The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1911-09-22
CLAYTON'S
CORDIAL
BY M. QUAD
By NJ. QUAD
Copyright, 1911. by Associated Lit
erary Press.

| Wnen you take SpinSter who has
got to be forty years old. who has got
a largo mouth. whose nose tilts up at
the end. who has cast in one eye,
| who Is tall and scrawny and has a
limp, you must figure out that her
chances of getting married are not
more than one in thousand
Such woman was Sarah Clayton
of Harpersvile. For thirty years she
had been the champion homely girl
and woman of Bennett county. She
realized it. but she couldn't help it.
Sarah's father and mother didn't like
her looks at all. Some folks were
mean enough to say that hastened
their end Sarah had two brothers.
| They ran away and went west to be
killed by the Indians. Some folks say
that If Sarah had been reasonably
good looking girl neither brother would
have left home. At the age-of twenty.
eight she was an orphan and brother
less. and, while the property she in
herited was enough to give her COM
Portable living. it was not enough to
bring husband
While Sarah realized all the draw
backs, she was not entirely Giscourag-
ed. She had a belief that something
would happen some day. and she
didn't go around making herself and
other folks miserable. Twelve wears
came and went and nothing happened,
but she was still on the job.
| At the state election. with the tom.
county and four others surrounding it
went dry-no more of the foamy. no
more corn juice.
You can't figure out what this TEN.
perance question had to do with Sarah
clayton, who scarcely knew what was
| going on until Bennett county was as
dry as bone Well. bomely as she
was, Sarah understood the man side
of human nature very we'll She knew
there would be an intense longing for
the unattainable.
After the temperance movement was
in full swing and the pinch was on
"Clayton's cordial' appeared. 1t pass.
ed as a soft drink. Some folks said it
was cider, some root beer and some
thought it came under the head of
ginger ale. Whatever it was, it bore
the label as above, and it jumped into
popularity at once. 1t filed an aching
void 1t soothed and comforted. 1t
quenched that longing in the neck.
lt did more. 1t saved hundreds of
homes on the point of being wrecked.
IL had got so that not one husband
nf fxt-n ,ttyt To-,
could speak q decent word to his wife
once in three days. And then there
were loss of ambition, indigestion.
headaches, pains in the stomach and
giddiness. and all these things the cor
dial was warranted to and did drive
away in short order
Sarah made the first fifty bottles
with her own hands. Then she had
to hire a boy, then she had to hire a
man as well. then she bad put it on
sale at the drug store. Nothing ever
made name for itself as fast as
"Clayton's cordial" 1t could not he
made and bottled fast enough to sup
ply orders. or course the spinster
had calls from men who wanted to
town stood ready to pay good price
for 1t. There were two sorts of men
came-married and unmarried The
married men were turned down Mt
once The secret was not for sale.
The unmarried ones were told that
the cordial must stay in the family.
That wasn't saying right out that no
one but husband would be given the
recipe. but the unmarried callers
caught on one after another. There
was money in that recipe but there
was Sarah behind it-Sarah the home
ly They thought of the balmy cor
dial and then looked at the homely
woman. No. no! 1t was too much.
Sarah understood aud did not blame
them. Neither was she cast down.
She Just went right ahead turning out
the great and only discovery and sup
plying other markets, and the orders
and dollars kent rolling in.
And one day lie came He was an old
bachelor OF forty-five. He had spent
most of his years in the woods and far
from women. He had never even
thought OF marriage. He wasn't bad
looking man. and he bore good char
acter. He happened to see Sarah Clay
ton In the postofiice, and in the jerk of
a lambs tail he was In love. In his
eyes she was the most charming wom-
an he had ever seen. She must be his
or life would be naught to him. with
out having heard OF her cordial from
any one he followed her home and
told his love and gave her half an
hour to make up her mind.
"But I am afraid you are actuated
by mercenary motives" she said.
why, I've got enough to keep US
both and am making more. all the
time"
"But you see | have made whole
lot of money out OF my cordial"
"Cordial be hanged! II you have anv
money use 1t to buy clothes with"
"And you are not after the recipe?"
'Never had recipe in my life and
don't want one, I wat you"
A 1.