The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1905-04-28
Rut Won haTen-f "

but you are way off There are onIv
1--WE pieces in the set
There are six
Come right in and count 'em Your
way is always to dispute me, and vet
you are wrong nine times out of ten"
They entered the parlor and counted
ana there were six pieces. Mr.. Bowser
looked uneasy I'D shufded about Hia
drsI idea was to charge Mrs. BowseE
with having introduced an extra chair
but he saw that wouldn't work and
grudgingly admitted:
" es, L See there are six pieces, but
our first idea was to buy only five.
believe you sent down afterward for
the odd one, and that's what knocked
my calculations out. 1t wasn't a fair
test. Two weeks ago you asked mo to
measure a picture frame for you, and
did so. You should be able to remem-
Der the dimensions. and yet I'll bet s.
to 81 you can't"
They were Is by 2i,'' promptly re-
piled Mrs. BOwSer
What! Ha, ha, ha. Well, you
jumped into the trap that time I have
carried those figures in my head ever
since. and they are p by IS. Had you
got a picture IS by "A 1 would have
had to take it back. You see
Mrs BowSer ran upstairs and
brought down the frame and a tape
line and handed them both to him, and
there was a smile of pity on his face
as he applied the line. The smile came
off like old plaster, and flush Of red
You see, you have been carrying the
wrong figures she said, with note Of
triumph in her voice.
Woman, don't attempt to play me
any tricks on serious subject You
have gone and introduced a new frame
in order to beat me-
How absurd. There are the marks
Of your pencil rs You took the meas
ure-
He was fairly beaten, and he stood
the frame up against the wall and re-
turned to his book. He was boiling
within. however. and after five or six
minutes he said:
What tiu you think Of a woman
who'll go down to the store and buy 81
WORTH of goods and then leave the par
Gel on the counter for some one to walk
off WITH"
Il think she was rather abSentmind-
ed that day and is ready to admit it.
But what do you think of man who'll
get to the depot for journey of 500
miles and then discover that he has left
money and tickets behind?''
Meaning me, of course:''
''Of course"
~AH of which was because I Trusted
you to see ME off and you failed me-
Now and then a man may be excused
for being absentminded, but woman
neverI If l had kept a list of YOUR
lapses the length of it would astOnish
you. The best thing you can do is to
keep quiet and read this book 1 find
that since l began it L have much
clearer memory"
Il may read it later on" answered
Mrs. BOwSer. but meanwhile let me
ask you what you did with the gimlet
after using it last EVENING""
Il put it back in the tool box, of
course"
1T is not there
''Then you have removed it."
Certainly not You were using it
upstairs. and you left it on a window
SILL When you came down you got
the Screwdriver and went down Gel
lar to tighten up water faucet
Where did you leave it?"
I'm the tool box. and I'll bet a mil
lion dollars to a cent
You left it on the cellar bottom.
Night before last you went over to the
painters after a pound of putty. You
forgot what you wanted and brought
home can of blue paint. Three even
tngs ago, when you were going out for
cigars, 1 asked you to stop at the drug
store and bring me little peppermint
essence. You came home with lauda-
num- How many times in the last
year have you walked into the houses
on either side of us. thinking you were
In your own? 1t wasn't a week ago
that you took the wrong car and went
a mile out Of your way When Mrs.
Green came in here the other day you
smiled and bowed at the cat and start
ed to kick the lady. 1 am glad you
have little book on memory, Mr. Bow
ser. You certainly need it,
"You are talking to me, are your
asked Mr.. BOwser, who was turning
three or four cOlOrS and hitching
around in his chair.
II am, sir"
And you are trying to make out that
I'm a born fOOl?''
NO. not that. but if that book helps |
you any it will be a good thing. You |
thought l didn't know how many |
pieces were in the parlor suit, although |
l had seen them daily for two years. |
You have been from here to the corner |
three and four times day for the last |
ten years How many shade tees do :
you pasS?"
49,