Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1917-03-07
An Antidote
Ii Was Based on the Prin.
cipIe That Like Cures
Like.
By WILLIAM CHANDLER

One morning my wife received let
ter that seemed to paralyze her.
"Oh, my goodness graciousw she ex-
claimed with gasp.
Bottom dropped OUT of the universe,
dearT' asked.
Worse Aunt Abigail will have to
live with us. She's written that her
friend with whom she has had a home
is to give up her house the LIST of May,
and that throws her out l am her
only relative. and, Of course. she ex-
poets me to take her in"
She's a bit cranky. isn't shef'
Cranky is no name for it,"
well. we'll have to make the best
Of it."
Aunt Abigail arrived. We had previ-
ously considered our home entirely our
own. With the coming Of our relative
we saw at once that all this was chang
ed. She settled herself down with an
appearance Of permanency that made
my blood run cold.
well" she exclaimed, looking about
this house down in hollow--it must
have been swamp once-when you
could as well have put it up on that
hill, where you could see somethingg"
I'VE live here winter and summer,
Aunt Abigail. Up there We would
freeze in cold weather"
Freeze! Nonsense! Some people are
always afraid they'll breathe little
fresh air. I'm not sleep with my
window open, and like to have gale
blowing in right ON me. You should
have fronted your house to the south"
Il can't stand this. We must get rid
of her." said to my wife.
ITO turn her out would be awful
I'VE needn't do that. We can fix it
so that she win go Of her own accord
For heavens sake explain"
You know the homeopathic princi-
ple-like cures like. Well, my Uncle
Robert is more disagreeable, II that is
possible, than your Aunt Abigail. He
is dictatorial old curmudgeon, with
no respect for any ones opinion but
his own. He Is as poor as a church
mouse, living In miserable room In a
rookery by himself. He amuses him
self abusing his neighbors from his
window and shying anything be can
get his hands on at tn. cats. Now. It
has occurred to me to bring him here
as a foil for your amt She cant pos.
sibly endure to stay in the house with
such a man. and when she's gone III
find a way TO get rid OF Uncle Robert
Perhaps they NAV both 20 to get nd
of each other
"Your plan seems rather impractica.
Bile to me. Billy. but I have a good deal
of confidence In those roundabout WAYS
Of yours. Suppose We try ity'
So | wrote Uncle Robert Offering a
home temnorarily and n he liked n
as long as he lived He accented eager.
ly. and 1t was not long before he was
down upon ua bag and baggage.
"Ny dear bow he exclaimed pat-
ting me on the back "how Won do re-
mind me of vour father, fIe ana I
were ,nsenarahle n. hov. ana I've car.
ried Won on nv shoulder often And
70 think that I'm 70 have n homa With
Won, PM me anywhere A garnet 4
s-ood enouph for a broken down ola
eodeer IKE me phew, Somebody's
been smoking hara no Won smoke .
How I hate tobacco, N make. me
siek.
won't smoke any more In tha houae
since you've come uncle said.
.Oh don't mind me can stand
anything; got to stand IT. I'VE made
a dead failure OF life and DOM deserve
ANYTHING else. You don't mind nv
openin. the window. do you-just Ia
let the odor outY'
Fanny has a bad cold, you know"
Just the thing to cure her. Let her
breathe the cool air Of heaven"
Up went the window, and out of the
room went Fanny. Half an hour after
my uncle arrived dinner was announc
ed / was watching our guests when
they entered the dining room. 1t was
Hko dn<x IA cot nj Hrrf fc a