The Saint Paul globe., 1899-08-15
CARRIED orr THU SHUTTLE
EMPLOYERS OF A SEWING MA
CHINE AGENT SUED FOR BIG
MONEY
Story of Mrs. Ouimct Divested of the
Legal FictiOns and Verbiage
Common to Complaints Filed in
Courts for Sumptuary Damages.

Regardless Of a volley of the purest
Partisan French, a bold bad sewing ma
chine agent stormed the modest apart
ments of Mrs. Adele Ouimet one after
noon last June. obtained a lodgment for
the machine that he represented. descant-
ed eloquently on its merits in the. GUS
tomary patois, and, after and exciting
encounter, was compelled to retreat,
which he did in good order carrying off
with him the shuttle of a rival machine
as spoils of war. All of these facts are
set forth in a complaint filed Yesterday
in the district court by Mrs. Ouimet.
through John w. Willis, her attorney. i'll
which she asks that the Wheeler & Will
son Sewing Machine company be required
to pay her 5000 for the forcibIe invasion
and the unlawful detention of her shuttle.
1t appears that Mrs Ouimet is a most
estimabIe widow, who, with her children.
occupies apartments at 43S Wahasha
street. Although she has been. a resident
of this country for several years, she-was
in her girlhood too deeply welded to the
musical language of her own country to
desire to substitute the harsh prosaic dfa-
lect of her neighbors Consequently Mrs.
OullilSJ speaks no EnS1lSn. On the after
noon of June 10 Mrs. Ouimet was quietly
engaged in mending some of the apparel
of her offspring when there came
laundering rap at the door. She opened
1t little way cautiously and peeked out.
to see large man standing outside and
beside him sewing machine. What do
you want?" inquired Mrs. Ouimet in
choice French, that bore not even trace
of the hateful Canadian patois
Then tO "a Iittla n 11tta,,
ment the stranger planted one foot in the
door and took advantage of his position
to pour forth talk of which Mrs Oufmet
understood only one thing-that for f1uen-
cy the strange man could beat anyone
she had ever heard.
''Je ne vous comprends pas" she said
timidIy.
Still the man persisted, and Mrs Ouimet
became convinced that the intruder was
desirous of selling something In spite of
her repeated protests of ''non,' mon"
uttered in a bold, loud voice that ought
to have been understood by any of the
foreigners, the man succeeded in pushing
his way in, as she says in her complaint,
'rudely and persistently." Once inside he
deposited the sewing machine that he
carried in the middle of the floor and de-
scanted on its merits.
1t was 100 much. In vain Mrs. Ouimet
tried to make him understand that she
ala not want any sewing machine. She
had one that had become endeared to her
by years of constant association and
which she would not part with. In trv-
ing to tell the man she pointed at her own
machine, and at last he seemed to under
stand.
As Attorney Willis translates her state
ment he seized the sewing machine" and
endeavored to show that it was no good
In the attempt he broke something and
then the French courage that won at
MarengO surged up in this true daughter
Of France. With one last despafring ef-
fort she opened the full flood of her vol
utility upon the man, emphasized with
gestures so suggestive and free that he
was driven from the place Then, woman
like, Mrs. Ouimet sat down for good cry
that helped considerably. But further
misfortunes awaited her She discovered
that the shuttle of her beloved machine
had been taken by the rude marauder
and that the little Ouimets would be COM
PEELED to go in ragged garments, for all
practical use she could get out of her ma
chine. It was too much. The little wom-
| an went straight to Judge Willis and told
her troubles, with the aid of an inter-
prefer, and now the department Of JUS
tice of this great country, with its
strange ways, has been asked to right the
wrong by awarding Mrs. Ouimet $1,000 OF
the money of the invaders employer.
Vive la justice, a bas sewing machine
agents.