The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1895-10-08

luz 1n0 Key.
Night, with somber wing. vas now
gathering over the beautiful valley,
and far away up the river I could hear
the hound pups honest bark The
key was not where any one could ever
find it. That was the intention per
haps.
Hunger began to stalk abroad. Burn
ing feathers stole across the senses
with their odd Arabian fragrance. We
could not even get the salt for cooking
without entire and carte blanche to the
storeroom. Out in the courtyard L
could see the tall figure of the tallyho.
It seemed a mockery. I thought OF my
guests porting over the sour smelling
encominums of the press.
I was desperate for I had eaten moth
ng for nine hours but a slice Of water
melon. l knew where there was an In
got of birthday cake-my own birth
day cake. Tt was not a large piece,
but had wonderful specific gravity for
such little thing. It was made for
me three years ago on my twenty
second birthday, the goth of Febru-
airy.
ate it to give me strength. Then
l got a jimmy that I used to use be-
fore 1 became better man. 1t was
wrapped in flannel, so as to make no
nois9, for in the old times l did a good
deal Of work and hated to disturb sick
persons and young children while en-
gagged in my tasks; also we'll people
and middle aged policemen who were
asleep
l got this under the sash of the store
room and pried it up. l was just in
sorting myself softly, and in the mean
time grateful for the kindly shelter of
the night, when I felt a sting across
my person from without and heard
the baron exclaim:
"Ha! You try to rop mine frert, you
skellyvagger! Besser you pin owska-
ganninl" And he hit me once moro
for the cigars with the long four in
hand whip.
It seems that he had wearied of the
large octave volume of press notices,
as l had feared he would, and had
strolled about the house to smoke a
pipe, s. in the dusk he had discover
ed me with my muf19d James forcjbly
opening the window and had swatted
with a great swat and then called
for help.
When I told him the whole truth, |
which was one of the c~leverest things |
l ever did, tears ran down his gigan
tic cheeks aud hung on his riotous red
mustache like dew on the whiskers of
a Numidian lion.
He sent out to the coach and got a
hamper full of nice caviare sand
witches and frosted cake and sardines
and caramels and picked herring and
assorted cake and kippered herring
and German pancakes, with gravy,
and picked pigs feet and jell cake
and cold tripe and lady fingers, and
bologna sausages from Bologne, and
crugel food and bottled beer and
sponge cake and sauerkraut and bride
cake and jerked walrus and cookies
and choice family mackerel and layer
cake and liverwurst and maple strip, |
and everything that heart could wish.
While we were eating these my wife
returned, and pulling up a corner of
the tablecloth where I sat took out the
the key to the storeroom. Then we
had some hot victuals and coffee and
sat up real late. |
Since that l never go to to bsd at
night without knowing where the key
to the storeroom is, and often in my
slumbers the attentive passerby may
hear me asking in my troubled dreams
where it is.
But it is a custom: to which I am not
accustomed, and to prescribe so much
-four and sugar each morning for the
family and hen hide the key is not
agreeable to me, for l was reared in
the most lavish manner as a child. The
latchstring hung out all the time. We
did not even take it in at night, and I
have seen 80 uncut mince pies on the
shelves at a time with nothing to pro
tect them but a copy of the New York
Tribune-weekly edition.
Cider flowed like water in those
days, and during every month that
had an in 1T you could get salt pork
any where, while the wealthy had it
the year round. eve had 1t the year
round
Isuppose that it would be hard to
End an older family than what Ourn