The Van Buren press. [volume] (Van Buren, Ark.) 1859-1914, 1896-06-06
BILL ARP'S LETTER.
Eliminates and Speculates Upon
the Patriarehal Days.

WIFE 1ktEEhlOA Ii
ping along through the grass toward
the house ind che screamed for me- d
course. 1t came in the front yard ana
l killed it By the stone step, but my WiIe
raVer believes d snake is dead as long
as its tail wiggles. / had to Keep on
killing it to satisfy her. and then hang
II up in a tree to make 1t rain. ~ -
awful dry up here, but now reckon IL
will lust pour down some time. ms
is the second snake that has ever been
seen Iere, but my wife says that she
knows that the place IS just haunted
with them. They always go IN PAIRS,
she saws. "Afoses mentions only one,
said /. "and didn't mention any until
after Eve was created. Probably Adam
lived and worked in that garden alone
for many years and he got as sick OF IL
MS did Robinson Crusoe. Then Eve was
created for Adams express company,
and they got along very well until the
serpent beguflsd her" Yes, and the
moor woman has to bear all the blame
of our sin and misery" said my wife,
adam said: The woman Thou gayest
me did give unto me and did eat. why
dident Eve say the man Thou dlqs
make me for did net protect me from
the wiles of that smooth-tongued ser
pent. He let Inc eat first and take all
the risk of the danger. The old auto
crat. No telling how long he had been
acquainted with the serpent, for he
knew all the animals and had mingled
with them and had dominion over them
and had given them all names long be-
fore Eve was created" mo doubt OF
it," said l, for Josephus says that the
serpent lived in the house with Adam
and was very handsome and very smart
and could talk. Perhaps they played
marbles together and went in a-wash
ing"
YES said Mrs. Arp, land the Lord
gave the command to Adam about the
forbidden fruit long before Eve wa
born"
'sShe wasent born said l.
"Pitv she was not" said she. "Then
she would have had a mother whe
would have protected her from the ser
pent and from Adam, too. The poor
woman never sven had a choice Oh
lovers nor a courtship nor wedding
Nor trousseau, nor her picture IN
| the papers, sad l, "and she dressed re
markedly thin, considering that the
climate is abort like ours. reckon
that Adams family expenses were very
| light about those times. But later on
he caught it, for Josephus says he had
| % daughters, and of course somebody
put up dry goods store in the neigh.
borhood and sold fnery. Fig leaves
| played out early"
81 should like to know where they
got any dry goods and finery or any
money to pay for it," said she. "The
Bible says the Lord made them gar
ments of skins"
"Yea," said |, "made them for Adam
and Eve, but two or three hundred
years after that they had learned to
spin fax and goats hair and silk and
weave it into cloth, and they made or
naments of gold and had precious
stones and made money, too, Tor Moses
says in the second chapter of Genesis
that one Of the four rivers flowed
through a land where the gold was
| good and, there, too, was bdellium
and the onyx stone. Oh, they caught
TO new fashions mighty fast, and GU:
up scandalous and Josephus says thu
sons of God were fallen angels and they
saw that the daughters of men were
| fair to look upon and they mated with
them and raised crop of giants, and
everybody got demoralized except
Noah and his family.
"Moses tells how that 'wise-hearted
women spun with their hands and
made beautiful ornaments for the tab.
ernacla.' Some of the necklaces taken
| from the mummies are as fine as are ever
seen at Tiffany's. The ancients were
not behind us in fine fabrics and ornq
mental arts. We read of an ancient
Hindoo princess who came into court
on state occasion and her father said
"Go back, my daughter-go back and
dress yourself And she replied
Father, have On seven SUITS but they
were of muslin, so delcately fine the
king could see through them
well, that win do now" said my
wife. "The baby is waking up. Bring
her to me, please. The poor little
thing can't sleep long while she is cut.
ting that other tooth. She is the best
and sweetest child in the world. Iwish
she would cry and be cross a little some
times. Somehow | am afraid she Is
too precious to stay here long. Tum
here to your dan-ma, darling. And
little Caroline puts out her arms and
smiles and coos, and her dan-ma feels
her forehead and says: I'm afraid she
has little fever and has taken n cold
When you walk out with her YOU will
not put on her bonnet. When a child
is teething you can't be too careful
with them"
The other day my wife was looking
all around the room for her spectaclcs.
when suddenly she discovered that she
had them on and exclaimed: "Well. I
do reckon I'm the biggest fool in the
world. J. No you amt, grandma -
said another grandchild. "You are tho
bessest fool in the world" Her spec.
tacles have got too young for her. and
must get her another pair. What n
pity II IS that these old grandmothers
nave to wear out and pass away,
Mother Eve didn't. Good gracious,
what a time she had with her posteritv
!osephus says she had 60 children, and
II they had 60 apiece and so on down the