Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1894-11-08

fellow, a prince abroad, a mlser at
home; vet there are others of Mr..
Greenleafs type.
Sewing, eh? | don't see how you
women can contrive to be forever sew
ing" Mr.. Greenleaf said, airily, as his
wife drew out her work basket after
the warm supper had been served
Mary and Hetty were doing up the
dishes in the kitchen, so that mother
could commence work on the new
school dresses.
perhaps if you had the contriving
to do for five you would hnd out" she
replied, with more spirit than she
usually displayed.
"Oh, yes, | suppose you must get the
new fallals, the ruffies and Fuckers in
place." he replied, in facetious vein-
He had felt really liberal and great
hearted all day in the serene con-
sciousness of having done the square
thing by his family-handing out
money-good, commercial money-his
money, in fact, and with an unusually
small amount of friction, not even
docking the sum asked, as he often did.
"Rufies and fallals, indeed" Mrs.
Greenleaf's temper was all which could
afford ruffling in that house under
present conditions, and she wondered
grimly if he had any conception of the
extra stitches his penuriousnesS en-
tailed upon her-the ripping and max
ing over, the interminable mending
which, if her time was worth any
thing, cost more than new material.
The sewing for her family, however
plainly she could do it, was a serious
task without all this extra trouble of
robbing Peter to pay Paul through an
endless variety of makeshifts; but Mr..
Greenleaf read his evening paper in
serene Inconsistencies of her perplex-
tiles as she turned her patterns this
way and that, trying to get the dresses
out from piece of goods half-yard
short.
Mr.. Greenleaf had occasion to do
some shopping few days later. He
didn't consult his wife or inquire how
many patches would be required to re-
fit his wardrobe for the winter. Oh,
no, that was not his style of architec-
ture. With the first November blast
he stepped into furnishing store and
asked for underwear.
This is the best line of goods we
have in the house." said the clerk,
displaying splendid value of all-wool
goods, fine, warm and well made.
"The best price, too, doubtless" Mr..
Greenleaf replied, playfully.
"Ohl yes, though the best is always
the cheapest, we calculate. Three
dollars the suit, now, isn't dear, when
you consider the wear and the
warmth"
"rll take two SUITS. Mr.. Greenleaf
promptly replied. Il believe in buying
a good article when l buy"
He called for shirts next. He had
more shirts than Mrs. Greenleaf had
dresses, but he had lost collar button
from an enlarged buttonhole in one OF
them last week, and hence fancied
that he was out of wearable shirts.
Custom made, of courseT
'Ohl yes. None of these patent ad-
Unstable slop-shop goods for me-"
Shirts at two dollars each were cheap
enough when Mr.. Greenleaf wanted
them for himself, and four were added
to his already full stock. A new felt
derby at three dollars, pair of gloves
at two, half-dozen pairs of socks and
few neckties, and Mr.. Greenleaf paid
his little bill of twenty-four dollars
and walked out, feeling that he had
done a very good stroke of business.
He looked a little sheepish when his
wife unrolled the package, with an
amused smile, thinking that some gen.
erous impulse had moved him to bring
a surprise package for the family. Her
face fell.
"Why, Ephraim! Your underwear is
all right with a little mending, and
you have half a dozen good shirts"
"Oh, well, you can cut over the fan
nels for Willie, and the shirts will
keep
a thought you said it was hard
times" she said slowly, her up
per lip curling sarcastically. Would
you mind telling me how much this
outfit cost you?"
Eyes, 1 would" snapped Mr.. Green
leaf, taking refuge in temper. 81 earn
the money; I shall spend it as l
choose"
"You do not need to tell me-" The
wife pulled out slip of paper from
beneath the soczs-the telltale bill
and read it. You can spend twenty
four dollars on yourself without a
murmur of hard times, and begrudge
me twenty-five to make five of us com
Portable for winter"
Worms will turn, and Mrs. Green
leaf freed her mind as she had not done
in ten years, and Mr.. Greenleaf lis
tened with such appreciation that he
handed out ten dollars before the per-
grafton was overt was the very
least he could do and have any con-
science left
Mrs. Greenleaf lay awake half the
night, thinHing deeply. That sem
tence of her husbands buzzed in her
ears like an angry bee-'1 earn my
money" Didn't she earn the money
too? Was all her work, saving the
expense of a girl-a seamstress-of no
value? Not servant girl in the town
but was more Independent and better
dressed than she 4 plan flashed into
her mind and she sprung it in Mr.
Greenleaf's astonished ear in the
morning, but he rejected it with
scorn.
PAY you a girls wages, indeed
hire my own wife to do her own work.
/ Why, lively girl would do the little
work there is to do and have half her
time to go visiting in"
1t happened some weeks later that
Mr. Greenleaf came home sick
an unusual event which had hap
pened but twice before during their
married life. He had wide area of
surface for pain to operate on, and a
capacity for bearing it about equal to
that of babe in arms, so it was a
weary day for Mrs Greenleaf, who
ran to and fro with mustard, hot
| water and cordials until she was
ready to drop with WEAKNESS.
Next day he was better, but still
weak ana exacting, as he lay on the
sitting-room lounge and watched his
wife plod through a days work. The
| patter of her footsteps annoyed him at
first, as he heard them going from
dining-room to kitchen, from thence
to the woodshcd, upstairs and down,
and when at last she sat down the
busy whirr of the sewing machine re-
vealed that she was not yet idle. From
annoyance he passed on to thoughtful
ness, and when she drew her chair up
to the light In the evening and began
making buttonholes, he said:
you have had an unusually hard
day, haven't you, Mary?"