Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1895-12-16
He WON HIS BET.

| too, in an hour and a half. You women
dawdle SO about your work and l.; ,ze so
much of unimportant things. It's a.! pom
sense to spend half day sweeping t. |
house, and it oughtn't to tire one to death
either'
"Oh, yes, that is about as much as a
man knows about a woman's work. I
would like to give you little lesson on
the subject, however, SO I'll take your bet.
I'll give you the IS if you'll do the work
in the time you proposed OF course you
can't do it, but you'll see how it is your
self when you try it. -
This little conversation between Mr.
Golf and his wife took place while they
fingered over late breakfast one Sunday
morning recently Tt had been a hot week
and old Sol seemed to have gathered him.
self for final effort that morning Mrs
Colts systematic methods had been some
what interfered with by unexpected COM
pany, and Friday had actually gone by
without tho usual weekly renovation,
much to her disgust for like most orderly
housewives she had cute little pro-
gramme to which she rigidly adhered.
Even though tired muscles quivered with
pain and overwrOught nerves protested
against such relentless system, she would
drag through the part laid out for each
day, instead of taking a good rest, and
then doubling the work the next day when
she felt equal to the exertion.
Mrs. Golf didn't keep help, partly be
cause she wanted her three children to
learn to work, and partly because being
strong, healthy woman it would interfere
with her household economics to do SO.
There was little more discussion on
the subject and then each one started out
to give the other beautiful lesson. 1t
isn't often that two persons plan to get
such widely divergent illustrations from
the same little performance. She was just
to keep out of the way until he was
through and let him do things his own
way and tell him when the time was up
wouldn't she have jolly good joke on
him, though, for he never could accom-
plish it.
He decided to do the sweeping first so
the kitchen might cool off a trifle and
armed with Bosom and dustpan he mount
ed to the upper rooms. A small space was
swept first and chairs, tables, etc., showed
together and covered with q nice, clean
sheet to keep the dust off, while bric-a-
brac of various kinds was tumbled on to
the beds with charming disregard of i'm
maculate counterpanes and dainty pillow
covers. 1t was inspiring to how the
carpet succumbed to each vigorous stroke
in marvellous eddies high up to the ceiling,
while his face grew more apoplectic in APP
pearance as the work progressed. But he
went on, and in an incredibly short time
he had swept the entire eight rooms and
was ready to begin on the dishes.
Mrs. Golf heard the dishes rattle. She
remembered her promise to keep out of the
way. But her woman's curiosity was
strOng-she must take peep at John in
all the majesty of his new vocation. She
managed to possess her soul in patience
until 5 minutes of the specified time, and
then she yentured into the kitchen. The
cleaning piles of china were white and
clean, but the water! No need to inquire
what constituted the breakfast menu; one
glance was sufficient. Bits of steak float
ed around on tiny RATS of toasted bread,
eggshells played tag with melon rinds and
grapes careened complacently around the
swirling mass as he rescued a few belated
silver spoons from its shadowy depths
"Oh john" exclaimed the Mortified
woman, ''yOu never scraped the plates. -
"WelI l should say not! What's the use
of fooIing away so much time? l rinsed
them in hot water. You couldn't get them
any cleaner yourself. / tell you women
waste too much time on trif1es While you
are getting ready to do thing a man
would have plunged into it and had it
done"
The dignity of this remark was some
what impaired by his ludicrous appear
ance. Big white aprons are not usually
very becoming to men, and combined with
Mr.. Colts ample proportions and the huge
polka dots Of coal smoke with the towel
which had served a sweeping cap still
perChed on his head, he was anything but !
an impressive figure. Nothing daunted,
however, he continued his little lecture.
81 tell you, said he, women don't know |
how to economic time They don't know
how to simplify and systematic. Perhaps |
the new woman with all her fine theories
will learn to bring some of the order and |
method of office work into the homes and
that the morning hours mustn't be devot- |
ed to neighbors and newspapers and'-
He didn't finish his homily-his wife |
was cOnvulSed with laughter two of his |
friends had sneaked in the back way just |
in time for the finish, and although he had |
won his bet with five minutes to spare he |
privately admitted to them that if he got /
caught in such trap again his name was
Dennis He said he would rather make
estimates against big printing house on
a 2 cent margin, correct the office boys /
first proof, or even try to collect bill for
posters and programmes from travelling
concert company than go through such an
experience again.
1t required good deal of hard work on
the part of Mrs. Golf to bring order out of
the chaos of dust which he had created,
and which he stoutly insisted it was no
part of his province to remove. And it
made her very sad to find delicate vase
shattered and the nose off of a favorite
but take it all in all she consid-
ers the experiment a grand success, for
since that time John has grown remarka-
bly reticent OH the subject of improved
methods and rapid results, and she realizes
that all unwonted consideration has grown
out of that little Sunday morning episode.