Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1906-07-28


as she stood there to recognize her. as
the laundress he had parted from three
months previous. The parting had been
a very quiet one. He had simply re-
tired from that quarter of tlse city and
killed two birds with one stone-land-
lady and laundress.
80 l have found you Out? said the
Iaundress as she sat down on a bro
ken backed chair and set her jaw.
Can it be my dear laundress, Mrs.
Hazleton?" exclaimed the major as he
jumped up. No. But it is. Excuse
this emotion, my dear woman, but you
take me off my feet. So you did not
die?'
"Why should die?"
Because people who are hit by
three ton automobile and flung hun
dred feet high generally die over it.
When l was told by a policeman that
you had been hit and taken to the hos
pital and the last reports from you
showed that you had been unconscious
for thirty hours I gave up all hopes.
felt almost as II sister of mine was
passing from earth away. Well, well,
but how strangely things do turn out.
Here you are, In the best Of health and
with complexion that a princess
might envy, and all the time l have
thought of you as lying meath the will
low"
''Sir, you owe me for doing up seven
teen Shirts" solemnly replied the wo-
man, not in the least f1attered by his
words
ut cannot be, Mrs. Hazleton-it can
not be. l never owned seventeen shirts
at once in my life.''
'"Then it was doing up one shirt sew
enteen times, which amounts to the
same thing. l was never struck by an
auto. l never went to the hospital.
No policeman ever held any converse
ton with you about me- You simply
tried to blk me- have been looking
for you for weeks. l have found you.
/ want my money"
"My dear, dear woman, do you know
what coincidence is?' asked the maj
or as he walked about.
"You owe me for seventeen shirts,
sir"
"And l sat here thinking of you as
you entered that door l was wonder
ing if you had a tombstone at your
grave AS l wondered the tears came
to my eyes. In my days Of poverty
you were one of the few who trusted
me- Instead of demanding cash down
when | came for my shirt you wrapped
it up and smiled on me- Many and
many a time vowed that
"You vowed that you would dead
beat me, and you did, but you'll pay
now or there'll be row."
"And when l got TO thinking that
your grave was unmarked I felt it my
duty to order tombstone for it.
should have got one with a lamb on
top. 1t would have stated that you
were virtuous, honest and always iron
ed all the wrinkles out Not the equal
Of steam, perhaps, but better than a
John Chinaman. That tombstone would
have cost all of 5000, Mrs. Hazleton.
and the potted flowers on the grave
would have cost $50 more. That's the
kind of man | am"
Seventeen shirts, Major Crofoot, and
l don't leave until am paid"
"Why mix seventeen shirts with sen
timent, my dear woman? However.
let me say to you that I am glad you
are here. The debt is one of honor and
shall be discharged at once. Seventeen
shirts at cents apiece is S136.
could hand you a check for that amount
and you would go away smiling. but
am any such man? Would that ex-
press the gratitude yelling up in my
bosom every time my thoughts have
turned to you? Heaven forbid. ! was
on my uppers when you trusted me