Middletown transcript., 1891-05-14
A RUSTIC COMEDY.

N the Struggling, forlorn, unoeautl-
full Northumbrian village Of
Blackford there was half a
century ago, only one comfortable
looking building. It was none of the
dwellings of the coal and lime carriers
the hedgers and ditchers, or the drain.
ers, who formed the bulk Of the. popu
lation, for their low dropping roofs
mended here and there with tarpaulin,
spoke too eloquently of damp, draught
and over-pressure; it was not the
red tiled croft-house inhabited by
Willie ALLAN, the clever, lazy, kindly.
cock-fghting, dog-fancying, boxing
wrestling, swimming, beekeeping
tenant Of the little farm, for bachelor.
dom and neglect had combined with
Willie's devotion to hobbies of one
kind and another to create Of it and
its surroundings an embodiment Of
picturesque disorder it was not the
great austere. looking, square built
Presbyterian meeting house, with its
prison like walls and narrow windows,
far less was it the slated, shabby
genteel manse, for in cold weather the
effect of the whitewash upon it was tc
threaten the spectator with . fit of the
ague. No; on any gusty day in
November, when the very trees on the
hilltops seemed to have turned their
shiveriDg backs to the breeze that
whistled through their branches and
whirled away their red-tinted leaves
in madcap dance, and the diminu-
tive cot-houses look almost as though
crouching to escape the blast, which
the gaunt old manse faced in haggard
despair, the Red Lion" Inn alone
with its comfortable overcoat of i'm
pervlous thatch. retained its aspect O
quiet comfort, and toward evening the
ruddy glare Of its kitchen fire press.
ingly invited the toil-worn cottars to
forsake their scolding wives anc
brawling children, their scanty fire.
and draughty houses, and enjoy it
comfortable warmth. And often al
the same time there would be a ligh
at one of the two attic windows tina
peered out from the roof like a pai
Of open gray eyes from under lids 0
thatch. For one of these attic room
was the favorite resort Of Adam
Black, the thriving publican Of Black
ford. Hither at night did he often re
sort if business was dull down below
to smoke his pipe, to think over hi
plans, and to calculate his ingoing
and outgoiDgs; for, as he woult
sometimes remark, it took deal Q
worry for man as could neithe
read nor write to keep a true reckon
ing" and Adams natural abilities ha'
not been frightened up by education
That did not hinder him from
being greatly liked and respected il
Blackford. The worst that could b
said about him was that he was rathe
hard, and as matter Of fact ther
was little softness in his nature
though he never failed to greet hi
customers with smile and jest, an
if the smile was little mechanics
and the Jest the worst for wear i
mattered little to quiet country foil
who we're not ashamed to laugh 6
the twentieth repetition of witticisn
And it was everywhere agreed ths
he kept model public Louse-neye
for instance, allowing any fighting
60 on in q conspicuous place, but for
ing the combatants to have it out,
they really meant business, in Sc
cluded back yard, where they coul
black each others eyes with the mo
perfect safety and comfort. An
man might go to the Red Lion
with the assurance that he would nj
be made fool Of. Adam knew th
drinking capacity Of every full;grov
male in the neighborhood Of Black
ford, and would let none transgre'
his limit, or, if an accident di
happen, generally managed to avoi
anythink in the nature of a public e.
hibition. And besides, the village
all knew him to be, in their own lar
guage, as game as bantam. 4
times Adam might in bargain NAL
ing show himself not over scrupulou:
" above board, and, general
speaking, what he could get he too
but nevertheless he steered noteb
J clear of paltry meannesses, and |
was known to be stubbornly faithf
to all his friends-a man, ON Il
whole, with a conscience not t.
troublesome, but far from dead.
In domestic life Adam was
martinez. He ruled his son Alec
g his red-haired servent Bet, and ev'
2 his niece Kitty with rod Of iro
; Prompt obedience was the unwritt
law Of the household. Only Kit
! besides being the smartest, prettie
i and cleverest girl in Blackford, W
!; !; so wayward and spirited that not ey
d her uncle, who liked her better thI
he liked anybody else in the worl
was able to keep her entirely und
control.
It was great grief to Adam whit
J. be found out that Kitty was in mo
/ to throw herself away upon Will
L Il