Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1928-07-19
(By WALTER /. shay

| 1.-TWO unconventional c~ourtships, which
resulted in happy marriages started
4 John Stafford, pioneer saloon man OF
| Suite and Silver, a small station on the
Great Northern Just north Of Helena, on
his one short but hectic romance.
Stafford was a native of London, but
| came to Butte when about 40 years OF
age. About a year after coming to Butte,
he started a saloon and in about five
years had cleaned up $4,000 in the days
when q dollar was worth 100 cents.
He sold out md bought a saloon at
Silver, the little junction where the Great
Northern railroad branched to Marys-
vile. There was plenty of traffic In Sill
yer in those days and John did o big
business. He was noted for two things:
He was the heaviest. man OF his height
in Montana. weighing about $50 pounds
although but five feet tall, and he was
generally considered the homeliest man
in the state.
After he had passed the SO terribly
lonesome" year mark M had nearly that
many thousands Of dollars, he came to
the conclusion that a single man was a
terribly lonesome individual.
He learned that Billy Peasely. a ma
chinist employed at the Drum Lummon
shops, had opened a bale of waste and
in the big bundle Of cotton was a letter
which read:
II am a girl 20 years Of age n am
employed in this cotton waste factory at
, Worcester, Mass. / understand this ship
ment Of waste is going to the far west.
If some single man, wishing to CORE
spond for fun, cares to reply, write to
Miss Annie Smith, Worcester, Mass"
Mr.. Peasley answered the letter In q
spirit Of fun. He received an answer and
within a few months Miss Smith arrived
at Marysville and became Mrs. Peasley
The couple lived there several years and
later moved to Livingston.
Stafford also learned that an English
bookkeeper employed in the Drum Lum-
mon office became smitten with a girl
named Mcdonald, but was too shy to
propose. The Englishman had called at
the Mcdonald home on various occasions
and was infatuated with the second
daughter, Emma.
Wrong Girl Accepted
o bashful to make a personal pro-
posal he wrote q note addressed to Mist
Mcdonald" in which he asked for heI
hand in marriage.
The boy who delivered the note had
instructions to walt for an answer from
Miss Mcdonald and the eldest daughter
Miss Ann Mcdonald, opened the love mis-
sive and sent an answer accepting the
p OROooA LlC AL "NS ~ bN
sport and it was not until after he was
somewhat intoxicated at the wedding
celebration that he gave u the news
that he had meant the note for Emma
not Ann.
Following these two successful wed.
dings, a copy of a matrimonial paper
entitled Heart Throbs" fell into the
hands of John Spafford. He read where
blondes, brunettes and in-betweens were
| u - ~s - ~. f>- WAN GnFNn hnf
wealth, all had beauty M he read where
some would probably die If they wert
compelled to waste their sweetness on the
desert air.
The Love Note
II will probably be a life-saver as wei
as getting away from this lonesome life,
John explained to a friend as he pointed
out one personal, which read as follows
II am % years Of age and must be o.
pleasing size as / have had many offer
to work as q model. But my natura
modesty rebels against posing. My friends
insist that / am beautiful, but I den.
it. / am Just fair looking and am OF thu
fair type. 1 love to cook and want
home to tidy up, and have supper ane
slippers ready for a manly mate. | an
not rich as l have always sp'lrned offer
to go on the stage"
That's the kind Of a woman wot hap
lpeals to a man." John told ms lrlend
IN write this very night"
In his Introductory letter John failed
to state that he weighed so pounds t.
the foot, or that he would make a for
tune II there were movies in those day
because Of his face. However, he did de
scribe the beautiful view from his I'M
and ended by saying how lonesome HI
had become since he had a bank accoun
Of $50, 1000.
Reply Is a Classic
The reply to this letter was a classic