Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1896-07-02
THE SONG BIRDS FRIEND.
She Walled Over the Slaughter. but the
Hat Was Still SIS.

Hat Was Still SIS.
"Why, SIR" exclaimed the thin woman
with stony eye ns she waylaid the head
foorwalker In tho big stores millinery de-
partnent, "egen cats couldn't be equal to
It'll Not all the cats there are, wild and
tame, could TO equal to it How can you
can you do IL, eirH How can you9'
The foorwalker bowed and said
IF you ore referring to floorwalking,
madam, p
"Floorwalking hddlesticksl" said the
stony eyed woman. "Wiping feathered
warblcrs from the face of the earth is what
am referring to, sir! The song birds of
the dir, tho song birds Of the bush, the
song birds of the field, tho song birds of
the forest, that you are wiping from the
face of the earthl How can you, can you
do it, sir? How can your"
II give you my word, madam" said
the floorwalker, Inever in my life wiped
a single''-
"Look about you, SIR" persisted the
woman with tho stony eye, land see 'em
in your hats and in your bonnetsl Hun
| dreds and hundreds Of em, and every one
wiped from tho face Of the earth See this
ono, cold, cold in death, its sweet voice
forever hushed, perched in radiant beauty
on that new spring hatl How much did
you say that hat wasp
"The price of that hat" said the floor.
walker, sis SIS, madam, and"-
"Hah!' exclaimed the stony eyed wom-
an. Fifteen dollars! Poor bird Poor
bird! Once free as tho roaming zephyr,
and filling your native copse with tuneful-
ness, now tied to your roost, so to speak,
on yellow straw hat, with price upon
your head. Sirl How can you, can you
do it? Would you not rather hear that
beauteous thing burst forth once more in
all the melody and the gladness Of it's won.
drous song than have tcnfold the price you
set upon it?"
Pardon me, madam" replied the floor
walker, "but not on your life! That
beauteous thing is jaybird. You may
somo time have wandered by the woodside
and paused to wonder who it was that
came that way to file his saw. Since there
Is no saw filer present to hear me and feel
hurt, don't mind telling you that it was
the melody and gladness of the jaybird's
wondrous song that you heard this very
ono perhaps. and If thought there was
danger now Of 1t bursting Iorrn Il vv..
you to grab the hnt with 1t on and hurry
home!"
The stony eyed woman paused as If for
a reply from the beauteous thing, but 1t
did not burst forth, and she resumed.
'Alas, sweet bird'' said she. "Wiped
from the face of the earth, twill never
wake to living song again! Ten dollars
would hardly take that hat, you think?"
Fifteen dollars, madam" said the
foorwalker, shaking his head, sis the
upset price,
"And here" continued the woman,
casting her stony eye around on the stock,
"are song birds OF the air, and Of the bush
and of the field, and of the forest, with
nothing left but spreading tails and star
ing heads and flashing wings. All
wiped"-
"Shrikes, madan," said the f1op,rwalk-
or, "eat bees by tho million. Voice worse
than song an1 dance woman Catbirds.
Step on your dogs snil and heAr one sing
Flickers, sapsuckers, woodpeol1ers. War
bic like drum corps"
IAN wiped from the face Of the eartht"
declared the woman with the stony eye
"Beauteous things, with tuneful throsts,
that you have wiped from the face of the
earth, sir, at the beck of fashion and be-
cause my sex is vaint Gone is their swell
ing gush of song because my sex is slave
to- fashionl That SIS hat-how much off,
did you say, for cashp''
"Net, madam" said the fooTwalker.
Fifteen dollars, net. ~
The stony eyed woman paused long
enough to say: 7
'Even cats couldn't be equal to 1t!
Not all the cats there are, wild and tame,
could be equal to it!''
Then she went out, and the hooDwalker
mopped his face and said:
"Ain't she cuckooP Wouldn't she be
bird to trim hat with?"--Ed Mott in
New York Journal.