The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-06-17
The Bashful Man
By M. QUAD
Copyright. 1912. by Associated Lit
erary Press.
By M. QUAD

bees, apple parings. circuses ana camp
meetings, and he was always sent to
The village to do the trading. He was
IN his element when he could chin
with a tin peddler or lightning rod
man. Then all of sudden the change
eame. He went to bed his old self
and woke up somebody else. He was
10 bashful that he could hardly be got
10 the breakfast table to eat with the
family. He was iurried and embar-
rassed and blushlng, and when he had
escaped from the table after eating
balf meal his mother said to the IA
Their:
Jacob. you hitch up and drive to
the village after DR.. Williams"
.But why, mar he asked.
Because he's needed here. I'm
afraid Moses is n for It."
The doctor arrived. His pulse was
reunited, his tongue examined and his
eyes rolled up.
"Umw said the medical man.
"Going to be fever, doctorr.
Don't think So"
us 1t cancer?"
"No." Hhff,
"Going crazy"
.The boy is alt right. only he has
turned bashful all at once"
Within three months the family was
coaxing their best for Moses to become
impudent again, but all their efforts
were failures The horsewhip would
have checked his impudence somewhat,
but what are you going to do with a
boy that rushes upstairs and crawls
under a bed every time neighbor calls
to borrow drawing of tea? 1t got to
be more than a nuisance, and after 1t
had lasted a year without prospect OF
a change DR.. Williams was sent for
again. Moses started for the woods,
but was headed off and tied to chair.
The conclusion that DR.. Williams ar
rived at after an hour of poking around
was that some sudden shock might
scatter the boys bashfulness and re-
store his youthful cheek. Several sorts
of shocks were suggested. but the rain
barrel shock was the one tried. The
month was November. and the barrel
under the kitchen caves was full OF
cold water. without knowing what
was coming young Moses was taken
out and dumped in. 1t was hoped that
he would kick and yell and fight. but
he did nothing but sink bashfully to
the bottom of the barrel and let them
haul him out by the hair before he was
quite drowned. The disguised doctor
said there was nothing more to be done
but wait and see If the boy would out
grow his ailment.
Moses got no worse and no better.
He Just continued to be the champion
lbashful young man of the United
States. A room was made for him IN
the barn. and things were so managed
that he seldom came In contact win
any one outside the family. Moses
had reached the age of twenty-five and
was still as bad as fool and as bur-
densome as a lunatic, when an old wo-
man who had heard of his case jour-
neyed 100 miles to see him. She didn't
get to see him personally, but the moth
err told her all ABOUT IL
IL Moses had been bashful about wo-
men or about any other one thing IL
would have been easy to diagnose his
rase. but he would dodge COW as
Quick as a woman. After the old wo-
man had been at the house three days,
gathering all the particulars she could.
she was ready with suggestion. 1t
was summer then. 1t was known that
every night before going to bed Moses
went down to creek he had damned
no and took a swim and was an hour
about Il. This incident was the basis
of the suggestion. On a particular
night as the watchers saw him leave
the barn others slipped In and spread
n layer Of bullthistles over the sheets
and A layer of nettlcs over that. Then
n generous supply of both products
were scattered over the floor OF the
barn, and the people cleared out and
left free road.
The doctor was right about giving
him a shock" said the OLD woman,
..but It wasn't the right sort and didn't
last long enough. Nettles and bull
thistles will do the trick
Moses uttered a yell and gave
iump almost as soon as he entered the
barn. then more yells and more jumps
as he made his way to his bed. then
wells and whoops and shouts and cuss
words as he bounced down on the net
Ties and thistles as he rolled around.
at has workedP' whispered the old
woman. with a sigh of relief.
So it had. When Moses cried out
for help his bashfulness was gone. new
er to return. They estimated that be
had 100000 stings and that 100000
thistles had entered his anatomy and
chat during the week the doctor was
there picking out the thistles and
anointing the stings the young man
used 100000 cuss words and worked
ND a ton of impudence. When be
could move around again be wore bis
hat on his ear. spat over his shoulder
and was engaged to widow within
six weeks. Doctors sometimes make
mistakes. but old women never do
There Is something about nettles and
hall tbistles that touches the spot
DEAD AS STEEPLE BLOWS DOWN