The Washington times., 1907-01-06
Lived 80 Years
In Missouri Cave

y EVEN miles north OF New Cam
bria. NO. is a man who for
j thirty years has lived In a dug
Out. for the sole purpose OF saw
ing house rent.
Something Ike forty years ago a
young Welshman. living IN the vic!n-
ity OF Cambria became homesiek and
spent all the money he owned or a trip
back TO the old country-Wales.
Returning a year or 80 later he found
himself IN need OF a suit OF clothes.
but without the money 70 buy Il
When he tried 20 borrow Of a friend
he met Lle response some OF the rest
or Us have known. says the Kansas
City Star.
He r5as told that his credit wa not
good. II was here mat the irOn en-
tered his soul ana ne reflected that
a little self-denial ana saving WOUlA
put hin where ne could loan lnstesS
OF borrow money. He got the use e.
an acre Of ground seven miles from
town and buut himself q dug-CJL
Here he has lived ever since, sup
porting himself on his garden ahG -
food bought from the village house
wives with personal service, such a.
~chopp!ug VOC and carrying coal.
Jones Is the mans name. and as thiA
is a Welsh neighDorhOod and al least
every third Welshman is named Jones
this one is distinguished by adding the
name or locality IN Wales from which
he came. and 50 he is known as Jones
or Bolla-
I saw him once. He had come to
the boarding house 20 earn hts dinner
By some small service. n he sat be-
side no al the table. z clean, pink
skinned old man with q Santa Claus
face and curly white hair and beard
Kind blue eyes looked out from under
shaggy white broWa. n his table
manner were not what you would
expect from a man who had lived
thirty years alone.
A m~oney-lender ne surely 10 low.
Ikirty-nys years wages at any ordinary
labor put aside or loaned out a. interest
have given him 8 hoard OF q number OF
th~oussnds. which he invests and rein
vests Tor the sole purpose Of hozrding,
while he still lves on "a his dug-out.
denying himself such costly Injuries as
home. in the ordinary sense. and wife
n child.
Yet Jones cannot be wholly selfish.
They tell how. before his voice grew
cracked IA old. he took days on q
gather the young folks around him ank
instruct them In singing. but always In
Welsh. Years ago. too. when fruit was
a. q high priced. he has been known
70 work for a whole day for a bushel Of
apples TO distribute among the neigh
bors' children.
One cod October afternoon a friend
drove out 70 see the old man. The place
was reached by a ridge road. curvIng
around ths edge OF a meadow. Az w
approached We could see across the
meadow a little spur OF high land sup
ting into the meadow land and slOpins
down to It's level on three sides. on tbs
southern side OF this spur was Jones
dugout. shaped from the side Of the hill
Away from IL on two sides sloped the
land 70 the hay meadow. On this slope
were his vegetable beds. Here anS
there he had little mounds under which
he had cached potatoes and turnips fol
wints' use.
Near the door grew a few peach tresa
and 6 grapevine trailsd irresponslbly
over a rude treIis.
No COW. chicken or other animal
marred the perfect grassy cleanliness
Of every portion or the yard.
No dog even sounded a warning bark
as We approached. Had Jones been a
woman 2 eat would have erouched Ia
the grass on the lookout for mice. or
sprawled asleep near the door: but
Jones will have nothing u DO with
cats
approached down the little
sun came Out Tor the first
L day and glided the crisp
q ae brown oak leaves drifting
DC higher Up the slope.
q, ana Jones came forth 20
We s. A woman 1 am afraid,
wa . one 70 dress up for for
nan -eume would have grown
Stat and dirty, but Jones. OF
Boil . not rigged up IN the latest
style wearing nothing but socks
upon feet. was. nevertheless. spot
lessly clean
He was glad 10 see US and showed
Us his dugOut In detail. uuc0nsciOusly
DetFaying the greatest pride in H.
Within, l should say IL was possibly
ten feet long by eight feet wide. and
from nOOF 10 ceiling two sides OF t.
room were lined with shelves packed
with numDerlCss and nameless things.
A small co0kstOve and goods-box tabis
rubbed elbows on the third side. and
the entrance tOOk the most of liz
fourth. A tomato can was the only
cooking utensl IN sight.
Papers, boxes. tools, bundles
clothes or rags, thread, thimble. H.
tern, hair-trunk. shoes, books. haa
bottles filed the shelves.
The uppermost shelf across the sad
was the old mans bed. Scarcely too
feet above Il was the ceiling. We ooLld
understand how ne got into bed aor
a three-fOOt ladder stood below. but
how on earth he ever turned aver
when ne got there without R~Iznipg
himself against the ceiling We Dufdnt
make out.