Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1893-05-04
-. FIRST watch.

The shich the watch and jewelry
8 ,sn, and specially interesting but
v April number it speaks TO every
M .ho has pleasant memories over
% Nn - acquired his first watch.
is way story of My First Watch is a
E n INV TO which several famous
,aa pd women contribute, and
. which the stories of the Hon.
eRl pn.k and Bill Nye may be
tsl ny = samples. Writes Bill Nye:
liz, erst watch had an American
ID ~ movement in silver hunting
engine turned. 1t cost me sls,
ssl was eighteen years OF age. l
'a Pucht it and paid for it myself out
I'd nv wages as a teacher.
sa II kept the bdckskin pocket over it
n:1 ~ the first year, SO that ii
nd not get scratched.
sl $40 watch since has given me that
ding CT wealth or comfort and ease
AZ - this one did. 1t had a good tick
be [i,h 4 cheerful ring to it, and a
By |1acld, honest face. 1t was a willing
a,cb and did whatever its hands
: Uund to DO :.
~ remember how proud and
.nr vas to confess to the tax
hector that I was subject to a tax
uUatches, jewelry, etc." and | felt
a,rv for those who were simply voters
frthout assisting the government in
necuniary way by being taxpayers.
at was my companion when / had
y one else through a prolonged
= [%snancial panic, confined entirely to
mvself and of a purely local nature.
hi did not go over the counter of a
|navpbroker even when | was hungry
and jObless."
Ey.Secretary Rusk's story goes as
fellows: ~ have a very distinct
recollection of the first watch i ever
owned. and of how l acquired it.
When | was quite young-barely
ffteen-an older brother and | were
thrashing a load of grain for a
neichbor. In those days the machine
that was used for t%hrashing was
known as a 'grubber.' 1t was simply
a cylinder with four-horse power, and
the separation of the straw from the
grain and chaff was done by raking it
from the machine as the grain was
run through the cylinder and
thrashed. 1t took twelve or fourteen
hands to operate one Of these
machines. My brother and l were
running 1t. No ohe in the party had
a watch, and when we wanted to
know the time we had to send up to
the house. The owner of the grain
suggested that it would be a good
thing for n Of the thrashers to own
awatch, so that he could furnish the
time for the crew to go by. He
mentioned that he had a very good
watch that he would sell. 1t was one
Of the old fashioned kind, known as a
bull'seye, with adouble case, the out
side case being removable, and the
winding done with a key in the back.
suppose my looks betrayed my
ambition to be the owner of the
watch, for he kept at me until he
finally coaxed me into buying 1t. !
paid him 50 for it, 81 more than my
months wages, but / felt as if / was
the richest one Of the whole crew
every time | was called upon to give
the time Of day. / carried this
watch for a number of years; indeed,
III remember rightly, it was the
only one | had until / moved West
from the State Of Ohio. / suppose a
watch like that to-day would fetch
about 81 or $3.50, and alongside n OF
our modern watches il would looks as
much out Of date as would the old
grubber, in tending which / earned
the money TO pay for it, alongside OF
the latest improved thrashine
machine. Perhaps, like the OLD
Oakley who was reminded Of a verse
IN the Bible on seeing his master pay
a,UW for a Shorthorn heifer, you may
thlnk | was pretty green to pay more
than could earn in a month for a
watch, but let me tell you, lots of men
VINO are esteemed pretty wise fellows
pay more than they earn in a month
lor things that do not give them as
much genuine satisfaction as l got out
eithe ownership of that watch"
There has been considerderable talk