Year: 1875

|. Mr.. BUsBY's HOUSEKEEPING. - Mr..
Busby has been married five years. and
all that time he and his wife have board
ed. It was on the first of October that
he first made up his mind to keep house.
A neat cottage was secured, and furni-
ture bought, and the two settled down
like pair of $16 doves. Last Thurs
day morning the farmer of whom Bus
by had engaged his potatoes for the
winter. brought him two barrels ofthose
excellent vegetables and also barrel OF
apples. He knew Busby was new at
the business, and that he was q good
natured man, so he told Mrs. Busby
that he had sore finger, and was in
hurry and would not have time to take
the barrels down cellar. And he left
them by the hatchway. Here Busby
found them when he came home in the
evening. Arming his wife with the
lamp, he prodeeded in no pleasant frame
Of mind to bring the stuff in. She held
tbs light in the cellarway while he tus-
selled with the barrels, and, as the wind
came through the door, she was obliged
to screen the light by shading l: from
that side. Whenever he got barrel in
a particular critical position, an extra
gust of wind would como down the
stairway. and up would 60 her hand to
the fame, throwing both him and the
barrel into the shade. Then he would
look over his shoulder at her. and say:


"What in mercy's name are you
about, Mary Jane?"


1t was a tough job for Mr.. Busby.-
His hands were tender from indoor en-
ployment, and in their contact with the
barrel were sadly worsted. The lower
chimes of the barrel would catch on the
step as he was sliding it down, and
when he let 60 to see what was the trou-
Bile, it would suddenly come along of its
own accord and butt him in the stom-
ach with such force as to nearly de-
prive him of his breath, or it would
slip on his foot and cause him to howl
dreadfully with pain. Thon he took
hold of the apples. They came dread-
fully hard. He pushed and pulled, and
turned them to the left and then to the
right, and puffed and perspired. and
swore and screamed, but he couldn't
get the apples down from the top step.
He was struggling with all his might
His hat had fallen of, his eyes were
almost bursting from their sockets. his
breath came fast and heavy. He had
both arms around it. and was strainlng
with all his might to move it. He only
only spoke once. Then he said:


"Why don't you come up here with
sthat lamp and not be grinning down
there like an idiot?"


1t is but justice to explain that Mrs.
Busby was not grinning at all; on the
contrary, it would be difficult to have
crowded as much gravy into the same
space as was expressed in her counte-
nance. She stepped up the stair
promptly: Then Mr.. Busby gave
desperate, maddening pull, and the bar
rel came. The transformation from
dogged, obstinate barrel to headstrong.
impetuous barrel, was remarkable. Mr..
Busby tried to save himself by yelling
Wooshp' but he was too late; and the
next instant, himself, his wife, the
lamp, the barrel and the apples, in
confused mass, went revolving down
the stairway and sprawling across the
cellar. Fortunately the light was ex-
tinguished at the first move, but the
lamp was broken and its contents pret>
ty evenly distributed over the other
objects. Mr.. Busby was driven under
wheelbarrow, and Mrs. Busby. after
being bucked twice in the head by the
barrel, brought up with vehemence
against an old stove, knocking it com-
pletely over off Its legs and smashing in
the oven door.


Mrs. Busby scrambled to her feet at
once.


"Johnr' she exclaimed. "where are
you? are you hurt?"


"None of your business" came IN a
half suppressed voice out Of the dark
ness.


"Why, John, what is the matter with
you?"


"What did you come up them steps
for?" he demanded, in intense passion.


"Why, you told me to-"


"What if I did?" cried the unhappy
man. Didn't you know any better
than to stand there?"


Confounded by this direct question,
she could make no answer, and with q
certain feeling of triumph he stalked
up stairs and thence to bed.


There is nice little cottage on Schuy-
ler street to rent. Mr.. and Mrs. Busby
are boarding again.-Danbury Ne,os.