Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1899-03-18

THE PAINTING HABIT.
SHuN THE CRAZE If YOU ARE NOT
ALREADY A VICTIM.

This Story of One Unfortunate Dupe's
Life shows to What an Unframed
Thirst For Paint RTay Bring the
Most Respectable of Men.
Of all the vices to which the head Of
family can be addicted the paint craze
is probably the most devastating in its
effect upon the mind, clothing and
purse.
Unlike drunkenness and playing on
brass instruments, it is a vice which
can be practiced without publicity, and
this is doubtless one reason why it is SO
awfully prevalent.
There seems to be something wonder
fully fascinating in the private paint
brush and the cans of prepared paint
that are extensively advertised as com
bining the twofold mission of preserv-
ing and identifying objects upon which
applied.
The man who has once allowed him
self to paint the kitchen chairs or the
dog kennel takes a step which he can
rarely retrace. His thirst for paint
grows with indulgence, and he soon
comes to feel wretched unless he has a
brush IN his hand.
Among private painters there exists a
strange and morbid unwillingness to al
low particle of paint to be wasted.
The man who buys pound can of blue
paint with which to paint table, and
finds that after the work is done he has
a quarter OF pound of paint left, in
stantly tries to find some other article
of furniture on which to use it
Thus he is constantly led ON from one
article Of furniture to another and re.
duces himself 10 poverty, madness and
despair.
The story Of man who was once
respectable and worthy ratepayer of an
adjoining municipality presents fear
full illustration of the misery caused by
participating The man in question
was induced by an indiscreet friend to
buy pound Of red paint with which to
paint small dog kennel Without re-
decting upon the danger to which every
one exposes himself who takes the I'M
hallowed brush in his hand, this man
painted the dog kennel, and with the
quarter of a pound that was left under
took to paint the bathtub, in order. as
he told himself, that the paint should
not be wasted. ......s e,..., 1
He found that when the tafhtub was
not more than half painted his supply
Of paint was exhausted, and he there
fore bought another can. With this he
finished the bathtub and had this time
thTee-quarters of pound ieft. 49,
; 1t was, Of cUuTse, impossible for him
to allow SO much paint to be wasted,
and accordingly he began to paint the
six kitchen chairs. There was enough
paint for FIVE chairs only. and the
man saw thss he could not
help buying third pound, nearly all of
which was left after the sixth chair was
finished.
With hungry eyes and excited air he
now roamed through the house seeking
what he might paint and finally de-
,ided to paint the woodwork of his
study. Two additional pounds were
1sed before the woodwork was finished, |
put he found that in his anxiety to
inish the work without buying sixth
an Of red paint he had laid on the |
oaint SO lightly in some places that the |
esult dissatisfied him.
AS remedy he resolved to run mar
ow bar Of black paint around each |
PANEL, and therefore bought pound of |
he best prepared ivory black. Not more |
han half of it had been used when the |
work. was finished, and it became neces-
airy to find something on which to use |
he remainder.
The unhappy man now realized when
was too late to save himself that he
vas a confirmed painter and that he |
lad not sufficient strength Of viii to
asst the accused paint brush from him
10 matter if he did thereby waste near
= pound of ivory black. He pursued
us downward course with great rapid
ty. Needless of the tears of his wife
nd the entreaties of his daughters, he
ainted everything in the house on
which paint brush could be laid.
His wife and daughters could not go
nto the street without showing by their
nvoluntary patches of black paint that
be head of their house was private
ainter. His money gradually found its
7ay into the pocket of the storekeeper
7ho sold the paint, and his health
ventually gave way under the indu-
nee Of painters collie. Montreal Ga
cite.
Fishing For Anchors.
One Of the queer occupations of man
IL e.. N->s-4 1