Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1897-07-02
ATTACK OF LUMBAGO.

"Ah." exclaimed my friend Thorley,
the eminent physician, throwing down
the evening paper, which he had just
been perusng, and delivering himself
in his most sententious manner. "How
many complete comedies, and tragedies
for the matter of that, may often be
latent in two or three commonplace
lines of print
"And what, pray, most sapient phil
osopher. has evoked from you that pro-
found sentiment" / inquired, laugh
ingly
"The concluding sentence in this obit-
uary notice Of the bishop Of X" he
said, taking up the paper again and
reading aloud the passage: HE mar
ried, in 1866, Margaretta, third daugh-
ter of the late Joshua Barker"
"Indeed," | said. And Is it COM
edy, my philosopher, or tragedy that
| turks in that very simple historical an
nouncement:"
"Umph \ comedy. At any rate the
comic element prevails"
"You knew the bishop in his young
days. l believer"
Intimately, and his wife, too. In
fact, l myself was spectator of the
little comedy which resulted in their
marriage"
You were?"
II was.' said Thorley, with an i'm
pressive air. l saw that he was burst
ing to tell good story. We were by
ourselves in corner of the club smok-
ing room. There are men from whom,
IN like circumstances, should have
fed incontinent. pleading an immediate
engagement. But Thorley was an ex-
cellent raconteur and l had nothing
particular to do for half an hour.
therefore lay back in my chair and re-
garded him encOuragingly.
u believe" he went on, "that YOU
would find the story rather diverting.'
Then, by all means, let me hear it,
Suggested.
And, nothing loath, he began:
1T all happened more than thirty
years ago." Thorley said. II need hard
y say that the bishop had not, in those
Gays, attained to episcopal honors. He
was IN fact, merely, the vicar of Penn
borough, where l, youngster, was
carrying on my first practice, and
where Margaretta's father was brew
ing Indifferent beer. But even then his
reverence was cleric marked out for
1uture preferment, no less by his aris-
tocrahc connections than by his in
trnsic personal merits. Nor by that
90 mean to imply that these merits
were lnconsideable. He was decided
~ intellectual, an eloquent preacher, a
sood organizer. And his bodily pres
ence contributed an appreciate quota
70 the effect Of those qualities. He was
tail, imposing dignified. Calm author
'auVeness sat upon his placid and am
PIE forehead. Solidity and weight
swelled in the undulations of his capa-
c'ous walstcoat. Severe moral recti-
'uoe helped to stiffen every line Of his
upright and stately bearing. Even
apart therefore, from his intrinsic self
he made splendid fgurehead for the
spiritual life of the parish. l suppose
us age must have been about 40,
though he looked older. And he was a
confirmed bachelor. So much so, in
'act, that the single ladies in Pembor-
ough, OF whom there were many, hard
" regarded the vicar as matrimonial
" possibility; albeit, with his high con-
nections and good prospects, he would
na'e been an excellent spec for the
Dest of them.
Not that he was a boor or a brutal
:, sa'sogynist or anything Of that kind.
very much the reverse. He mixed free
" IN the social life Of the place. He
.nJoyed the company Of ladies. and,
.n'eel, IN his sanctified way. was quite
prohcient fiirt. But to that deeper,
"sting sentiment which leads through
courtship to wedlock he was entirely
strange, and honestly believe that the
oare idea Of matrimony had never
crossed his mind.
Now will revert for a minute to
the Bankers.
i have said that Joshua Barker, the
neau or that family, was a brewer of
.iui1erent beer. In spite Of the quail
~! OF his malt liquors he did large
business, having many tied houses. and
was worth considerable sum Of mon
ey. But then he was the father OF
.ourteen children. so that his fine in
eohe was somewhat discounted.
Anal not have much to say about any
y, 'hem, excepting his eldest daughter,
.uargaretta, whom knew better than
aiy OF the others and who was a great
,tiend OF my wife's. In fact, the young
.auv spent a great part Of her time at
oar mouse. And I was glad that she
tiu SO, FOR NY wife, having only lately
oeen married to me, and having come
A&"a q house full Of brothers and SIS