The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1893-08-26

Columbus discovering America witt
such force as to smash the glass anc
smear the o'd navigator all owe
with turkey grease.
No further mishaps occurred til
late in the afternoon, when Bertha
undertook to amuse the compa~y by
playing upon the piano. She re.
quested Tom Fletcher, her beau
who had called early in the after
noon, to raise the piano lid. He
was so eager to oblIge her that he
never took time to notice that a
large vase of WAX fruit, which Aunt
Belle Lukens had brought as a pre-.
sent for her sister was on the piano.
Tom threw the lid up with vim,
and crash went the frall glass cover
ing, while the fruit, that looked as
natural as if it had grown, was
smashed into atoms of different COL
ored bees wax.
After sweeping up the broken
glass and wax Bertha began to play
some of her classic music, and while
attempting to turn the sheet as she
was rafting off one of the most diff
cult bars OF Bobby" will your dog
bite? Toms foot slipped as he trod
on a piece OF wax banana peel
and he went sprawling upon the
keys of the instrument, one of his
elbows knocked a whole octave out OF
killer. while the other landed upon
Bertha's shoulder, sending her to the
floor. Toms nose came in collision
with the music rack, causing the
blood to flow most copiously, STAIN
ing the piano. Aunt Belle screamed
"Murder!" so loud that lamplghter
passing along the street heard it and
yelled out the word at the top of his
voice. Two policemen, who had |
been helping hired girl in a neigh
boring house to dispose of some left |
over dinner, rushed to the scene, but
upon learning the cause of the
trouble hurried back to their beats.
This day, like all other davs, has
an end, aud after supper the COM
pany assembled in the little parlor,
where he eve;.ts of the day were
recounfed. Tom. poor fellow, had
gone home with sore nose, trou-
bled mind and his handsome sarin
necktle stained with blood. Martha
had gone TO the club, leaving Bertha,
Mrs. Murtha, her sister and a half
dozen other relatives to spend the
evening as best they could. One
after the other of the happenings
were gone over. when Mrs. Murtha
happened to think of the opal ring,
and gave iull vent to her belief, to
the edihcation of the others.
Among those present was Miss
Sallie Archer, OF Parkersburg. She
had come to spend some time in the
city. She was old enough to
remember the time when William
Henry Harrison was elected to the
Presidency. When she heard of the
opal ring and said: Mercy, save us!
No wonder you've had such time.
Why do yen know, | attli ute all
the bad luck of ,.,y life to a beautiful
opal breastpin that William VOL
finger, d near and dear friend of
mine, had given Tie on my twentieth
birthday. l was then teaching
dirtrict school, AID the very first day
l wore the breastpin to school, one
of larger boys, John Butler, who was
a regular scapeerace, coaxed an old
crazy man into the school, and the
first thing | knew, the man had
taken charge Of the scholars. He
even compelled me to take seat
among the girls and made me
answer every question in the days
lessons. He took down the large
maps and number of charts from
the walls and smeared them all over
with red and black ink. Then he
took it into his head that l would
look better If had a black face. He
got several of the boys to hold me
while he took sponge and rubbed
the horrid ink all over my nose and
ears. which he afterward painted
with the carmine ink.
How got home that day l never
knew, but after | rushed from the
room, the children followed me, the
crazy man kicked over the stove
and set fire to the building, which
was completely destroyed. l was so
that took sick and was I
kept in doors all winter. Mr.. VOL
finger visited me regularly, and one
night, as he was going home, he fell
into hole while crossing field and
broke his left leg and his right arm, S
dislocated his right hip and sprained
his LETT wrist.
He was taken home and doctored :
for nearly year before he got we'll
enough to go outdoors. The very
first day he began attending to his l
farm work he was seized by fero-
cious hog while clearing out the pig
pen, and SO badly injured that he
never recovered till he took the {
smallpox and died from it in the {
Autumn. Poor man! He was
patient sufferer, a devoted lover and 8
as true man as ever walked.
Ga the day we buried him | was {
so overcome with grief that | step {
ped right into his grave in the old {
cemetery just as the sexton began
filling in the clods of the valley, and {
| fractured my thigh. Misfortunes
came thick and fast. Brother
Wills four year old colt broke out