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"W JW1 &/ *1 sa?..- .#•-•••.. 4jst ti* w^*1y' hl, »-5¥ iYSU „v ?®i .A ri-.'M •rv~-W A iw\r, 20 Jewelry Watches, Chains, Charms, Rings, Stick Pins, Cuff Buttons, Silverware, Clocks. His Mother-in-Law CLXUDINE SISSON At the age of twenty-three, when Moses Smith was married, he was spoken of as a hustler. As a car penter by trade, he was at work early and late. Two years later he fell off a scaffold and hurt his back. He was petted and pitied and sympathized with, and, although after six weeks of loafing, the doctor pronounced Moses as good as new, the carpenter had lost his hustle. His wife dreaded that he might injure himself by go ing to work too soon and she started dressmaking to support them while he loafed. Moses Smith's mother-in-law lived In another state. She heard how things were going, but it *was a year before she came on. She found Moses growing fat and his wife grow ing lean. It didn't take the old lady over a week to size things up. In her time she had known of several lame backed men1 and foolish wives. With the doctor to back her, she announced that her daughter must go away and hest for a month to prevent a nervous breakdown. She would remain to keep house for Moses. The lame-backed man didn't like it at all. It meant an overturning of his jpleasant program. He doubted if there would be any more tea and toast and "poor Moses!" for him. He was overruled, however, and the morning his wife started away he went down to the village postofflce and took his old' seat on the veranda and hoped for the best. At noon be returned fibm* to meet with a sur )rls No fire—no dinner. In reply to his look of bewilderment the lady %ith the Iron Jaw replied: "You didn't cut any wood, and so there's no dinner" "But I can't raise the ax with this lame hack." "Then you won't have to raise ftnlfe or fork!" M0S«s went back to the grocery and filled up on a raw turnip. He |went home to supper, but there was Mo supper. No wood—no supper. He went out and sat d&wri -nndfr a lilac Jbush, and his eyes filled with tears. •He was In the habit of going to bed 'jat* 9 and getting up at the same Jhour next morning. His going to bed ta this occasion waa according to ^program, but he waa aroused at 8 Vclock by a dash of water In his face, had been called twice In vain. Mitoses, the ax and tte woodpile!" ~aald the mother-in-law as he came down stairs with a scowl on his brow. "You know l'm cripple."he an .awered^ Wo rzrp ii fe.i v.- :v rY P^Uffl,tlplgg!g *v V*v** •p Haviland China An elaborate showing of China, Plates, Cups, Pitchers, Dishes, etc. A big line of the very latest designs of the finest Cut Glass. pick up the ax and straightened up with a gcoan and his hand to his b&cki I "It's a crik in the back," said the woman. "I'm glad to find it out. I've tackled fourteen different criks and cured each and every one. If I can cure you then Nelly will be very happy when she returns. Come along out to the smokehouse." "But what's the smokehouse going to do for a man whose spinal cord is all knotted up?" "Treatment, Moses—treatment Just step inside." He stepped, and the door was closed on him and locked. He found a cot, a jug of water and a loaf of bread. He kicked on the door and called out to know what it all meant, and was told to cuddle down and take treatment for the cure of gen eral laziness, drink, a crik In the back and lying abed In the morning. He was warned that any extra emo tion on his part would make the crik worse, and told that there was no ob jection to his sleeping all day. Moses was foolish enough to kick and shout until a score of villagers came run ning to see what the matter was. To one and all the mother-in-law an swered: "Moses has had a crik in the back for a year past, and I've set out to cure it. I hope to meet with great success. In fact, I don't think his \yife will have to do dressmaking when she comes back. Thanks for calling. Come again." During the first day Moses thought and slept by turns, and now and then shed tears. In a few hours his life had changed over and his peace and comfort had departed. At sundown more bread and water. He yelled and kicked and again be was warned to supress his emotions. He demanded better rare, but was answered that until his crik got so that he could use the ax there would be no cooking. On the second night he seriously thought of suicide, and he smiled joyously as be conjured up a mental picture of the mother-in law opened the door In the morning and finding him stark and stiff in death. But successfully to commit suicide one must have something' more than a jug of water ahd a loaf of bread at If and. Moses couldn't ohoke ttlmself with either. Breakfast was the &jine old bill -of fare, 'and the 'woman still 'had her Iron jaw. There was no conversation. Moses nibbled and sipped and thought. An hour before noon he called out and when lushed what he wanted he very humbly replied: "Mother. I believe that crik la bet ter." 'It's too soon, MOSto It's too soon." '^Maybe, If 1 was very careful, I could split a few sticks of wood to get dinner with." "I wouldn't have yon try tt for 4N world, my daar son-in-law. Too havi fiife'ki:. 'V ",v' Ships are Up-to-date and so is my •—••••••••••KmEllWMHMWMWBI Moses didn't have such a lame back that he couldn't understand sarcasm, and he raised another row. Again the neighbors came, but when he ap pealed to them for help they looked at the mother-in-law. She asked them not to Interfere with her treatment She had set out to cure his crik, and they could all notice that his voice was growing stronger. That smoke house door was the first thing he had raised his foot to kick a whole year. Bread and water again for supper, and another long night Not a look of pity—not a "poor Moses!" Truly, things had changed. At midnight Moses sat up on his cot to decide two questions. Was his crik really better? Was this his mother-in-law's fifteenth cure? Should he go to work? After an hour he decided both cases In the affirmative, and In the morning he was ready to say: "Mother, I've been doing some seri ous thinking since you were here last." "You have? I am sorry for that I warned you not to strain your mind. You must be very, very quiet." "I—1 ought to have been at work for months past." "But the lame back, you know?" "I shouldn't have gone to drinking." "But you had to, poor man." "If you'll let me out now I'll have a Job before night." "I couldn't, Moses—I couldn't it's altogether too sudden. If you went to work now It might be the last of you, and I don't want my daughter a widow. Let's do a good job and not hurry about it." It was on the morning of the tenth day, and. after two ministers and a score of lawmen had pleaded for Moses, that the door was unlocked and an ax put into his hands. He walked straight to the woodpile and made the chips fly. When he had worked for two hours he put on his coat and started to look for a Job, and when his wife cam* home he was at work on a new ha'rti. There waa astonishment at bis cure, and sur prise that he Wouldn't tell how It had been brought about. All the explana tion he mad« was that he suddenly felt something give way. The mother was a little clearer as she said: "Nelly, all men want a mother-in law around-the house, but some "want them more than others. If I were you I'd let it kind o' leak out aroond the Tillage that you ain't gtfng to do any more dressmaking, and that Moses la going to give up sitting on the post offlcfe •tepp and put ih ten hours' work ttfr eigiit Ubiirs' psdr. THE LEON BEPORTEB THURSDAY, DECEMBER 14, 1911. I am showing the finest line of holiday goods suitable for Christmas presents to be found in Southern Iowa. COME IN AND SEE THE BIG DISPLAY. You Can Find Just the Present You Want, Whether It Costs Little or Big Money 8 SOME XMAS SUGGESTIONS Leather Goods A complete line of Dressing Cases, Purses, Novelties, Toilet Sets, etc. Hammered Brass and many other novelties at all prices. been in dreadful bad shape for a year. Any undue exertion might finish you. You shall have a raw tomato to help out your dinner, as that goes with the treatment. If It wasn't half a mile to the nearest saloon I'd ask you to have a drink with me." A NEW LINE OF GOLD HEADED UMBRELLAS AND CANES, FOUNTAIN PENS, PLAIN, GOLD AND SILVER TRIMMED. J. R. BASHAW'S HOLIDAY EMPORIUM AMD TOY CENTERg m,'' 23aw ..' li '.''' *.'* DATE FROM FIFTH CENTURY Invention of Large Church Bella Ascribed to Paulinut, Bishop of Nola. In the twenty-eighth chapter of Ex odus, verses 34 and 35, occurs the first mention of bells, and their use is practically the same as that to which modern church bells are put, namely, to give notice of the time for public worship. The uses of bells ns summons to prayer are not derived directly from this source as they bave been used In all ages for secular as well as re ligious purposes. In the Grecian army the ofl&cer of the guard visited the sentries at night with a bell as a signal of watchfulness, and tfce Romans used small ones in their baths and places of business. The honor of inventing the large church bells, however, is ascribed to Paulftius, Bishop of Nola, a city of Campania, who flourished In the fifth century of the Christian era. Not long after they were introduced into Britain. St. Dunstan presented several to Malmesbury Abbey, and the abbot of England, in King Edward's time, made six bells, wtiTch were named after distinguished personages, and, says the historian, Such a concert was never heard in tfc.e land before. The custom of ringing upon occa sions of public rejoicings is derived from an early usage of the Catholics, who in this manner gave notice of the arrival of a church dignitary withiu their jurisdiction, and it was regarded as a high offense if the bells were not rung. Publicity an' Essential. jaiyes Hamilton Lewis, once a mem ber cf congress and now an attorney in Chicago, was on one occasion can didate for an elective position in the northwest. At that time Lewis was famous for "his pink whiskers," of which he had a roseate and flaming abundance. One day an acquaintance of Uewls' dropped into a hotel and askiid -the clerk: "isn't that Jim Ham Lewis over there reading that newspaper?" "So,' explained the clerk, "that's a fellow who looks so extraordinarily like him that Lewis' opponents have hired him to sit around in hotel lob bjes and create the impression thai hois Lewis." Lewis coined the famous idea: "H you can't praise me In the newspaper^ please roast me but never leave my natae out altogether."--The Sunday Magasine. Stretching a Point. I -you hare be^n telling me abont your 'apartments' in town and you biave bot .one-room,*' SI •".. *. •,(• Toys This store is headquarters for toys of all kinds. Every thing for the children. Don't forget to make them happy this year. In N* There certainly were flaws some where in the screens. As MrB. Steble ton waved distractedly at the buzzing pests that were interfering with the reading of her morning mall she calcu lated that there must be at least a thousand flies in the flat And Mrs. Stebleton hates a fly as she hates a rattlesnake. "I simply cannot stand this!" she cried in wrath. So she went to the phone and ordered sent over at once a quantity of sticky fly paper. When it came she hated to spoil the looks of the place, but desperate measures were imperative. The yellow sheets were scattered about through the rooms. Then Mrs. Stebleton hung around counting the first unwary victims and rejoicing as she checked them off. Presently she got dressed and went out to a luncheon and shopping with a friend. When she came back she hoped that the last of the invaders would have buzzed out his final pro tests on the sticky fly paper. Hilda, the maid, some hours later bore an armful of freshly ironed sheets and towels as she tramped heavily down the hall to the linen closet Then she dropped her burden with a thump on a convenient table. When in the course of putting them away she came to the last sheet something seemed wrong with It .Hilda investigated and then she said: "My land!" One of the pieces of fly piaper was Immovably glued to' the under side of the sheet. With mutterings of disgust, Hilda peeled off the 'sheet and tried to wash it out In the Wth tub. Her efforts proved *o her how very useless It was for a fly to try to get away when once he got stuck to the sticky stuff. The fly paper she removed from its dangerous position on the cable, and after aimlessly looking around for an out of the way place, deposited it upon the topmost sofa pillow on the library couch. Linda Stebleton, aged 16, arrived home from school little later, bring ing with her three girls. They burst in with a gust of chatter and dis tributed themselves through two rooms recklessly. Thereupon simulta neously arose wild shrieks. Quest No. 1 had planted her elbow on one sheet of fly paper uid her en^eilvors to,re move It glued It jKrinly to. feelr oitber jbiand. Gueet No. '2 had leaned back her head, and brought down a «heet lianging over tbe edge of a bookcase. jp^fEf SMmed inextricably at S'W? Stock, Books, Etc. A big line of the latest standard books, fancy bind ings, box stationery, etc. Pictorial books and booklets for the little ones. tached to its surface. Guest No. 3 was trying to remove a sheet from Linda's back. After the excitement had cooled down a trifle Linda gazed upon the fly paper with hostile eyes. "Mother must have put that horrid stuff around!" she said. "I suppoge she saw a fly! You'd think that ope fly was a regi ment from the wdr she acts. Now, where can we putwie awful stuff?" They prowled around with the sticky paper gingerly hgp between their thumbs and flngerfe and finally ar ranged it to suit themselves. Then they devoted an hour to soap and alco hol In an endeavor torrid themselves of the general stickiness. "Tod" Stebleton, aged eight, joined the procession when he rushed in and sat down with a bounce on a sheet that had slid into a chair. His objec tions were violent and acrid and it took the efforts of his sister and the other three girls combined to calm him. Taking the fly paper in no gen tle hand. Tod hurled it out of his way. Stebleton himself arrived home be fore his wife. "What's this? What's this?" he demanded in his nervous way, placing an investigating finger on. the pale yellow sheet on the hall stand. It stuck. The other hand stuck, too, when he hastily endeavored to get it off. His son and daughter hastened to his rescue, explaining that doubt less mother had been waging war against her enemies, the flies. When Mrs. Stebleton came In, tired, she was full of apologies for her late ness, she explained as she tossed off her hat and her gloves and coat "I'm simply dead!" she ended. "I've juBt got to rest a few minutes before I dress for dinner!" Then she threw herself among the pillows on the li brary couch. But not for long. From Mrs. Stebl* ton's appearance as she scrambled to her feet wildly after a horrified in stant It seemed that Linda and hfer three friends, Tod and Steblejton all had followed Hilda's example in choos ing the sofa pillows on that couch aa a safe place to stow the sticky sheeta of fly paper out at the way. Bvery4a*t one of them was plastered on lira. 8tebleton! On-the Nursery Menu. Little sicknesses due to unwis* feeding sometimes develop Into tifou blesome maladlea, and parenta do V41I to watch, during the'au$umn especial ly, that Injudicious treatment does not jglve rise to stomach complications In the case of young children. Con trary to the general ide*, too mqeb milk la not good, and should not -bo given promiscuously there are^ occltafna upon Which witer is-'to preferred, but eottl water must not 'be^4g% gtvwx io an overheated ohild.. A Ut|}e|^&' liariey water ij^i&lk *ftll make ihip^ digestion afwlmilate It more easily%hd|# y£rait vomiting and bllliousness. §nd many children like and can with mm *5, Sj'l A A J/ 1 ii- 'ivl iS-T 'If 4- 1 1 I iM I