Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-05-15

 glanced at the paper
 II read it right away after dinner,' she went on, talking to the back of his head, "and I've been that frustrated ever since that let two pumpkins pies git overdone and forgot to look into the teapot before l put in two tcaspoonfuls of tea. was all most mind to send for you about 1 o'clock
 "Yes," he said as he washed his face with great ado and turned to the crash towel at his left.
 We have been in danger of our very lives for over a month past!" fhe went on, sitting down on the edge of @ hard bot toned chair and holding the paper in both hands as if she feared it would try to get away
 "Yes, Samuel, death might have come at any time, day or night, and we known nothing about it. The idea that people should be allowed to do such things! If I don't have one of my nervous attacks be- fore bedtime, you can consider yourself a lucky man. Are you trying to rub all the skin off your face on that towel?"
 MT. Gallup let go of the towel to reach for the horn comb and draw it through the few hairs left over each ear. When he had finished, he took the paper from her hand, pulled his spectacles from his upper vest pocket, and when they had been adjusted to his satisfaction he read the item. It was to the effect that some one had invented a cannon which would carry Q ball weigh ing 100 pounds distance of miles. He laid the paper down without a word and walked into the sitting room and sat down to the supper table. She followed him with a platter of meat and q dish of potatoes and asked
 | or sit right here like an old hen on 23 eggs?"
 "What can l do?" he asked as she went back for the tea and biscuit.
 What can you do?' she called from the kitchen. That's a purity question for justice of the peace, village trustee and president of debating society to ask of his poor wife, who's been threatened with typhoid fever almost every day for the last five years. Samuel Gallup you are not the man I thought you was when said I'd marry you!'
 II know it." he replied as he hcaved a long sigh and helped himself to potatoes
 Do you know where that man and his sat down to pour the tea.
 No"
 Just as l expected! You don t know, and if the truth was to be told you don't care. You probably think it's good way to get rid of me. When Able Johnson sent his wife across the meadow to be gored to death by a bull, noticed that you hadn't a word to say agin him-indeed you stuck up for him. Samuel, is this the way to treat kind and loving wife:'
 What have I done?" he qucried as ho buttered the half of d biscuit and looked up to find her weeping.
 But 1 won't complain, '' she answered. wiping the tears away with her gingham apron Indeed never do complain. The Fullers was always great hands to suffer and suffer, but never make q complaint Both of us will probably be better off after I'm in my grave. You'll put up tomb stone, won't you, so that folks won t talk?"
 He chewed away in silence, seeming to realize that tears were on the programme, and she searched the platter for Jean piece of meat and wiped tho end of her sharp nose and waited minute before go- ing on;
 ''Who knows where that cannon is? Ii a man has invented cannon which will shoot distance of 13 miles, he'll want to try it, won't he. He'll want to git it to the top of somc hill and bang away, and who knows whether it's pinted right at
 
 Even while I'm talking to you she may go of, and that ball may come slam bang against this house, MT. Gallup, do you hear me?''
 ''No danger, guess" he replied as took his third biscuit
 'You guess! That's just like the Gal lups They'd guess when they ought to be planting corn, and that's the reason they never had anything. Are you going to let that cannon go off while you sit hero and guess the ball will miss our house? You probably think it will be fired in the day time, when I'm here all alone to be killed stone dead, but I've been told that they fire cannons by nighttime as well, even after everybody has gone to bed. As you lay on the front side you'll probably be killed first.''
 He uttered "S-s-sh!" and scuffed his foot at the family cat, which was meow ing in the open kitchen door and appeared to think that answered Mrs. Gallup's ob- servations.
 Very well, Samuel Gallup, very well!' she went on, trying hard to steady her voice and making vigorous use of the cor ner of her apron. II think am as ready to dio as you arc. If you are willing to sit here and run the risk of great overgrown cannon ball coming slap into this house to knock the clock down, break all the dishes and then bang into our bedroom and kill us both, why I hadn't orter say single word. I'm only a poor, unhealthy wo,n- an, who won't live over q gfcw years at best, and itwon't matter if l go few days before my time" IF ...
 II don't expect thcre'll .fbe any shoot ing," he said as he leaned back and felt for the quill toothpick he had carried for 12 years.
 ''No, of course not, ,'' she promptly re- piled, while her tears started afrcsh. ttThe prominentest justice of this country, say ing nothing of village trustee and the president of debating society, don't ex pect there'll be any shooting! It's all left for his poor wife, who coughed up three shirt buttons, as everybody knows, less n three months ago, and who hasn't had the health to make @ single pint of soft soap for whole year, to expect and to sit and shiver and finally be murdered in her bed before she has time to name the things she wants to be laid out in. MT. Gallup, you've finally driven me to the grave, and now hope you'll be satisfied. You'll get a second wife, of course, but shan't come back to haunt you. The Fullers never did believe in doing mean things to git re- venge but-but"-
 And as Mr. Gallup arose and got his pipe and went out to feed the hogs and button the henhouse door she was pouring herself second cup of tea and weeping with an energy which would have moved the smokehouse 10 feet if the power could have been harnsssed up and properly ap- plied.