Smyrna times., 1906-01-03
BaaCkbegrieS
For Supper
Ey c. D. LEWIS
Copyright, 1905, by R. B. McClur.

Aunt Judy Taylor. relict of Hiram |
Taylor, had come ON from Iowa to live |
with her brother and his family for the |
rest of her life She had sold all her |
earthly possessions in the west for a |
thousand dollars in cash, and a few |
days after her arrival she had turned |
this money over to her brother James.
with the remark:
"Now. James, this is all yours but
5000. That 5000 is for Clara when she
gets married. It's for her to make a
wedding tower on. When was mar
ried wanted to make a wedding tow
er to Niagara falls, but Hiram hadn't
but $13 to 60 on. I've always said that
if one of my nieces ever got married
she should see Niagara falls if she
had to wear one petticoat for the next
five years"
Clara was the daughter Of the broth
er and his wife, and she already had a
beau. He was a young man from the
nearest village, and after seeing him
two or three times Aunt Judy said to
the girl:
CLARA, that feller of yours will never
set the river afire, but there's nothing
mean about him. He'll provide good
table and have plenty of wood at the
back door, and guess that will be Just
as well as if he was swelling around
and telling what great man he was
I'm judging him by his nose. When
you see a man with his nose bumped
up in the middle you can set him down
for q good tempered man.
The brother put the money in bank
at the village, hut after a little Aunt
Judy began to worry about it, She
was assured that the bank was as
sound as the hills, but she shook her
head and replied:
II dunno, james, dunno. OF course.
it's your money now, but I'm sorry
didn't see the banker before you gave
it to him. l think I'll have you drive
me to town some day, SO that can get
a look at him."
But Scott's bank has been here for
twenty years." persisted the brother.
Eyes, s'pose it has, but out in Iowa
they caught a man stealing pumpkins
who'd lived an honest life for sixty
years. l wouldn't like to see you lose
your money, and If anything happened
to Clara's 5000 I'd have a fit She's
got to make bridal tower to Niagara
falls or l won't see her married Folks
have told me that more water runs
over the falls in day than would run
mill dam for week and that there's
a roar going on just like half a dozen
bulls bellerin' in the distance. l want
to get look at that banker / can tell
in a minute whether he's honest or
not"
a few days later she was driven to
the village and an errand made to the
bank.
James," Aunt Judy said while they
were driving home, do you know that
a woman knows forty times as mucl
a as a manT
81 hadn't heard of It," was the reply
"Waal, you hear of it now. That
banker hafn't an honest man. 1t won
be a year before he'll bust up ant
leave you all in the lurch."
J "Pooh! Pooh Mr.. Scott has tn,
confidence of hundreds of people, an(
don't worry over my money an!
more than as if it was buried in til,
cellar. You mustn't get such notions
into your head"
"It's no notion, James. Out in Iowi
! we had three different hired men oil
the farm who turned out to be thieves
and each of them looked like tina
4 banker. l never in the world woul,
I buy thing of tin peddler until ha,
looked at his eyes. There's something
4 in them 1 always can tell. wish tina
I money of Clara's was out of his hands.
4 "Come now, Judy; don't be silly. T.
4 trust Mr.. Scott the same as my owl
l brother"
4 "All right. Well say no more abou
it. Only If Clara is disappointed i
seeing Niagara falls | shan't be til
same woman l was. They say tina
I when you stand and look at all tha
I water pouring over, the chills go up you
Z back and you don't feel knee high to
I grasshopper. Isn't there any way [
4 catch that water in rain barrels an
4 store it up agln drought?"
1 "AIight be-" replied the brother, wh
1 had a very hazy opinion of things ou
I side his own township.
At intervals Of every two weeks du
! ing the next eight months Aunt Jud
I came back to the subject of the banl
I er, and her worry never ceased.
: was treated as notion and not tai
+ en- seriously.
In due time Clara's beau popped IL
question and was accepted and the da
set, and Aunt Judy was so busy sey
ing that there were times when she q
most forgot her fears. 1t lacked b.
two weeks of the marriage day wht
the brother drove to the village on {
errand. He came back looking as whi
rs n dead man. Aunt Judy, who WI
the first to see him. gave him loI
look and said:
"Waal, didn't tell you so?'