Fitzgerald enterprise. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1895-1912, 1911-07-15
''BUCKING AGAINST FATE"
An Der true tale in Three Parts.
BY H. WETTSTEIN.
PART I.

free from the faint of superstition,
and had flattered myself of being
one of these fortunate exceptions to
this general rule" when a strange
adventure dispelled the illusion.
1t came about in this way. had
heard that the Jews entertain
queer superstition concerning the
first person who enters their store on
Monday mornings. fit is a comely
girl or young woman who leaves
some of her "shekels' at their place
ST business, it augurs splendid
trade for the whole week. If it is a
person of ordinary appearance who
leaves but an insignificant amount
of the precious" root of all evil
with them, they look for an average
weeks trade, but if an old and de-
crepit individual first crosses their
threshold they feel as though they
might as we'll shut up shop and 90
fishing.
Now | got to bordering over this
strange notion until my curiosity
was aroused to a sufficient extent
to see whether there was anything
in it or not. So whenever Monday
morning came around | would make
a note of the appearance or "charac-
ter of the first individual who en-
tered, and whether he, she or it left
some of his, her or it's "lucre" at my
place of business where | was at
that time carrying on a jewelry
trade on quite a large scale (This
must be mentioned at the outset so
the reader will understand what is
to folloW) Then at the end of the
week would see whether the re-
ceiptS tailed with the prognostica-
ton. Singularly enough, the results
seemed to verify it. But this | ex-
planned on the ground that implicit
faith in this superstition would be,
very naturally, instrumental in pro-
ducing the expected results. Thus,
a good augury would necessarily
have such an exhiliarating effect
upon the tradesmans spirits that he
would be all smiles" to the next
customers who entered which would
greatly enhance his selling qualities,
and his good nature" would be
communicated to his clerks with the
same results. If the personality of
the first customer denotes an aver
age weeks trade, his and his clerks
spirits would be correspondingly de-
pressed with the result that their
customers are not particularly
charmed" to trade with them, hence
only an average weeks trade may
be expected. But if an antiquated
and forlorn looking individual first
enters, the outlook appears so gloomy
to the tradesmen, that they don't
half try to please their customers,
with the result that their weeks
trade is reduced to a minimum.
Well, after I had thus made my
observations for several weeks, and
acted upon them from sheer curios-
ity, | decided to pay no further at
tention to a foolish notion the re-
suits of which could be explained
on perfectly rational grounds But,
alas, had reckoned without the
host" The superstition had taken
such firm root in my mind that |
could not rid myself of it-try as |
might. Like Banquo's ghost-it
would not DOWN" Whenever Mon
day morning was ushered in, | look
ed with fear and trembling upon
the first person who entered, lest it
be some one whose personal appear
ance might augur the ruination of
my whole weeks trade. Sundays |
would wrestle with the demon of
superstition the whole live-long day,
hoping to exercise him with logic
and reason galore, so that the next
day might find me forever free from
the incubus under which my mind
was laboring. But it was no CO.
the harder tried TO free myself
from this demon, the frmer became
his grasp on me.
This, then, was the state of my
,o;2J v,,bor +bo' "obooLiOd" n ~