The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1904-12-24
A CHRISTMAS COMEDY OF ERRORS.

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Christmas said Mrs. Slickerby, as
she climbed stiff1v down from the
chair on which she had been standing
to deck the chandelier with holly.
"How surprised Josiah will be when
he comes in, cold and tired, to find
the place looking so like holiday times.
/ declare, have a good mind to make
fire in the stove just to please him;
he kept asking for it so long-though,
come to think of it, he hasn't men,
toned it lately, though / always told
him it only made dirt for me to clean
up and the furnace heated the whole
place anyhow. He said his mother
used to have nice fire in the stove
when they came in evenings. OF
course, she did his mother never saw
a furnace in her life, and wouldn't
have known it from telephone if she
had" She paused, with her hand on
her hips, to admire the Fesult Of lasr'
labors. Eyes, / gtiess I will light
fire in that stove, anyhow, it will serve
as text for more remarks about the
cold and few more hints at to howl
do need new set of furs this Christ
mas. Josiah is good man, but heis
as close when it comes to a question
of money as potato is TO its skin. -
She was busting about as She
talked, making her preparations 10
light FIRE in the brilliantly polished
stove. "There, declare, = she cried,
as she opened the door, eff Josiah
hasn't got this stove all filled up with
papers and trash, after all my talking
It does seem as if you can't teach
man to be careful about a house any
more than you can teach hen to play
checkers Never mind, I'll just lay
my kindlings on top of the trash and
not scold--Christmas is not the time
for scolding, anyhow-though when
you've got to live with man it's
best to take every opportunity to teach
him what's right"
AS the fire began to crackle cheer
fully, she left it and went over to the
old-fashioned cupboard in the corner,
reached carefully to the top shelf and
took down bundle.
''I'll just take peep at Josiah's
present" she said. II tell you, there
was lot of work in the knitting of
that afghan, and if he doesn't give
me those furs he'll feel a good deal
ashamed every time he puts it over
his knees in the buggy this winter and
the furs are not in the house. ] know
that for I've been over every square
inch of it in hopes I'd find he'd hid
den 'em somewhere" She had un-
folded wonderful combination of
colors in wool which would have
made Joseph's coat somber garment
by comparison and looked at it with
great admiration. Then she carefully
replaced it. VI don't know as it's
just necessary 1to keep it away up
there-he wouldn't see it if it was
right under his nose. Dear me, l
certainly smell something burning. I
wonder if it can be my cake III the
oven, had almost forgotten it, with
all those other thing on my mind
"There comes Josiah now p she
cried ten minutes later, as she heard
the door of the sitting room open.
I'll stay out here and see what he
does. Well surely he must be pleas
ed with the decorations and the fire in
the stove. 1t sounds as if he was
doing jig all over, the room-and
him protesting Christian 'too?"
Five minutes later she opened the
sitting room door and stood trans6xed
on the threshold. "Why Josiah
Slickerby, what on earth is the mat
ter?'' she shrieked. "You are as
black as a sweep and your beard is all
singed, and what is that awful smell
in here, and what is that you have in
your hand 7"
"It's your new set of furs, that's
what it is" retorted Josiah grimly,
"a good set of furs that cost lot of
money, too, and looking like cat
that had been sitting on can of fire
crackers when they went off r.
ST hid 'em in the stove, that's how !
You said you'd never make another
FIRE in it now we've got a furnace and
hid'em in it, SOS / could surprise
you for Christmas ~
"Well, goodness knows you have
surprised me !"
Eyes, and when / came into this
room it was all full Of smoke, and
flames were bursting out of the stove
door, it was so full, and if hadn't
kept my presence of mind and hunt
ed out that old thing to smother the
flames with the whole place might
have been burned p and he held up
the afghan, which was scarcely in bet
ter condition than the furs by
Elisa A1mst,0ng Beng0Mgh.