Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-03-31

4 Il =
murmured contentedly.
1T is nm education for the children.
too, she meditated as she listened
to them running up and down stairs
to bring their father first one thing
and then another and heard his voice
from above instructing them to start
all the faucets running in the bath.
room and to bring him pail and
two or three spOr%es.
In the course five minutes her
youngest son appeared at her elbow.
"What is it, Johnnie2" she questioned.
Father wants his other pair of
EIasses, he announced; hes Just
smashed his best ones"
What those beautiful new peb.
bles! Mrs Hnrd cried regretfully.
How did it happen"
"Oh, he was just looking down into
the tank, and they dropped off and
struck on piece of lead pipe" John
ME answered, skipping gayly away
with the other pair Of glasses. To him
these little casualties added greatly
to the enjoyment of the occasion.
In a short space of time a rapat
Mrs. Hurd's door caused her to look
up from her work. In the doorway
stood the cook, apparently much agi.
tated. "Oh num-, she gasped breath
lessly, 'somethin's leakin. viii yez
come down to the kitchen2 Sure an
the ceilins all wet an dlippin down
on me-.
Mrs. Hurd sprang up. They must
have let the bathtub overflow - she
exclaimed. Come, we must all turn
to with mops, cloths and ali the
sponges we can get hold of. ="
81 suppose you know, Theodore,
that you have flooded the. house, she
called up stairs, adding, quick,
Johnny, bring me down all those
sponges this very minute"
AS Johnny came leisurely down
stairs with the necessary sponges, he
remarked gleefully: PA couldn't
clean it out much of any, after all.
He says that no one but the plumber
can get at it." At this point, having
reached his mothers side, he whis-
pered Hes broken his other glasses,
too, but he said we needn't say any
thing to you about it. "
A little later in the morning, when
the household had once more re
sumed its usual atmosphere of tran
quillity, Mr.. Hurd entered the sitting
room, with an air of quiet determi-
nation. II am going to adjust that
new gas burner that / bought so long
ago." he remarked, displaying it.
"Oh, Theodore, don't you think
you had better leave it till the gas
man comes? his wife demonstrated.
Nonsense" he responded. II
should hope that | could screw Oh a
simple fixture like that Boys" he
added, Just run down cellar aud
bring me up the tallest steps, and
then ask Jane if she knows where
that monkey wrench was put"
Mrs. Hurd withdrew once more to
the seclusion of her own apartments,
after a timid protest regarding the
danger of allowing the gas to escape
too freely. She embroidered peace
fully for a few moments and was be-
to congratulate herself that
all was well, when a dull thud, ac
companied by a crash, caused her to
spring to her feet.
ooh, what has happonedi" she
called out in agonized tones. Are
you killed, Theodore2"
Mrs. Hurd rushed frantically down
stairs in time to catch sight of her
husband picking himself up from the
floor, where he had apparently been
seated amid shattered fragments Of
several glass globes which had ac
companied his sudden descent, while
the voices of the children questioned
Have you hurt yourself,
papa?"
Before his family could ascertain
how badly he had been injured, he
rose maiestically, swelling with right
eous Indignation, and even refusing
to allow Mrs. Hurd to examine the
cut ON his left wrist, which was
freely from too close a con.
tact with one of the defunct gas
globes
1T is shameful to keep pair Of
steps like that in the cellar Of any re
spectable house." he thundered,
the broken glass under
loot They are only fit for klndling |
wood They should have been chop
ped up long ago, long ago! / never in |
ny life saw such a shlftless set Of |
people. Nobody takes a bit of inter
,st in anything about the house, but !
is left for me TO attend to,
md II have nothing more impor-
ant TO do than TO spend my time reg |
llating the contents of the attic and |
he cellar. And now look at that!" |
And he pointed upward to the half |
gas fixture, Mrs. Hurd |
.urned her eyes in that direction and /
,lloua1 tlaln IN rest TppTetfullV on /