The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1897-12-22

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share the seat with you, while others
will stretch themselves and look the
other way to keep from being disturb
ed. They act like they have the
smallpox and don't want you to catch
it. My daughter and [ sat behind a
bridal couple as we went down, and
notwithstanding the car was crowded
and people still coming in, the selfish
old rascal with his young wife occu-
pied four seats and stuck their feet
upon one and looked defiance at every
body. Women came in with little
children and passed and repassed, and
found no seat. The old groom had
long, reddish-gray whiskers and the
bride of twenty-five had had her black
hair bobbed short in an aggravating
style and leaned her head upon his
shoulder while she affected sleep.
By and by countryman with little
girl in his arms came in and after
walking up and down few times,
stopped and surveyed the couple for a
minute. Still there was no sign. At
last he said, with some temper, "I
reckon maybe perhaps if you ones
would lift your feet often that seat I
could find some place to set down with
this child. I've toted her about a
mile Already" They lifted them with
alacrity and tried to turn the seat, and
found it locked. ''That don't mat
ter" he said, as he put down the
child, "'Im not gwine to hurt ye. .
We enjoyed it immensely.
/ wonder what makes so many of
these youngish girls (youngish is a
good word) marry these oldish men.
Every since General Longstreet set
the example every old widower in the
country is hunting for girl wife.
The widows have been thrust out of
the market. That is all right, maybe,
if the girl is poor and the widower
rich and he will settle good estate
upon her and die in reasonable time.
What curious transactions such things
sometimes bring about. Some years
ago rich old widower of our County
married a young wife and she was
loyal to him until he died, which was
in reasonable time, and she fell heir
to his splendid homestead with all the
land attached, and saon married again.
Not long after this she died and her
last husband now steps over the rich
mans land as sole owner and proprie-
tor Of that he never gave dollar for.
Our brief visit to Florida last week
was on business and I hurried home to
90 west on another lecture tour. 1t
gr;eved me to leave Clear Water,
which is lovelier than ever. It is
still the sweetest town that ever grew
beside the shore. Many improve
ments have been made since we were
there and half A million has been
spent by Mr.. Plant on the spacious
property mile below. Everything at
Bellair is on o grand scale. Its drives
and walks and lakes and gardens its
grand hotel that overlooks the green
waters Of the gulf its ornamental
shrubbery and long lines of stately
palms its coliseum and bouleyards
and gasworks and waterworks all as
tonished and charmed us, for it seem
ed as though Aladdin had been there
with his wonderful lamp and done it
all-not in night, but within year,
for it has not been much longer since
l was there and drove through that
chaparral of scrub palmetto and saw
nothing to attract me save the view Of
the distant islands and the foaming
breakers of the gulf beyond. Another
half million will make the place a
paradise, but after all Bellair is arti-
fetal, the handiwork of man and
money, while Clear Water is the work
of nature and of God. The one is an
embryo city Of magnificent distances !;
the other cozy village nestled on a
bluff among evergreen oaks and bays
and palms and cedars and climbing
vines, all clad in messy tresses, and
where the beautiful homes, half hid
den, overlook the placid harbor and
the setting sun, and where the chill
dren play upon the beach or wade in
the waters at the foot Of the hill.
Somehow the place reminds me of
those beautiful lines
land I knew by the smoke that 30 grace
fully curled
From among the dark elms that cot
tage was near,
And said to myself, If there is peace in
this world,
The heart that is humble might look for