The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1903-03-20

florist
THEY were n~eighbors.

"a He was a florist. and had hopes,
of making a good living. Shewas max
ing a prosperous living by managing an
inherited nursery. He wasyoung. She
was younger. There similarity ceased.
He was rugged, uncultured, plain,
though with a certain charm OF virlle,
forceful homeliness difficult to analyze.
She was pretty, college bred, Iaristo-
cratic. He believed in Drawn and brain.
She believed in blood and breeding.
They were not neighborly. She
called herself a "horticulturist." He
was merely a florist. OF course, Dick
Russell was a bachelor, and in love.
why don't you stick up a house on
your grounds?" asked Uncle William
one night as he and Dick sat smoking
a goodnight pipe in the porch
x'Can't afford it," said Dick, CURLY.
<I'm putting every penny [ can raise
into that gas machine I'm building in
the nursery"
Foolish, tool" grunted Uncle Will
liam.
"Mebbe so,'' assented Dick, grimly.
The months passed.
Dick said little, but read a great deal.
One day he Mortified Uncle William by
requesting permission to put in a tele-
phone.
"What for?" demanded he in q
breath.
"'Cause 1 want it," said Dick.
So, in spite of opposition and dire
predictions, the telephone was in
stalled, connecting the house with the
distant village of Prittlewell. His
point won, and his crop money safely
deposited in the bank, Dick threw him
self heart and soul into the compile
ton of his queer gas plant. He bought
miles of slender iron piping, and many
tons of hard coal. lie dug bitches and
laid a portion Of the piping around his
orchard and at regular distances
across it, until the ground looked like
a gigantic yridiron. The unused pip
ing (by far the larger portion) was
stored away in the gas house. When
the work was finished and the bitches
filled in, curious neighbors comment
Ell on the queer nozzles' which showed
above the ground at intervals along the
straight rCws Ct buried pipes.
Coin to i%rrigate?" they asked.
"Mebbe,' said Dick, grimly.
"How're you goin' to pillow an har-
TOW with them things a-stickin' up in
chat way?"
The gas machine itself, situated in
the center of the orchard, was, by aid
of a stout building, stout shutters and
a portly paddock, made curiosity proof.
No one went into this building except
Dick and two trusted workmen.
TITS perfectly scand'lous!" shifted
Aunt William n bitterly cold even
ing, as she sat by the kitchen fire mend
ing a pair of Dicks socks.
"Which? asked William, looking up
from his newspaper absent mindedly.
"Dick's goin's-on."
"Where's he goin' now?" he asked,
his mind still on the paper.
Don't you know" she demanded,
looking at him severely, that Dick is
~a-spending ev'ry penny he's got in the
world for a big black machine an a
lot O. rusty pipes?"
Uncle William looked crushed.
"Listen!" she said, suddenly, holding
up one of Dicks socks warningly.
Borne on the crisp night air there
came the. distant ringing blows of ham
-mer upon steel.
Just then the telephone bell rang
loudly.
"Goodness mel" exclaimed William,
almost dropping the lamp. Stepping
to the instrument, he put the receiver
to his ear.
els Dick Russell there ?" asked an un-
familiar voice.
"No. He's away at work on his gas
engine"
Twill you take a message to him at
.once?"
"Who're you?"
"Never mind me. Here's the mes
~sage-it's important. Tell Russell that
the weather clerk wires: Severe frost
tonight. Good-by."
Uncle William gasped and turned to
- his wife.
whats tall. about? ?" she spluttered.
Severe frost tonight" repeated he.
+'What!".
THAT'S what the man said,' persist
ed he.
Hes crazy" snapped Aunt William,
= bbe so. Mebbe. Folks say Dicks
crazy, TOO. Mebbe we're all crazy"
And Uncle William reached for his
boots.'i'''
"What are you goin' to do?"
""Do3"'Why cart this message over
to Dick afore it gets froze onthe way"
A tramp of about 200 yards through
the snow brought Uncle to the
~gassy madhouse'' las Dicks neighbors
politely called the structure).
s "Who's that?" asked Dicks voice
from within.
a&S 'Me-Uncle Bill
"What's up?"
"There's to be a severe frost tonight.
Weather expert says so. An I'm
n -f ro ozins ont horoc