Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1903-11-21

TIE
July 4th, 1868, aged twenty.nine years.
He died for his namesake and his ma
tive land"
Quincy said interrogatively, did
you lose son in the war;"
mo" was the reply. II never had
a son. That was my substitute"
Strange that your substitute should
have the same name as yourself"
Eyes, it would have been if he had,
but he didn't. His right name was
Lemuel Buffers. But didn't propose
to put my money into such a name as
that
Were you drafted?" asked Quincy.
NO" said Uncle Ike. 81 might as
well tell you the whole story, for you
seem bound to have it. came down
here in 1850, when I was about sixty
OF course knew what was going on,
but I didn't take much interest in the
war, till a lot of soldiers went by one
day. They stopped here: we had a
talk, and they told me number OF
things that hadn't seen in the papers.
l haven't read the daily papers for thir-
teen years, but I take some weeklies
and the magazines and buy some
books. Well, the next day went over
to Eastborough Centre and asked the
selectmen how much it would cost to
send a man to the war. They said
substitutes were bringing $3.50 just
then. but that / was over age and
couldn't be drafted, and there was no
need of my sending anybody. l re-
marked that in my opinion mans
patriotism ought not to die out as long
as he lived. 1t seemed to me that If
a man had $3.50 it was his duty to pay
for substitute if he was hundred.
The selectmen said that they had
young fellow named Lem Buffers who
was willing to go il he got hundred
and fifty. So I planked down the
money, but with the understanding
that he should take my name. Well,
to make long story short. got killed
at Gettysburg and wrote that out as
a reminder"
Don't you ever get lonesome alone
here by YOURSELF" Quincy asked.
Yes" said Uncle Ike. 81 am lone
some every minute OF the time.
That's what came down here for.
got tired being lonesome with other
people around me, so thought
would come down here and be lone
some all by myself. and have never
been sorry / came"
| Quincy opened his eyes and looked
inuuiringly at Uncle Ike.
81 don't quite understand what you
mean by being lonesome with other
peonle around you" said he
mo, of course you don't" replied
Uncle Ike. you are too young
was sixty, | was thirty-five when I
got married and my wife was only
| twenty-five, so when l was sixty she
was only forty-seven. One girl was
twenty-three and the other-twenty
went to work at o'clock in the morn.
| ing and got home at at night. My
| wife and daughters went to theatres
/ dinners, and parties, and of course
stayed at home and kept house with
the servant girl. In my business had
taken two young fellows as partners
both good, honest men, but soon they
! got to figuring that on business points
4 they were two and was one. and pref.
Fly soon all had to do was to put wood
! on the fire and feed the office cat. So
you cGn see I was pretty lonesome
about eighteen hours out Of the TWEEN
I ty-four''
1 Quincy said rehectively, "And your
4 family"
4 Uncle Ike broke in. Are alive and
well. suppose They don't write me
and don't write them told my part
ners they must buy me out, and gave
them sixty days to do it in. | gave my
wife and daughters two-thirds of my
fortune and put the other third into
! an annuity. | am now calculating that
if my health holds. good / can beat the
insurance company in the emu
Quincy, finding that his inquiries
4 provoked such interesting replies, risk
ed another, "Are your daughters mar.
ried?"
/ Uncle Ike laughed quietly. Il dom
read the daily papers as I said, SO
4 don't know. but they wouldn't sent
me cards anyway They know m,
ideas of marriage
i Quincy smiling asked, Have yor
some new ideas on that old custom? p
"Yes, have" replied Uncle Ike
"If two men go into business and eacl
puts in money and they make money
or don't make it. the law doesn't fl
1t so that they must keep together fol
their natural lives, but allows the firm
to be dissolved by mutual consent"
"Why sir, that would make mar
riage limited partnership" sait
Quincy with a smile.
What better is it now?" asked I'm
Gle Ike. "The law doesn't compel cou
pies to live together il they don't wan
to, and if they don't want to live to
gether, why not let them under prope
restrictions get up new some new
firms? OF course. there wouldn't b.
any objection to parties living togeth
er for their natural lives, if they want
ed to, and the fact that they did woult
be pretty good proof that they wanted
to-
Quincy started to speak. .tBu
4 what
81 know what you were going t,
say" said Uncle Ike. you are goin.
to ask that tiresome old question
! what will become of the children
, Well, should consider them part o
the property on hand and divide then
and the money according to law"
But few mothers would consent tt
be parted from their children"