The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-01-29

But the old man Mac Farland, some way,
did not join the procession. His quaint
old clothes made him a figure on the
street, and he became rather butt for
the new Corners who could not under
stand his abrupt ways, his curt
speeches. and his uncouth, unshingled
and unshorn appearance. He worked
only in his garden patch during
the first years of the COM
Portable era of Willow Creek, ana leased
his farm. He did not enter the specu-.
lation which was just lukewarm in the
middle of the eighties, but plodded to
town all the spring and summer and
fall with garden truck and produce,
and in the winter lived on the butter
and eggs that his wife could sell. A
year or so later came the mad swirl of
the boom, when it grew seething hot
and we all went crazy who were
touched with it. Then it was that the
Netherlands sold their farm, all save
the block of ground where their home
stead stands. for Si0,O in cash, to
syndicate. 1t was the heart of MacFar-
lands addition-was their little home
but Annie Mcfarland did not rush
into extravaganza. A coat of paint, an
al" and a few more flowers in her lit
tie front garden, were all the evidences
OF the presence of her ship in the har-
Dor. But the old man still chung to
his homely garb. He made the livery
stable his loafng place between meals,
as he had done for years, and when the
ways about the barn said:
Uncle Mac, haint you goin' to get
some new duds?''
The old man answered sharply:
There you go. / suppose I'll never
hear the last of it till l do. When
get up in the morning Annie says,
Now, Jimmy, won't You go to the
store and get you some clothes to-day?'
and when | set down to eat it's, Well,
did you order your clothes this morn
ing" and the last thing before go TO
sleep it's. Now, you'll order them
clothes tomorrow, won't You. jimmy
and now you fellows begin it,
The old man went on whiting after
this and said nothing for long time
When he got up TO GO. one of the boys
asked him if he was going to get his
new clothes. He hooked back proudly
and replied crustily:
You young men had better mind
your own darn business and I'll tend
to mine
Mrs. MacFarland kept a girl during
the first year of her prosperity. but
after that gave it up and did her own
work" because. she said. she would
rather do the work herself than run
around after them" 1t was through
the girl that learned how the old man
hapl ened to get the new clothes 1t
was after they had planned their trip
back 10 their old home in Ohio-after
the plan had been at least a month old
in the family-that Mrs MacFarland
said TO her husband at breakfast one
morning:
Jimmy arc You going 70 wear them
clothes when we go back?'
The old man looked up suddenly
from his plate and said: .Oh. there
you go again. ! suppose / never will
live in peace any more"
Tne woman dropped the subject. but
at noon he began 1t.
Annie" he said, how much ought
them darn fixin's you're talking, about
all the time To cost?r
After that she said no more unless
ne asked Il question. She knew she
had him. The end of it all was that he
had the tailor make the clothes and
had them made of broadcloth. and the
best he could get. He brought them
nome about week before the time for
their starting, and the girl SAYS