Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1888-10-05
They Insured Their lives.

They Insured Their lives
The facts Ofrather pscuIiaR case
Of life insurance have Just been made
known in Tennessee. There lived Ia
one of the remote agricultural dis
tricts of that State two brothers.
Sam and Bill Henly. They were
twins and the age of thirty-fiYe years
found them unmarried. They had no
relatives. They were devoted to each
other, and in common owned and
cultivated a small farm.
One day, a number of years ago,
Sam, addressing his brother, said;
''Bill, I've got a scheme by which one
Of US can make some money"
eff one, why not both of Us?" Bill
asked.
'EI'1 explain. We will go to town
and have our lives insured Tor ten
thousand dollars each. I viii keep
up mine. If die first, you get ten
thousand dollars. IfyOu die first. I
get ten thousand
Chat is a good idea, 80 Bill replied.
owe are likely to live long, and one OF
US, at least, will be well cared for in old
age"
The policies were taken out. At
first the payments were easy enough,
but at length when a bad crop year
came the brothers were so hard
pressed that they were compelled to
sell one Of their horses.
SIT comes pretty hard" Sam re-
marked, but it viii pay us in the long
run. Alive owe in this life we owe to
each other, remember"
eyes, and we will try to meet our
assessments, but they do seem to- be
coming pretty thick"
The next season a ''Wet spell'' al
most ruined the early crops. A heavy
assessment came and the brothers
had to part witha favOrite yoke Of
steers.
Striking us harder and harder"
said Bill, ''but we must stand it
eyes, Sam replied, ''even if we are
compelled to do without coffee this
season."
Two years later such a financial dis
aster overlook the brothers that
they were forced to mortgage their
farm, and, the year following, the
mortgage was fOreclOsed.
This is extremely hard, f." said Sam,
''but we must put up with it. We
have a couple of axes left, and we will
chop cOrd-wOOd for q living. Old
man Gray says that wemay have his
cottage over yOnder at reasonable
rental. We've got no bedding, but
we can sleep on the floor. BY work
ing hard we can get little something
to eat occasionally and keep Onr pol
icies paid up"
ECVoo vryo T,,7v-1 L.,
sible sacrifice to keep up our insur-
ance."
They rented the cabin, slept on the
floor and had nothing to eat but
corn bread and bacon. In the winter
they were almost frozen, and in the
summer they were nearly roasted.
but their devotion to each other kept
their heroic determinations from bend
ing.
One morning several days ago Sam,
upon aWaking, said: 'BilI, I can +
work to-day, for am as sick as a
horse"
"YOu hit me, then, Sam, for I, using
a comparison almost as time-hon-
Ored, am as sick as a dog"
They did not get up during the day,
and the next morning q neighbOr
who CHANGED to call, summoned q
physician. The doctor pronounced
their illness swamp fever. They grew
deliriOus, but one day-with that "a
tiOnality which sometimes smiles up
on a victim just before his demise
they recovered consciousness. The
doctor told them that theycOuId not
live through the day.
Sam said Bill, care you going
too?''
eyes, Bill, I am with you"
cts pretty tough, isn't it, Sam?'
GA wet cOOnskin is no cOmpari-
son"
A few moments later, yellow
shadows, the last respects of swamp
fever, the p. p. C. cards Of that insid-
iOus disease, lay upon their faces.
just as the neighbOrs were turning
away a fellow who had just come
from the pOst-Office brought notices
Of another assessment.-Opie P. Reid.