Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1904-06-15
The End Of
A Quarrel
iOriginal.1


for the police force consisted Of five
men, who were expected to watch 5000
houses, or thousand houses to each
man. On Sunday evening when the
Burnes family were at church and the
servant "out" burglars entered the
house and got away with much plum
der. On Monday night, or, rather, morn
ing. they cut a hole with a jig saw in
the kitchen door of the Lawrences,
turned the key, walked in, took every
thing on the ground floor and depart
ed without awakening the inmates.
And so they proceeded, nearly every
night entering some house and carry
ing off valuables. Why they contin-
ued operations in one locality for so
long a time no one could tell unless
1t was on account of lack of protec-
ton.
Young Mrs. Bartlett had tiff with
her husband in the morning at the
breakfast table. Her servant the day
before had left her in the lurch, there
was an unusually large washing and
no one to do it. She had requested Mr..
Bartlett to go out and hunt up wom-
an to come in and launder. Mr.. Bart
lett had replied that by so doing he
might possibly lose an important bust
ness deal and thousand dollars that
would go with it. Then Mrs. Bartlett
had told him that if he refused the
washing would have to go over, and
this would disarrange the household
for the whole week and perhaps lon
ger, whereupon Mr.. Bartlett told her
that he would rather the washing
stand over a month than that he should
lose his deal. This was the way it
started, and it ended by Mr.. Bartlett
putting on his hat and going out, shut
ting the door on the middle of SEN
tence his wife was firing at him.
AS soon as the husband had departed
the wife went out herself, luckily
found laundress, brought her home
and in few minutes the serenity Of
the household was only broken by the
rub. rub, rub in the laundry. Mrs.
Bartlett's irritation cooled down as the
water in the range boiler grew hot, and
she began to regret her harsh words.
Mr.. Bartlett went to his Office, had an
unlucky business day and when even
ing came. supposing his wife would be
in the same humor he had left her, in
stead of going home to continue the
quarrel went to his club, dined and
spent the evening there.
When the dinner hour arrived and
Mr.. Bartlett did not return Mrs. Bart
lett began to tremble for fear she had
gone too far She dined alone-that is,
she went through the motions of din
ing, for she was in no mood to eat.
When she paid off the laundress and
found herself absolutely alone in the
house her heart went down like the
mercury on the eve of cyclone. Two
terrors We'd with each other for the
honor of absorbing her attentiOn-One
that she had driven her husband away
from her, the other that the burglars
who were infesting the town might
make her a visit. Locks and keys were
a great deal for her, and she locked
and bolted every door in the house, in
Guiding the front door, besides noting
carefully that the catch was properly
set on every window. The evening
was spent, first, in abusing her hus-
band for not coming home; second,
fearing that he never would come
home, and, third, expecting every min
ute to be burglarized. About IL o'clock
she went upstairs, ard, putting on a
wrapper, lay down on the bed.
C,.II CHI coz NJ I'd Ind CHI
heard sound below or had she dream
ed it? While she was wondering there
was a step in the rear Of the house. Go
ing to back window she peeped
through the blinds, which she had pur-
posely slanted, but though she could
hear some one below she could see
nothing. Noiselessiy opening the shut
ter, she put out her head and looked
down upon a man trying the window
catch on the floor below.
| Sometimes the most timid unexpect-
edly display the greatest bravery when
put to trial. Mrs. Bartlett realized
that something must be done to drive
the man off. She feared that If she
cried out she would not be heard and
it would incite the burglar to kill her.
There was neither gun nor pistol in the
house. and if there were she would not
dare touch either. Like flash it came
to her that the water in the boiler was
very hot, having been kept so all day
for laundry purposes. Selling pitcher
she rushed to the bath room, filed it
with steaming water, returned to the
window and poured it down on the
head of the burglar.
There was yell and the man, wiring
ing his hands, stepped back and looked
up at the window.
"Fiend," he cried, "how can you be
so devilish as to pour scalding water
on your husband?"
There was shrek at the window,
and Mrs. Bartlett, frantic, rushed
downstairs and threw open a back
door. There was a passionate protest
from the husband, while the wife beg
ged him to come into the house. Mr..
Bartlett had been protected from the
hot water excepting his hands, which
looked like boiled Holsters. The water
was not boiling, but was hot enough to