Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1922-07-15
THOSE BEAD BAGS

81 asked her what she wanted for her
birthday" burst out the Hyde Park man
the moment he got the ear Of his friend
from Woodlawn, and she said a beaded
bagp
They always do" agreed the other
sadly. 1T doesn't make any difference
what topic of conversation a man intro
duces-he may select the political situa-
ton in Tibet as a safe line. but they'll
utes. tell you, women would make won-
derful statesmen. They hang on to a sub
ject even as does a bulldog. take it you
had trouble about the bagr'
II read in popular magazines about sue
cessful men who eat trouble" the Hyde
Park man remarked. "Overwhelm them
with troubles and their spirits rise so
that they confound their enemies and. be,
come millionaires overnight-but I'd like
to sic them on to the bead-bag PROPOSE
ton. let me tell youl It certainly has
made changed man out Of me!
Having fifteen minutes or so. I dashed
into Biaxter's and. looked at bead bags
Assisted by charming young lady clerk,
l selected one in blue. and taupe, the
| colors Imogene had casually mentioned
that she preferred. and it cost s3s, viii q
although I love my wife, was going some
in these days Of taxes and woes. Pres
entity a parcel was handed me and after I
got back to my office unwrapped it to
get the opinion Of the stenographers.
"a red and green affair met me. A
poisonous thing. Grabbing my hat ]
i FASTENED back and explained Mat they
had got those parcels mixed. There
wasn't a taupe and blue bag left, and
while the nice lady clerk was overcome
with sorrow she could offer nothing ex-
cept for me to drop in every few minutes
to see If the red and green bag person
would hasten back Indignantly with the
more modest tones 1 had selected.
'I hung around that counter for the
next two days until the floor manager
began to eye me disagreeably and bead
| bags were all mixed w with important
documents in my head. I got one finally
/ after the expenditure of q hundred dol
I lars worth of time and that very night
when we played bridge at the Biggets
one Of the guests displayed a boxful OF
| beaded bags she had just imported for SOS
apiece. The instant the women saw
| them they went into a state of nirvana-
{! utterly blissful silence followed by a cat
aract Of wild cries Of admiration and
/ desire
"'And my husband is giving me a
1
chort1ed triumphantly I've already got
it, 1 announced hastily. Whereupor
| every woman shrieked at me to take il
back If our friend Hoober would lei
me have one fer cost as he had offered
the crowd how foolish of me not to seize
| the chance! Never 50 long as she lived
would Imogene have anything she prize6
more. Years and years later she would
gaze upon that beaded bag with emotion
saying, Just to think-he gave me thai
on my birthday Well. what could &
mere man do? So Imogene went HON,
clutching one of them to her heart, tn,
envy of all the other women.
"Thereupon, the next day I took haca
the s3S bag which had had charged a
the time of purchase. oh. no. they said
we do not take them back Thereupon
arose in my majesty. I had stipulated
on purchase that 1t might be returned
and they had agreed. They fatty deniet
it. The storm waxed fast and furious
perspiration pedewed my brow, murde
was in the air-when one Of the non
combatants, picking up the box and sale
slip, announced that hadn't bought tn
bag there at all. 1t was a Baxter bal
and this was Crossmere's store So /
was-and 1 skunk out cringing to tn
very bone. Edging into Blaxter's, / re
J cited that here was bag I had ha
charged and I wanted to return tan
latter some time a judicial person wit
whizkers arrived. fixed me with a fish
eye and asked how about ft-they foun
had no charge account whatsoever a
Blaxter's, so how could the bag hav
been charged? With prison yawning be
\ fore me. and recalling that we had lon
1 ago ended our account at Blaxter's
spent desperate half hour giving m
n credentials as far back as my great
e grandfather. and We finally called 1T
e draw, the clerk Who had sold me the ba
y and charged it not being there any NOR
a Anyhow, the time limit had expired an
y they couldn't take it back filled as the
s were with regret at Disappointing me-
Anyhow sighed the Woodlawn maj
: you've ended the topic in your family
: It still RACES in mine i"-Chicago New
AMBIENT RnME