Year: 1869

A long time ago, before the invention of hair
dye, when had to wear his beard the
color that nature made it, whether he would or
not, there was a man who had made himself
| enormously rich whisky inspector or some
thing of that sort. l don't know exactly where
| he lived, but think be lived mostly in the i'm
agnation.


He run great castle on the European plan,
had horses and run them, and, in fact run about
everything in his neighborhood including run
ming for Office and with the girls for at the
time of which write he was gay widower. He
had great quantities of greenbacks, corner lots,
oil stock bonds and things, but he hid
eously ugly, and had withal an enormous blue
beard, frigbtful to contemplate, which gave to
him the cognomen of Blue Beard by which he
was known to the country round about, as well
as to the country that had laid off its Ground
about" and, consequently was in its shirt
sleeves.


Blue Beard grew weary of living in solitary
magnfcence in his lordly castle, and finding
that he was getting bluer and bluer every day,
he determined to marry. Having been married
one might say-he was naturally quite misera-
BILE when deprived Of the gentle influence OF the
sex for any length of time.


One of his neighbors was a widow lady who
had two very beautiful and accomplished daugh-
ters. They could play the piano, harp, seven-up
and embroidery and plancAette elegantly.
To this widow lady, Blue Beard applied for
the hand and general anatomy OF one OF her
daughters, leaving her to decide which one she
would give him. Although the ''stamps" he
had pleaded loudly in his favor, as they do yet,
| although this was great many years ago, yet
that dreadful beard was against him, and neither
| of the young women desired to have 1t against
her. Blue wasn't fashionable for boards; II il
bad been it might have been different. One oil
them wept bitterly because it would be several
hundred years before hair dye would be discov-
cred, SO that he could have his whiskers colored.


Another circumstance rendered them shy oi
him. He was having wedding every once in a
while at the castle, but no funerals Wedding
| cake had been ordered from the confectioner S
several times, but no undertaken hadebad q job
there yet No matter how many times man
| is left widoWer, if he correspondingy patron
ICES some respectable owner of hearse, but re-
peated wedlocks without funerals is certainly O
suspicious circumstance.


Blue Beard cuuningly invited the family and
their friends to the castle, where they passed a
week so delightfully."- that the youngest daugh-
ter began to think that blue pretty color
for whiskers after all, particularly when their
possessor could keep up such an establishment as
| that where they had three meals day, besides a
lunch every morning from ten o'clock until
eleven. She looked with contempt on red
whiskered beau Of hers she used to think wa;
perfectly splendid" and actually asked him
why he didn't ''rub indigo into 'em % The
upshot of the business was, she consented to be-
come Mrs. B. Beard, and the wedding was cee.
brated with great eelnt.


At the expiration of the honeymoon, Blue
Beard pretended to his wife that business of i'm.
portance called him away to distant city. He
would be absent for several weeks and in the
meantime she could invite company and enjoy
herself as much possible. He gave her a
bunch of keys, enabling her at any time to open
his safe, and feast her eyes upon the diamonds,
| The loaned money on 'colateral sometimes) J.
! preenhacks seven-thirties, revenue stamps and
cancelled gas bills deposited there-also giving
her access to the wine cellar store room, picture
gallery, billiard room, tenpin alley, corn house
&C. But one little key opened room in the
basement that she must not approach save upon
her peril. She promised and he took street cal
for the depot.


From the time that Mother Eve disregarded
the injunction against certain tree in Eden;
orchard, and partook of Rhode Island pippin
thereby introducing various things into the
world never before dreamed of, curiosity ha:
been absorbing passion with the fair sex. and
we need hardly inform the intelligent reader
that her husband was scarcely out of sight be-
fore Mrs. B. B. had unlocked the door o. the for
hidden room.