The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1896-09-12


irascible man, and he used to wear red
comforter around his neck and red flannel
ear lappers on his plug hat when he went
to meeting in winter. He was always
ready to argue that these modern times
were awfully bad, and that the good old
times of hundred years ago were just
right. He would decry invention and
improvement and say that the world would
be better off without them. He took a
newspaper on purpose to count the murders
recorded in it and to tell how bad the
world had grown. He would stand for
hours in the village and retail his deduc-
tions on the present and his regrets for the
past.
One day he had whipped the minister
in argument, and as he had had his dinner
and the minister had gone away mad and
the women were at work in the kitchen,
he tipped back in his chair, drew red silk
handkerchief over his head to keep off the
flies and went to sleep. He had not slept
over five minutes before his son John came
in and said:
Come, father, we must get at that piece
of wheat and cut it..
Blewtt got up and yawned and followed
his son to the barnyard, where his two
sons sat on log filing a couple of old
sickles.
"What in the nation are you doing
with those sickles?" said Blewitt.
One of the boys looked astonished and
said: 'Don'? Why, we are getting
ready to cut the wheat"
Blewitt stared moment and then said ::
'Why in thunder don't YOU hitch on to
the reaper and stop fooln' with them
sickles?''
The boys looked at each other in sur
prise, but said nothing. Blewtt ran to
the shed, but there was no reaper there.
He came back. The boys had got over
the fence and were on their knees reaping
the wheat and carrying in ravels.
Boys" said Blewitt, what do you
mean by this foolishness? Where is the
reaper?'
Charley, the second hoy, looked at his
father pityingly, ard then tapped his fore
head and looked over to John, who nodded
and looked sad.
"Why, darn it," said Bewtt, you can
never run those bundles through threshir
machine.
''Theshin machine?' said Charley, why
you know as well as do that | shall have
to fail this wheat out mornings and nights
while going to school this winter. What
als you, father:'
Blewitt, as we said, got mad easily and
now he just hoped up and down and said
"Flail it out! 1t must be thrashed
ready to ship on the ears next month.
Cars, cars, - said John. Don't know
what ails you, father, or what you mean |
know l shall have to team this wheat down
to Albany and sell it for what it will
bring. Here you come out talking about
Ieapers and cars and threshin machines
and darned if don believe you are crazy
so now.
Blewitt pinched himself to see if he was
asleep and strobe angrly to the house
AS he approached it he heard roaring
and rumbling like the wind, and he looked
into the kitchen and there was his wife
spinning. Whooo went the big machine,
and Blewitt sank into a chair and yelled:
'Now, Maria, what under the canopy
are you doin'?'
''Doin'?' said his wife, why spinin',
OF course. must get out forty yards of
full cloth for you and the boys and twenty
yards of pressed flannel for me and the
gals
Blewitt looked down at his legs and saw
them encased in full cloth of coarse texture
and the seat of his trousers he felt reached
clear up to his shoulder blades, and the
legs were as wide as two bushel sack
"Well, IN be darned," was all he
said.
Dreamily he slnntered ont again to the
wheat field and john halted him.
Father, if you amt going to help cut
the wheat suppose you yoke the oxen and
go up to the woods and draw raft or two
Of legs for wood?'
Blewitt was composed, but he said: II
had intended to burn coal in the sitting
room and parlor and not cut much wood"
Goal, coaln' said john angrily.
Now see here, father; | don't want
any more of this foolish talk. I'm going
to get DOCTOR
Blewitt began to think he needed one
himself. Here his boys never heard of a
reaper or threshing machine or cars. On
the lounge at the house he lay himself
down and tried to calmly think things
over. When the doctor came he called for
a pail and barred Blewitts arm. He took
out his lance, and taen Blewtt groaned
again.
81 must take Il gallon of blood" said
the Doctor, "and then he will calm down
and DO all right
Don't you know bleedin was played
out fifty years ago." said Blewitt.