Waterbury Democrat., 1901-09-18
His Run of Tough Luck
HTHE man sat on a stump at tn.
Oversight of a r1uch Insured C1an in the Hern1ocE Belt. s- s~


 HE man sat on stump at the
 side of the road, just where the road turns, a little way this side of Geeville, in the Hemlock Belt" said John Gilbert, the trateling gro- ceryman- He stopped me as I drove up.
 @'Cap'n,' said he, if you're one of 'em, and insure ag'in earthquakes, I'll take out a policy, right now
 'I didn't understand him, and told him So.
 Then you ain't one of 'em, and I'm powerful sorry," said the man. I was hopin' you was one of 'em, and that your line was earthquakes, cause then me and you could "a done business right on the spot. I been havin' the unmercifullest run O tough luck, cap'n, you ever see or heerd tell on, and if you was only one of 'em now, with that pertic'lar line, I mout stand a chance of hay in things more my way little, after all. Don't s'pose you ever had any hard luck, cap'n?'
 '.I told the man I had been up against pretty hard lines, more than once.
 You don't know nothin' about iti' said the man on the stump. Let me give you little inklin' of how luck can cut up, here in the Hemlock Belt, when it gifts agoin' and you'll forgit all the tough luck you ever had or heerd on. Somethin' like a couple O months ago man came along by my place, down wonder in Geeville. He said he was insurin' folks agin fire. told him that bein's as I was good orthodox Hardshell Baptist I didn't think I'd need it.
 "t''No, mol" says he. "Your house. Your house is lia ble to burn, ain't it, even if you ain't?'
 Now, the fact was, my house was a good un, but old and dry as finder, beln' made O pine. When the wealth CT was real hot we use to keep wet carpet on the roof, and I had mo smokin' signs hung up here and there about the house. It had been on fire nine times, but we always managed to git it out. So the upshot O this feller's talk was that I let him insure the house agin fire; and I took down the mo smoIcin'" /" signs, and told the folks they needn't bother with the wet carpets any more. l guess maybe it was teh next week when another chap come along a horseback.
 "...How d' do?" says he.
 T said how q do.
 ST want to insure you ag'in wind, says he.
 ".I asked him if I looked like fel- Ter that couldn't stand up ag'in a book agent or patent right seller, and he said no.
 "'"But that ain't it." says he. 'sYour house. Hurricanes. Gales O wind. Hurricanes could take your house away and never bring it back, couldn't they?"
 Hurricanes has got a way O droppin' down around here, sudden and strong and, to tell the truth, I used to have my house snubbed with ropes to three or four pine stumps that stood high, and I've seen her
 
 them ropes squeak and squeal a-hold- in of her down, when some O them gales O wind come suddin' ag'in her, I can tell youi So I let that chap argue me into insurin' the house ag'in wind and cut the guy ropes. Don't seem to me that it was more than ten days later when another feller drove in.
 "'"Want to insure you ag'in light nin' strikin' you," says he.
 "s"See herel" says I. T have been waitin' nine years for that old aunt O. mine to die, and she's worth s9.OOO. She may leave it to my Cousin Eli, or to my Uncle Jake, or to my Aunt Tanner, or to the dom- iinie, or to me. You can't tell where lightnin's goin' to strike, though, and I'm in state O mind that won't let me insure ag'in it's strikin' me,
 "s"No, mol" says he. "Your house. Forked lightnin' from the sky has been known to skitter down and strike houses pretty nigh as good as this un O your'n," says he.
 As matter O fact, cap'n, lightnin' had struck that house three times al ready, and l was actu'Iy pinin' that minute for a ightnin' rod peddlar to come along so's l could git up dicker with him fer runnin' some rods up on ner; consequently, me and this insur- ance chap agreed, and he socked a policy on her ag'in her bein' struck by ughtnin'. The lightnin' rod man came along not more'n an hour later, but O. course didn't care to dicker with him then.
 The woods must a been full O them insurance fel1ers just about then, for it wasn't long before uD dnove an.