The Wilmington daily Republican., 1901-10-10
AT A BARGAIN SALE.
ny GEORGE BARR BAKER.

shopping Is OF Two klnust nyPnotS suu
home rule. Both are conditions Of mind.
The first is common to all ordinary men,
and to not few women. The latter is
inherent, like freckles or fixed principles.
" can be cured, but only in spots and under
strong influence. With it one is king, for
he is able to go into any West end shop
and buy exactly what he wants, regardless
Of the supercilious glance or persuasive eye
of the assistant. But he seldom does, for
the very simple reason that he is generally
she. The gentlest of women often conceal
under a soft manner a power for refusal
unheard of in the makeup of mortal man,
Just as the fairest complexion conceals un.
der its rose int and rice powder tendency
to freckles ravishing to thihearts, OF fem-
nine friends. This lovely creature can fix
an otiicious salesman with a glance that
reduces him to the abiect condition OF
a wild animal when it comes TO state OF
hunger that makes it eat out Of your hand,
while the same man will sell male person
an eight shilling cravat when he wanted one
for two-andsix.
Take Dave Shoestring, for instance. He
is usually the soul OF independence. He
knows what he wants, and then prefers
rather to 40 without it than to pay more
than it Is worth. When shop assistant
sayss
eyes, indeed, sir, this Is exactly what you
want, the very latest thing, ] assure you," ="
Dave looks down upon him from the lofty
altitude of six feet two, and responds,
"Young man, be kind enough to show me
what you have, and will make the seloc-
ton"
Very few people could say II that way
without sounding eedanto or something,
but Dave has always had the home rule
shopping power, and the young person has
been used to quailing under bis glare, and
becoming meek for the space Of two or three
customers. So Dave went out for bargains
We wanted tablecloth and a rug, with
the possibility of nice, secondhand por.
there to cover bad place on the wall. Our
studio floor was of stone, with one lone.
some looking red square Of carpet in the
center When we had guests we used to
got cold feet from the stone. This did very
well for time, but one day man Of nerve
took down our big lamp and lit 1t, after
which he assumed most undignified po.
siton, with his pedal extremties over the
chimney and his legs over the arm of
chair, while oil was consumed to the value
OF sixpenee ha penny.
Another fellow danced about until the
people became frightened and appealed to
the concierge. TO pscify that old lady cost
fivepence more. Elevenpence ha penny in
one dayl AT this rate we would soon have
to give up finger-nail polish and scented
soap! A rug or second hand carpet would
be cheaper in the end,
Dave said | was not to be trusted with
shopping, and he grew quite personal about
q parrot | bought of needy man one night
on the boulevard. ] had to admit that the
bird had the pip, and that it died the next
day, and that the taxidermist said il wasn't
parrot at all; but, then, think of the
bread and wine in which the poor man in
vested for the benefit of his six starving
children, whose mother had been the daugh-
ter Of an impecunious but noble English
clergyman!
Anyway, a great sale had been advertised
for weeks, and Dave set out TO make some
bargains In sbopwors carpets, tablecloths
that had only bleached on ono side, and
few tumbers to match those We had saved
from sundry purchases Of jam
At five o'clock In the afternoon sat talk.
Ing to the thrush and the basso profundo
over cup of tea, and they were just limiting
that little fire in the crate might do just
as well as 4 carpet, and would give such a
ruddy glow to things, when tho door burst
open with bang and in bounded a most
extraordinary figure. Its bat was showed
back like comic opera singer's its clothes
looked like the ''piratical pirates In Edna
Nays new show. and his eyes glowed big
and ferocious and triumphant in the waning
light.
1t was Dave.
There could b no doubt Of that. But
who had hit him?
Before anyone could catch breath enough
10 ask questions, he had cavorted about the
room like a young gazelle, or a baby els:
phant, making the rrockery shake and the
sasels trembls.
II got one!" he shrieked in time to his
dance. II got one, got one, got ons,".
he repeated to chanting tune, ending, ous
Of breath, In an Irish reel.
Got what" we asked.
"Why, s.s.one Of those things, you know.
Oh! il was immense! had to knock one
man down, trample woman and baby, and
push girl under a pile Of boxes, but I
got it. Oh, they can't down me in crowd"
Lets see IT," we all cried, eagerly.
Then Dave slowly, tenderely, carefully,
undid small parcel. Inside was box.
Inside that . LOT 81 packing stuff. From the