The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1894-01-04
Importing anAn(eStor
By DAN De QU1LLE.
Copyright, 1888, by American Press As,ocis-
,| toni

= AH8SS ~Gr0s ~ - -
lCopyrisht, lsoe, by American Press Associa-
- r% tion.]
*3 RROEM1AL.
Congratulate me, old man, | am now
. MayAower Of the Mayaowers!" cried
my friend Sam Johnson.
\ "A Msydowery' queried |.
Eyes, Mayflower. Not in person. of
course, but by marriage. It shall now
be my care to perpetuate on the soil of
America the line Of the noble house of
johnson. At last l am in the swim
and blue is the hue Of my blood!
"What! Married! Have you deserted
our noble band of bachelors!'
Eyes, and am now Of the noble band
of benedicts."
I'm what bright spot in the Golden
State did you find your Mayaower
blooming?"
"Why, my dear fellow, I've not been
in California at all. I've been east.
Bless you, old man, since leaving the
Comstock I've crossed the 'briny'-have
been over to the land of our fathers"
''You don't mean to say that you've
brought bride from over the sea, when
we have in our own America the best
and most blooming beauties the world
can boast?"
u ''No, no, my dear boy! No, my bride
is not from over the sea, but to win her
cost me trip to the land of my ances-
tors-to old England. where peacefully
islumbering in rural hurchyards He
whole acres of Johnsons."
! ) "Why, Sam, you don't mean to tell
be that you've been over to England
since last saw your
Eyes, old man, that is just where l
have been, and to few other places be-
sides. Why, by Jove, man may cir
: cumnavigate the globe, and when he re-
appears on the Comstock he is supposed
to have merely been over the Sierras to
California on a little flyer! I've knocked
about pretty lively since I LETT Virginia
City year ago."
IA year agop
"Yes,.a year ago. You have hardly
missed me, but really left here year
ago. When you think a fellow is over
in California. it never counts with you
in this town; it is the same as if he were
here at home. In the time I've been
away might have put about four .gir
dies round the EARTH"
The particular Sam johnson who
thus spoke was a 7oung man about %
years of age. who had for three or four
years been engaged in running a big
hosting engine at one of the leading sill
yer mines in Virginia City. He also
speculated a little in mining shares and
otherwise enjoyed himself after the
Comstock fashion. He was always
happy-go-lucky young fellow and bought
and sold mining stocks in such a SEEM
ingly offhand, reckless way that his
friends were wont to say that the god
dess of fortune herself took care of all
his ,speculations. The fact was; how
ever, that every move Sam made in
stocks was we'll considered.
Twas delighted to meet the jolly young
fellow, and having met we at once pro-
ceeded to our old quiet retreat to con-
verse at ease and pass upon the merits OF
the newest brand of beer put forth as q
candidate for public favor.
eyes," continued Sam, when we had
anchored ourselves in our old time safe
harbor, "yes, I've been down east, over
to England, down south and all about"
II can understand your trip to the
New England states and can guess that
you went down into Georgia or South
, Carolina to look at mines, but I cannot
}im4gine why you should have gone to
!, En- gland
s.IJo ho 1,o ~ 1ourbo1 Corn
|\2Wha is the joke about your trip to
Ell land? Perhaps you made it merely
IN hagination?"
VINO, I actually went to England and
eomplished my mission there, but
~ bably no man ever before crossed the
tckan on such an errand. Ha, ha! it
WAS the funniest piece of business ever
undertaken. But it was success-a
glorious SUCCESS"
-'.What you are saying is all Greek to
me, SAM"
'Of course, but you'll see the fun Of
the whole business when you've heard
my story: Then if you don't say that
the affair is the most elaborate joke of
the century I'll treat to the beer every
day for the next year. To begin with,
the whole and sole object of my mission
to England was to steal and import an
ancestor for the johnson family"
''To import an ancestor?'
Eyes. A great-great-grandfather, and |
I got him. He is now the pride Of Pason-
agessit."
sBut he is not alive2"
("Alive! Pooh, no! Been dead ever
since 1893"
y CHAPTER !.
TIE PEOPLE OF THE TOWN OF PAsONA-
a GESSIT.
bam then proceeded to tell me his story
ash follows:
(TQu know that my father, James A.
johnson, left San Francisco about four
d GEARS ago pretty "well fixed, as the say
Ting is. With what he made here and
|doWn at the Bay" he had very nearly
twp millions in good, solid gold coin.
III went back to New England to found
a rome in which to end his days. After
~ 49,, nh ho M |