Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1903-08-25
CONSCIENCE AND HORSE TRADE.

TO BE CONTINUED.
CONSCIENCE AND HORSE TRADE.
Each Tried to Cheat the Other and
Each Felt That He Had Succeeded.
Once there were two men who
traded horses. Each traded for the
purpose of cheating the other, and
after getting home and examining his
property each felt that he had sue
ceeded in his design.
After that they would take rounda-
bout ways to avoid meeting, and In
time each came to have a hang-dog
look. People wondered at the change
which had come over these two men.
they had formerly been good citizens
and steady church members. Both had
been genial, hale fellows, who crack
ed their honest J country jokes and
laughed loudest at them themselves
but after the horse trade they lost
their old gayety of spirits.
They kept away from church, they
avoided not only each other, but their
neighbors, and from cheerful old souls
they became sour. looking fellows, who
went about continually dreading some
thing that they thought was sure to
happen or that might happen II 1t
didn't turn out otherwise.
But one day the horse that Brown
had traded to White lay down and
lied. White was filled with JOY. He
felt that after all, he had not cheated
the other man. His conscience seemed
to pull a large, jagged prod out OF
him. He even went out behind the
barn and whistled, just to make sure
that he hadn't forgotten how. He was
glad that he was mot a cheat, after all,
and that he could 'srflt look the world
in the face.
"Tn 20 to Brown" he said to himself,
"and forgive him for gouging me. l
can afford to be magnanimous. l wish
somebody knew about this. l hate TO
20 around just keeping it to myself.
1 never thought before that Ia ever
be glad to be cheated, but it's one OF
the pleasantest things know or l
wish 1 could afford it right along. The
old worlds all right. It's the finest
Mace I've ever seen and one OF the
best things in it Is that old dead horse
out there"
Now it happened that while White
was having this pleasure Brown
too, was happy. His horse had fallen
dead of old age and general debility
and, he, therefore, supposed that ne
was the cheated one. He was so glad
that he ate five or six green apples
without noticing what he did. Inc
sour look left his face and he ran out
to the road, where a boy was ridlng
past on a milk cart, to cut up with
him and plague him about the Addl-
son girl with the wart on her chin.
II must go and forgive White for
wronging me-" he said to himself, ana
we'll be friends again, If he has the
courage to look me in the face, ana at
night I won't hear the crickets all say
ing, Cheat, cheat, cheat any more.
So he set off down the road, hum
ming Nellie Gray" as he went, and
surprising the people he met by joking
with them in the old way.
Presently he saw White coming to-
ward him. He was sorry that a large
crowd would not be present when they
met. He wanted other people to see
how pleasant he was going to be while
shovelling Goals Of fire on his ola
friends head. At the same time SIM
liar thoughts filled the mind of White.
Az thew came nearer each ran forward
with a happy countenance and an out
stretched hand, not quite understand
ing WHY the other did not hang back
and look guilty.
my dear old friend" said Brown, as
they met. II want to forgive you.'
~ was Just going over to forgive
vou," replied White. THE horse you
traded me dropped dead this morning.
You cheated me, but I'll not hold a
grudge against you. T.
What? Me cheat you? Not mucn!
You cheated me. The horse l got
from you in that trade died OF old
age a couple of hours ago. But for
give you. Let's let bygones be by
gones.'
Then they stared at each other for
moment and began backing away,
while the guilty looks returned.
When he got home Brown sat down
and thought. At length he seemed to
have figured it out.
"By ling" he said. II believe a man
that wants to cheat and can't get the
chance Is just as bad as the fellow
that does and gets caught at it,
But White looked at it in another
way.
Darn it." he said to himself. NOW
won't have a chance to go to church
and look at Browns empty seat there
and feel like a boy that got licked for
stealing piece of pie that they've just
found out somebody else took"
Many a mans conscience Is In his
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