Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-11-01
BILLY, THE FOOL.

Billy's wife was as weather beaten and
almost as gnarled and old fashioned as
| himself. They were happy in their own
way and fond of each other at heart, but
to superficial Observers their life was one
long discOrd. Billy's satiriC tongue de-
lighted in teasing the too susceptible ma
turc Of his spouse But the true bone Of
contention between them was, if | may so
express it, the sugar bowl. The bano Of
poor Mrs. Billy's days was the effort to
keep supply Of sugar in the house. Bill
ly's one great passion was sugar. He
would go through fire and water--Hye,
through brimstone-for sugar. Hide it
where Mrs. Billy would, he would find it
out, for no pressman had ever such.a nose
for news" as that same Billy had for this
delectable dainty
He had one bright accomplishment
which made him prime favorte. He
could Tilt tunes as well as any man in
Munster. How those boys and girls-and
old stagers, too-could have the heart and
strength to whirl through the "sets" and
step dances as they did, after long day
of toll in the boys and kitchens and gar
densl But in one house or another one
yard or another, they mustered on most
evenings and showed, as 'set" succeeded
"set, " what airy and youthful natures they
preserved through all the labor of life.
And no one entered into the spirit of it all
with such zest as Billy. His voice almost
made the welkin ring as he lifted, in most
perfect time, dance tune after tune that
made the best hddlers envious.
But u trial day came in his life Thus
it arose: In the winter of each year he
scrapcd together the rent of his little hold.
ing, through the sale of a few ''slips'' of
pigs that had been fattened in the previous
months One particular winter he and his
spouse had been harshly pressed by cir.
CumstanCes Truth to tell, in the long
evenings when he lifted his best for tho
"boys, the poor follows hunger was such
as would have appalled, them had they
dreamed of it. Indeed on one occasion
when he was bringing out Follow Me
Down to Carlew" in a style that fairly
broke his record he suddenly changed color
and fell to the floor in u swoon. He had
been fasting since morning, save for
small portion of sugar-there was little
left i'll those days-that he had stolen, as
usual. But he and Mrs Billy had every
liOlJO tllttO lllO BIttlU NluICI ltllI Ill GllGlT
county town would leave them with tidy
sum rs the proceeds of the slips " sale.
that it would pay the rent and leave some.
thing in hand for the "black winter"
1t was bitterly cold time, and Billy's
good spouse had knitted rough pair of
gloves to save her lords hands from win
ter's chilly terrors Billy stoutly opposed
the idea, for he despised gloves land such
frippery," but the "vanithee" had her way
this time. So, gloves and all, he started
out in the freezing wintry morning and
"made" for the fair.
Alasl that day of days he fell before the
devil and temptation. He sold the slips"
at good bargain, but he had "a glass too
much" After the late hunger liquor
played the mischief with him. He came
home, lifting such tunes as the boys never
heard lin all their born days" He threw
his gloves into corner with a gesture of
contempt and swore he would never take
them up again. He stepped up to Mrs.
Billy and rolled to the floor. He was dead
drunk for the first time in his life, and
oh! tragedy of tragedies he had not six
pence in his pocket. The price of the
"slips" was lost or squandered or gone to
the devil.
Mrs. Billy tainted, and when Billy
came to something like his senses he al
most tainted too. The years great item
Of income was gone. Black ruin stared
them in the face. That night and many
nights after they went to bed supperless.
. Billy and his spouse were proud. They
kept their poverty from the neighbors'
knowledge. But they suffered sorely. And,
no rent being forthcoming, the day came
when they were to be turned out of the lit
tie home that they loved, that was so sweet
with memories. Their hearts were heavy
and the world was black for them. The
sheriff and his minions turned up at the
appointed hour to evict them. The trag-
edy of their days had come
AS they turned to go out forever, Mrs.
Billy's eye caught sight of the despised
pair of gloves in a corner. She took them
up listlessly and opened pocket to receive
them. She gave strange cry.
In every finger of either glove shining
sovereign was found, Yes, almost the
whole price Of the "sfips," placed there by
Billy in whimsical hour of that dismal
drink day, and, of course, utterly forgotten
when his senses returned.
No one was more pleased than the sheriff
at the new development. Billy got ter
rible lecture from his spouse that evening,
but she overlooked all his depredations in
the matter of sugar for full week after
ward.
Billy and his spouse are prosperous now,
and he lifts for the "boys" as much as
ever. But he is never allowed to go alone |
to fair or market-EXChanpe