The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1907-09-18

! never coulG. have lived after finding
u what SOY, .. u man you were.
Samuel. DO YOU deny going to the cir
Gus: It's just possible thai people
took some one else for YOU. Do you
want to hold my and and deny it,"
Mr.. Dolby put down his right foot
and elevated his left. But for the cir
cular he might have filed Il general
denial. He had attended the circus.
but only to see the elephants. \ hired
man had once contended that they had
wings and feathers, and he wanted to
see for himself. The circular went on
to say that the Honest Joe mine was
no swindle and to advise the public to
beware of all other copper mines.
They were simply holes in the ground
for the innocent and unwary to fall
into. He had just decided to sell a
COW and invest when Mrs. Dolby said:
"Mrs. Edwards said she couldn't stay
another minute after telling that you
were e at the circus, but l wouldn't
let her go. l told her that l was u
dying woman and that she must tell
me all. Then she said that you and a
lot more men were at Snyder's grocery
a few nights ago and Snyder passed
around a pail Of hard cider. You know
what hard cider Is, Samuel. You know
how oily and deceiving it is. You
know that it's stronger than beer and
that every deacon in the country turns
his back Oh it. Did you? Not ut all!
You were one of the first to drink, and
they say you guzzled it down like so
much buttermilk. It wasn't ten min
utes afterward when you were utter
ing warwhoops and saying you could
lick any man in this town. When you
came home that night l thought there
was something wrong with you. Your
eyes looked funny, and your tongue
seemed too thick. but l didn't ask any
questions. l thought your brother out
In Indiana might be dead and that YOU
had got a letter and was feeling bad.
Samuel, tell me that you didn't drink
as much as two quarts of that old
cider. Tell me you didn't whoop and
want to fight. l don't want to die
thinking YOU have turned pirate in
your old age"
1t was a strong appeal. 1t was Que
that made the deacon smack his lips.
but he needed it not. That circular
was taking up all his attention. The
president of the Honest Joe mine
had figured out that a man with $1O.-
COO worth of stock would clear more
hard cash in one year in dividends
than the owner Of 500 acres of cab
bages could in ten. He had almost
decided o n selling a second cow when
Mrs. Dolby was heard from again.
when Mrs. Edwards had told ME
about the hard cider, l thought l
should die on the spot, but 1 held on to
myself and says, says I: .
"Is there anything elseY
"'There is says she.
"'Then tell it before l co.
Scan YOU stand it.?
"'Ill try to-
sand then. Samuel, she told me the
worst of all. She said that there was
a fakir in town the other day selling
something in bottles to prolong human
life by twenty years. 1t was so cents
a bottle, and she don't believe it was
anything more than peppermint es-
sence, but up you walks and lays
down a dollar for two bottles and says
to Mr.. Jones, who was there. that YOU
proposed to outlive your old woman
by forty years. I've smelt the pepper
mint on You ever since. but you've
claimed that you put some in Il hoiler
tooth. Samuel. look me in the eye
and tell me whether Mrs. Edwards
lied or not. l want to know before I
leave this world of tears"
Mr.. Dolby didn't turn and look her
In the eye. He didn't even turn
enough for her to observe that he was
blushing. The president of the Honest
Joe was winding up his circular by
admonishing his readers to write him
that day. that evening. that hour. he-
fore those fourteen hundred million
tons of copper could turn into Chicago
embalmed beef, and he was mentally
figuring on what price he could get
for his two COWS and horse.
"You didn't refer to me as Mrs. Dol
by or YOUR wife or Rachel" sobbed the
woman on the lounge, but as the old
woman" You didn't care how soon l
died, but you wanted to live forty
cents that day. and you couldn't spare
it, and yet YOU walk up and lay down
a dollar for the life %prolonger! Oh.
deacon
But it ended there. A neighbor came
in to borrow coffee for breakfast. and
Mrs. Dolby rolled off the lounge and
ran to get it. and when the deacon got
ready to wind the clock she was say
ing to the other woman that her health
was never better and that she wished
all people had as happy a home rs she
had. NJ. QUAD.
A Golf Term