The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1908-11-06
The MeddLer
N The coat fiD yon, put IL on. !"

The gentleman 81 water iauce, fame
was apparently little affected by the cali
down b. received from the housewife 60
whom. The Mciilcr made reference last
week. No les than five other women
have a,kcd The Mcddlcr where he heard
OF their experience, and one man, ex'
ircmely indignant, reported that the
agent actually had the rerve 20 attempt
I the trek after his tactics had been ex.
4 posed in this column. Probably this gen
/ ileman who gains entrance 10 houses by
giving people To- understand be j. repre-
sentative % the water company doesn't
/ know Yet that he has been exposed. Dc
casionally a stranger stays m town sew
cral DAYS without getting wise 10 the fact
that there j. such a parsonage as The
/ Meidler lahcml. and some have even
been known To remain here a week with
out discovering the existence OF The Re
| former. Nearly all Of the latter class,
however, are illitcratc.
All last week The Meddler was expect
ing 10 hear OF some unfortunate indiyif-
nal who had attempted 20 walk out Wi.
lision street and sustained a shattered
shin in consequence. The only way The
Mcddler can account for the lack OF such
an accident is 10y assuming that no one
attempted TO make the trip by night who
had not previously been along by day and
discovered that the sidewalk had been
made the resting place for several hun.
bred feet OF curbing stone. II taxes ones
credibiity too much 10 think that any
unsuspecting person could have turned
from Linden into Williston streets on
any one OF the numerous black nights. Of
last week and not have banged the shin
Of ~ Loo for bpr hfnhl agqtpgt solid
edge OF granite hidden By the darkness.
II someone had sustained serious injury
in this way there would have been good
case of Someone VS. the town OF Brattle
boro.
Already there is frost in the amos-
phere and sharp sting in the winds
that whistle down the valley, yet our
venerable friend Whitaker, fisherman
and poet still clings TO his post at the |
junction of MILESTONE brook and the |
Connecticut yanks the unsuspect-
ing sucker from his Shiny feeding
ground or "stiff-hecls" the playful dace
from the turhid waters at the mouth Of
the sewer When we look out of our
window some afternoon in the near fu.
ture and see no familiar figure enliven.
ing the landscape with mighty casts Of
his trusty bamboo we will know that
winter has at last arrived. An assidu
Gus fisherman is our friend Whitaker
as persistent in the Waltonian act as he
is in wooing the muse. Since last spring
he has spent Just 1912 hours enticing the
deniaens of the river and in that time
has caught just 1897 fsh-2326 suckers,
1854 daee and III miscellaneous includ.
ing one mud turtle. Exactly 1885 an.
gleworms have been sacrificed to attain
4. 1.
the venerable fisherman baptized his
bait with saliva in hope OF tine proverbial
luck that comes from this rite. Records
are not at hand giving the actual weight
Of every fish caught but assuming that
the average was onehalf pound the total
weight the aged angler has lifted from
The water to the land is something over
threequarters of ton, making due al
owance for the aforesaid turtle. And
rs the fish would average about 10 {
inches in length the total catch if placed
in row would reach just 2997o5 feet,
more. than a half a mile. |
At last accounts the fisherman had made ,
lust 32,73S casts, not counting 4,792 {
lines when his hook caught behind him
IS he was about to throw in; had run
foul of 5257 snags. on l,40l of which
looks were lost; and last-but not least
had hooked and lost just 1872 bigger 9
ish than any he ever landed. The sta
istical editor is going to take vacation
$ soon as winter actually arrives. Z
+
ed" Snyder, the ubiquitous and al
Ways smiling clerk in Shea's market, is
xtremely proud of pair of nephews
rho live in Fair Haven and tells good
tory of their proves. The boys it
Gems. are twins and so closely resemble
ach other that only their parents are
BILE to distinguish them. At school one
ay it happened that Clifford did not
ave his lesson and was told by the
aacher to remain until he had learned
. Clayton, who was in no such predica-
rent, felt sorry for his brother and so
ffered to take his place. The offer was
ccepted and few minutes after the
ose of school Clayton appeared before :
he teacher. recited the lesson which he
ad already given once correctly, and q
-as allowed to join his brother who was
aiting outside to see how the scheme
.orked ed" swears that this is a true
DRY, and The Meddler, knowing his
aputation for veracity, does not feel
Ike contradicting it even though he has
is doubts about so much resourcefulness