New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1909-11-10
An ODD COURTSH|P !.
BY M. QUAD.
copyright, 1909, by Associated Literary
Press 49,

BY M. QUAD.
copyright, 1909, by Associated Literary
Press.l
The wife of Deacon Hiram Plat had
been dead three years when it came
to his ears that people were wonder
ing why he didn't place tombstone
at her grave. At her death the sor-
rowing husband had fully intended to
give her monument thirty feet high;
three months later he had reduced the
height to fifteen feet; then he had gone
down foot by foot until he figured that
a common grayestone would be all
that was expected. One may have his
own ideas about such matters, but
when people begin to talk he must
! consult the ideas Of others to a GER
tain extent Therefore Deacon Platt
| hustled around to put up a stone.
| About the time the deacon lost his
wife Mrs. Samantha Taylor, living in
the same village, lost her husband.
She also had thirty foot monument
in her mind, and she also scaled it
down to a plain, cheap stone. Fur
| Their, there came a time when gossip
criticised her for the unmarked grave.
and she set about doing something.
She had removed to another village,
but gossip follows one everywhere. 1t
thus came about one summer day,
when the deacon drove out to the
country graveyard to fix up things, he
found the widow there for the same
object The graves of their dead were
not fifty feet apart. The deacon had
look of sorrow on his face and the
widow had tears in her eyes as they
shook hands.
He was noble man." said the dea-
con, referring, of course, to the lament
ed Taylor.
'And she was all that a wife should
be-" replied the widow, referring, Of
| course, to the lamented Mrs. Plat.
II am glad to know that you mourn
him.
"And I am glad to know that you
mourn her,
'Her time had come, and she had to
CO."
"And the same with him."
The weeds had to be cleared away
and the mounds rounded up and sod
ded and the stones set. They worked
together at this. They sorrowed for
about half an hour, and then it was
something else. When their backs ach-
ed and they were ready to quit work
for the day the deacon helped her into
her buggy with the remark:
81 have seemed to feel Mrs. Plat
looking down on me this afternoon
. "And l have felt the presence of my
dear lost husband" she replied.
Then they both looked very solemn,
and she drove away to return on the
morrow and find the deacon there be-
fore her. He repeated that her la
mented was noble man, and she re-
peated that his lamented was all that
a wife should be. They cut down and
logged away weeds and briers and
brought dirt and sods, and when they
rested they sat close together on an
old bench. 1t was during one of these
resting spells that the deacon sighed
three times in succession and said:
"Widder Taylor. when night had
come and you We're sitting alone in
!. your lonesomeness did you ever think
it possible that you could find another
man as good as George was?"
"Why. While he was a noble man
there must be other noble men in the
world" she replied
eyes, wilder, and other noble WON
en-. though I never had no fault to fine
with Hammer I am sure we loved
EN-
eyes, we did,
"And it grieved us to see them CO."
''It did,
"But they are better off in tha
brighter land"
Then they parted and went home
and it was noticeable that neithe
looked as solemn as before. They wer,
not smiling, but the solemn looks hat
somehow chased themselves away
The next day was to see the end O
their work, and they both got Their,
early. The deacon seemed to pres
j the widows hand when he helped he
out of the buggy, and she seemed ;
bit confused over it, but this may hav,
/ been all Imagination. By midafter
noon the stones were in place, and a
they retreated a few PAGES to surve.
s them the deacon solemnly said:
.'Widder, if your lost husband cal
look down on earth he is seeing tina
stun and saying to himself that it,
good enough for anybody"
EYES," she sighed, "and your Han
ner must say the same thing. W.
: could have got monuments, of course
but
!. But monuments attract lightning,
finished the deacon.
\ ttAnd ro hlnm11 0No,. in Iaiofa minds