrying 1t in gavels
Boys" said Blewitt, what do you
mean by this foolishness? Where is that
reaperY"
Charley, the second boy, looked at his
father pityingly, and then tapped his fore
head and looked over to John, who nodded
and looked sad
why. darn it, 4" said Blewitt, you can
never run them bundles through thresh-
In machine"
''Threshin' machine" said Charley;
''why, you know as well as | do that
shall have to fail this wheat out mornings
and nights while going to school this
winter. What ails you, father2'
Blewitt, as we said, got mad easily,
and now he just hoped up and down and
said
'Flal it outi 1t must be threshed
ready to ship ON the cars next month"
Cars, cars. said John. don't know
what ais you, father, or what you mean
know shall have to team this wheat
down to Albany and sell it for what it
will bring Here you come out talzin'
about reapers and cars and threshin' ma
chimes. and darned if don't believe you
are crazy, so now"
Blewitt pinched himself to see If he
was awake and STROBE angrily to the
house AS he approached it he heard O
rumbling and roaring like wind and he
looked into the kitchen and there was his
wife spinning Who-o-o went the big
wheel and Blewitt sank into chair and
yelled
Now. Maria, what under the canopy
are you doinr''
''DoinT" said mis- wife, why, spinnin'.
of course must get out forty yards of
full cloth for you and the boys, and
twenty yards of pressed flannel for me
and the gals"
Blewitt looked down at his legs and saw
them incased in full cloth of coarse tex
ture, and the seat of his trousers he felt
reached clear up to his shoulder blades,
and the legs We're as wide as two bushel
sacks.
We'll. I'll bedarned." was all he said.
Dreamily he sauntered out again to the
wheat field and John hailed him;
Father. If you amt goin' to help cut
the wheat. suppose you yoke the oxen and
so up to the woods and draw draft or
two of logs for wood?'
Blewltt was composed. but he said: al
had intended TO burn coal in the sitting
room and parlor, and not cut much
wood"
Goal coali" said John. angrily; now
see here, father, don't want any more of
this foolish talk | am goin to git doc
tor"
Blewitt began to think he needed one
himself Here his boys had never heard
of reaper or threshng machine or cars.
He felt OF his full cloth pants and grosned-
On the lounge at the house be laid him
self down and tried to calmly think things
over. When the doctor came he called
for pail and barred Blewitt's arm. He
took out his lance, and then Blewitt
groaned again.
al must take a gallon of blood" said
tHo NOCioE, anu lAtu lie VIII calm down
and be all right.
Don't You know bleedin' was PLAYED
out fifty years agof" said Blewitt.
How he wanders. said the doctor, and
plunged in his lancet Blewitt tainted.
When he came to himself he heard one Of
the girls talking about an artist down in
the village who took profile pictures with
q spindle as natural as life.
"What do you want of such blamed
pictures as thatS" said Blewitt from the
lounge why don't you go down TO
Takems at Albany and get photographs"
Photographs said the whole family;
what funny names he gets of in his
crazy fancy"
Blewitt was too weak TO argue. and be |
seemed to be somehow out of sympathy I
or knowledge with al mankind. so he Just |
lay still and watched the girls get supper. |
He noticed that the freboard was down /
and q fire was built in the fireplace. 4 |
kettle was on the hearth and was covered |
with live Goals Soon be saw the girls 1
take out of the kettle some nice biscuits |
and be weakly said why don't Won use |
the cook stove?" Poor pa" said Ange- /
lima. how be wanders. Cook stove.
Wonder what he meansT'
Blewitt closed his eyes and thought.
Bayiey his new neighbor. was man he
could trust-that is, in anything but
money matters He knew Bayley was
badly in debt. but he was a good fellow
aA would send for himi so he called his