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THE WISHING KING.
HOW IT BROUGHT GOOD LUCK TO ITS
OWNERS.
A young farmer, whoso farm did not
prosper particularly well, was sitting
resting on his plow for a moment as ho
wiped his brow, when au old witch
crept up to him and said, “Why do
you toil so hard, and all for nothing?
Walk straight before you for two days
and you will come to a largo fir tree,
which stands alone, towering over all
other trees of the forest. If you can
but fell it your fortuno is made.”
The farmer did not wait to be told
twice, but taking his axe on his shoulder
started on his way. After walking two
days he came to the fir tree, and imme
diatcly set to work to fell it. Soon it
toppled and fell crashing to the earth,
when from the top branches dropped a
nest containing two eggs. The eggs
rolled on the ground and, as they broke,
forth came a young eaglet from one
and a small golden ring from the other.
The eaglet grew visibly, till it reached
half the height of a man, shook its
wings, as if to try them, raised itself
from the ground, and’then cried :
“You have released me! Asa token
of my gratitude, take the ring the other
egg contained—it it is a wishing ring.
Turn it on your finger, speak your
wish aloud, and it will be immediately
granted. But the ring has only one
wish; when that is accomplished it
will lose all power and become no more
than any other ring. Therefore reflect
well on what you wish for, so that you
may not have to repent afterward.”
Having so spoken, the eagle rose
high into the air, swept for some time
in wide circles over the farmer’s head,
and then, like an arrow from a bow,
shot swiftly toward the. east. The
farmer took the ring, put it on his
finger and started homeward. Toward
oveuing he reached a town. At the
door of his shop a gentleman stood who
had many valuable rings for sale. The
farmer showed him his ring, and asked
him about the value of it."
“Mere trumpery,” answered the gold
smith. The farmer laughed heartily,
telling the man it was a wishing ring,
and of more value than all the rings in
his shop put together.
No-w, the goldsmith was a false, de
signing man, so he invited the farmer
to stay all night at his house, saying :
“It must bring oi c good, luck to en
tertain a man who is the possessor of
such a precious jewel, so pray remain
with me.”
lie accordingly entertained him well
with plenty of wluc and civil words',
but when he went to sleep at night he
drew his ring stealthily from his finger
and put on it instead a common ring,
quite like it iu appearance. The next
morning the goldsmith could hardly
wait, with any degree of patience, till
the farmer had taken his departure.—
lie awoke him in. the early dawn,
saying:
‘■You have so far to go you had
better start early.”
As soon as the farmer was safe on
his journey the goldsmith went into his
room, and having closed the shutters,
that no one might see, he bolted himself
in and, standing in the middle of the
room, and turning the ring on his finger,
exclaimed :
“I wish to have a hundred thousand
silver crowns immediately.”
Hardly were the words spoken when
bright five-shilling pieces began to rain
down from the ceiling. Shining silver
crowns poured down so fast and hard
that at last they began to beat him un
mercifully about the head and shoulders
and arms. Calling piteously for help,
ho tried to rush to the door, but before
he could reach and unbolt it, be fell
bleeding to the floor. Still tbo raiu of
silver crowns did not cease, and soon,
under the weight of them, the flooring
gave way, and the unfortunate gold
smith and bis money fell down into a
deep cellar. And still it rained on,
till the hundred thousand silver crowns
were completed, and then the goldsmith
lay dead in his cellar, with the mass of
money upon him. Attracted at last by
the noise, the neighbors rushed to the
spot and, on finding the goldsmith dead
under his money, exclaimed : ‘lt is
really a great misfortune when bless
ings rain down like cudgels.”
Then the heirs Came and divided
the spoil. Meantime, the farmer went
happily home ami showed tho ring to
bis wife,
• By James K. Frost. II
VOL. 111. i
“We shall never want for anything,
dear wife,” he said; “our fortune is
made. But wc must consider well what
we must wish for.”
The wife had a bright idea ready
at hand.
“Let us wish ourselves some more
land,” said she; “we have so little.—
There is just a nice strip which stretch
es into our field. Let u| wish for that.”
“That would never be worth while,”
replied the husband; we have only to
work well for a year, and have a mode
rate share of good luck, and we can buy
it for ourselves.”
And the man and his wife worked
hard for a whole year, and the harvest
had never been so plentiful as tnat
autumn; so they were not only able to
buy that strip of land, but bad money
to spare.
“You see,” said the husband, “the
land is curs and the wish, too.”
Then the good woman thought it
would be a capital thing to wish them
selves a cowhand a horse.
“Wife,” answered the husband, again
clinking the surplus money in his pocket,
it would bo.folly tcrsacrifice our wish for
such a trumpery tiling; we can get the
horse and cow without that.”
And sure enough, in another year’s
time, the horse and cow had been well
earned; so the man rubbed his hands
cheerfully and said :
“Another year has passed, and still
the wish is ours, and yet we have all we
want; what good luck we have P
The wife, however, began to grow
impatient, and tried seriously to induce
her husband to wish for something.
“You arc not like your old self,” she
said, one day, crossly; “formerly, you
were always grumbling and complain
ing, and wishing for all sorts of thiugs;
and now, when you might have what
ever you want, you toil and work like
a slave; are pleased with everything,
and let your best years slip by. You
might be king, emperor, duke, a great
rich f-irmcr, with loads of money, but
uo—you can’t make up jonr mind what
to choose.”
“Pray do cease continually worrying
and teasing me,” cried the farmer; “we
are both of us young, and life is long
The ring contains but one wish, and
that must not ho squandered. Who
knows what may happen to us, when we
might really need the ring? Do you
want for anything now? Since the
ring has been ours, have we not so
risen in the world that all men marvel
at us? So do be sensible, and amuse
yourself, if you like, by thinking what
we shall wish for.”
And so the matter was allowed to
rest for the present. It really seemed
as if the ring brought blessings on the
house, for barns and graneries grew
fuller from year to year, aud, in the
course of time, the poor farmer became
a rich and prosperous one. He worked
all day with his men, as if the whole
world depended upon it; hut in the
evening, when the vesper bell sounded,
lie was always to be seen sitting, and
well-to-do. at the threshold, to be wished
“Good evening,” by the passers by.—
Now and tlicu, when they were quite
alone and no one near to hear, the
woman still reminded her husband of
.the ring, aud made all sorts of proposi
tions to him. lie always answered,
there was time enough to think about
it,, and that the besi ideas always oc
curred to one last. So she gradually
fell into the way of mentioning it less
often, and at last it rarely happened that
the ring was ever alluded to at all.
Tho farmer, it is true, turned the
ring ou his fiuger twenty times a day
and examined it closely, but took great
care never to express the slightest wish
at tho time. And so thirty and forty
years went by, and the farmer and his
wife grew old, and their hair snow white,
and still the wish remained unspoken.
At last it pleased God to show them a
great meroy, and He took them to Him
“3AI.US 3?Or>TJ3LX SUPREMA ESTO.”
WAYNESBORO’, GA., SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 1873:
self both in one night. Children and
grand-children stood weeping around
the coffins, and as one of them tried to
withdraw the ring from the dead man’s
finger, his eldest son said :
“Let our father take his ring to the
grave. There was some mystery about
it. Probably it was some love token,
for our mother often looked at the ring,
too; perhaps she gave it to him when
they were both young.”
So the old farmer was buried with
the ring which should have been a
wishing ring, but was not one, and yet
had brought as much good luck to the
house as man could desire. For it is
strange, as regards the true and false,
that a bad tiling can be turned to
better account in good hands, than a
good thing in bad.
t F rom the Louisville Courier-Journal.]
An Uiicui'tlied Aiimlolf of Foote
and Jeff* Davis.
Foote and Davis were in Congress in
1848 (while Taylor and Cass were can
didates for the Presidency) and occupied
a room together at the Willard Hotel.
One evening, seated by the same fire
side, Mr. Davis read aloud from a politi
cal letter of Gen. Taylor, and made run
ning comments for Mr. Foote’s dvlecta
t:on,which the latter thought were rather
too friendly for a Democratic Senator
to give expression to in the of a
canvass. In fact, he intimated quite
strongly that lie thought Mr. Davis, at
heart, ftas a Taylor man ; that spite of
his professed support of the Democratic
nominee he would secretly rejoice over
Gou. Taylor’s election.
Mr. Davis had married a daughter of
'Gen. Taylor, and this little circum
stance, Mr. Foote suggested, was at the
bottom of his colleague’s compliment of
the letter, adding, iu his impetuous way,
that it would doubtless boa very nice
thing, after all, to be a son-iu law of the
President —even a Whig President.
Mr. Davis could not brook this sarcas
tic intimation of treachery on his part,
and retorted in severe language, one
word bringing on another, until the
“grave and reverend” came to blows.
The noise of the fisticuff aroused other
Congressmen, who rushed into the room
and separated the combatants, admon
i.-hing them of the .shame which would
attach to two distinguished Senators
from the same State indulging in a dis
graceful knoclc-dowu. This view of the
matter Daturally brought the two to
terms. Like the nun and wife who
“argued” the question of “rat or mouse,”
they shook hands and made friends.
“Really,”said Mr. Foote, after a smile
all around ; “really, I should not have
thought of such a thing as striking Mr.
Davis if heliadn’t passed the first blow.”
“Are you not mistaken about that?”
urged Mr. Davis apologetically.
“Indeed, I am not,” retorted the im-
petuous.
“It is my impression you struck
first,” pleaded Mr. 1).
“Oh no, it was you.”
“Hut I’ll sivear was you.”
“And I would swear it wasn’t.”
“You did strike me first.”
“I did not strike first.”
“You did.”
“I didn’t.”
“You did.”
“I didn’t.”
“Well,” said Foote at last, rising
hastily from his seat, “there shan’t be
any dispute as to who struck first this
time”—aud as he spoke dealt Mr. Davis
a stringing blow on tho cheek, which
resulted in another rencontre that, hut
for the interference of mutual friends,
might have been going on until now. for
both are “game” all over. Tho ques
tion as to who struck first being settled
nothing serious grew out of the matter,
especially as cither party preferred to
have the matter hushed up as speedily
as possible;
Why is the letter Y like a young
i lady ? Because it makes pa pay.
[>OR*TIIB EXPOSITOR]
OLD MAM’S DAKLIMO.
BT N. BRUM CLARK.
A good matured, pretty, and heart-melting
thing,
A tease, an enigma, a torment, a prize,
She blooms the chief flower of rosy-wreathed
spring,
And her eyes are as fair as the hue of the
skies.
Her complexion excelling the tint of the rose,
Her voice sweeter far than the tones of the
harp,
This pretty and good-natured creature —
who knows 7
The joy of my life and the pride of my heart.
If gloomy or saddened, depressed or in
If ascetic, splenetic—if groaning or sighing,
Tliis sweet, pretty creature, just sixteen in
years,'
Will groan when I smile and laugh when I’m
crying.
The dear darling dear, I am free to confess,
One lay when an old fellow stood by her side.
With a toss of her curly head, sweetly said
“yes,"
And.became in an instant the old fellow’s
bride.
When the old fellow suffers with gout in liis
toes, *
And roars like a bull in his big rocking chair,
She wraps liinv so nice in her soft woolen
clothes
That he wishes sometimes he’d the gout for
a year!
One day the dear tease did solicit a shawl,
But the old fellow told her he hadn’t the
“pewter,”
Then she trod on his toes, aud the terrible
bawl
Which he uttered she said did most suitably
suit her.
Next morning she went and she came, and
that’s all,
Except she spotted a newly bought locket,
And, odds hobs, she had on a beautiful
shawl, . ..
And the old fellow had—not a cent iu his
pocket.
He shouted, “I’m plundered, I’m murdered”
—“my dear,
Be silent, and don’t take the robbery amiss.
I'll pay you with interest the end of the year,
Aud surely add one'to your minutes of bliss.”
And the dear little, sweet little torment and
tease
Kissed the grumbling old fellow a hundred
times o’er.
That’s the way with ihe woman, they do as
they please,—
Asleep when you watch them, —awake when
you snore!
The dear little, sweet little, darling young
wife,
This morning, quite early, said: “dear, when
you’re able,
I want you to buy me”—“what, dear, a
penkuife 1”
“No, no, you old goose, you must buy me a
cradle!”
Iley, diddle, diddle, the cat’s in the tiddle,
The old man’s locked in his room,
The little wife laughs when I rock the cradle,
And the baby, it cries till noon.
To tiie Boys.— Someone has written
beautifully to the boys in the following
manner. Here is a whole scrmoD in a
few sentences: “Of all the love affairs
in the world, none can surpass the true
love of a big boy for his mother. It
iS pure and noble, honorable in the
hjghest degree to both. Ido not mean
merely a dutiful affect ion. I mean a
love which makes a boy gallant and
courteous to his mother, saying to every
body plainly that ho is fairly in love
with her. Next to the love of her hus
band, nothing so crowns a woman’s life
with honor as this second love, this devo
tionof a son to her. And I never yet knew
a boy to 'turn out’ had who began by
falling in love with his mother. Auy
man may fall in love with a fresh-faced
girl, aud the man who is gallant with
the girl may cruelly negleot the worn
and weary wife. But the boy who is a
lover tQ his mother in her middle ago
is a true knight, who will love his wife
as much in the sere-leaved autumn as he
did in the daisied spriug-time,” .
“Do you believe, sir, that the dead
ever walk after death'/” “No doubt of
it, madam. I have beard the Dead
March.”
II $2 a year, in advance,
LITEKAL, AWSWLKS.
A lady noticed a boy sprinkling gait
on the sidewalk <o take off the ice, ant
remarked toa friend, pointing to the salt:
“Now, that’s beuevolencc.”
“No it ain’t,” said the bqy somewhat
indiguantly, “it’s salt.”
So, when a lady asked her servant
girl if the hired man cleaned the snow
off with alacrity, she replied :
“No. rna’m, he used a shovel.”
The same little turn of mind which
we have been illustrating is sometimes
used intentionally, and perhaps a little
maliciously, and thus becoi cs the pro
perty of wit instead of blunder. Thus
we hear of a very polito and impressive
gentleman who said to a youth in the
street:
“Boy may I inquire where Robinson’s
drug store is ?”
. “Certainly, sir,” replied the boy, very
respectfully.
“Well, sir,” said the gentleman after
waiting awhile, “where is it ?”
“I have not the least idea, yer honor,”
Baid the urchin.
There was another boy who was ac
costed by an ascetic middle aged lady
with:
“Boy, I want to go to Dover street.”
“Well, ma’m,” said the boy,” why
don’t you go, then
One day, at Lake George, a party ot
gentlemen strolling among the beautiful
islands on the lake, with bad luck, es
pied a little fellow with a red shirt and
a straw hat, dangling a line over the
side of a boat.
“Hallo, boy,” said one of them, what
are you doing ?”
“Fishing,” came the answer.
“Well of course,” said the gentleman;
“but what do you catch ?’*
“Fish you fool! What you s’pose ?’
“Did any of you ever see an elephant’s
skin T' inquired a teaohor of an infant
class.
“I have,” exclaimed one.
“Where?” asked the teacher.
“On the elephant,” said tho boy,
laughing.
Sometimes this sort of wit degenerates
or rises, as the case may be, into pun
ning, as when Flora pointed pensively
to the heavy masses of clouds in the
sky, saying: *
“I wonder where those clouds are go
ing ?” and her brother replied.
“I thank they are going to thunder.”
Also the following diologue :
“Hallo, there | how do you sell your
wood?”
“By the cord.”
“How long has it been cut ?”
“Four feet.”
“I mean how long has it been since
you cut it?”
“No longer than it is now.”
And also when Patrick O’Flynn was
seen with his collar and bosom sadly
begrimmed, and was indignantly asked
by his officer:
“Patrick O’Flynn ! how long do you
wear a shirt ?
“Twenty-eight incites sir.”
This reminds one of an instance which
is said to have occurred recently in Chat
ham street, New York, where a country
man was clamorously besieged by a
shopkeeper :
“Have you any tine shirts?” said the
countryman.
“A splendid assortment Stop in, sir.
Every price and every style. The cheap
est in the market, sir.”
“Are they clean ?”
“To be sure, sir.”
“Then,” said countryman, with great
gravity, “you had better put on one,
for you need it.”
“Do you think lam a fool ?” a vio
lent man asked the late Rev. Dr. Bu
thunt*. “Really,” replied the doctor, “T
would not have veutured the assertion,
but now that you ask my opinion. I
must say that I am not prepared to
deny it.”
Guilt frames— Prison windows.
Iu tents excitement—Pauio in a oir
cus.
Pics thit suit the Celestials—Pup
pies.
People who sell hay do business on a
“largo scale.”
A kangaroo is a curious chap, when,
it’s awako its leaping.
The worst kind of education—To be
brought up by a policcn an.
The Poenix was raised in a hot bed,
and that’s what made him soar.
A blacksmith cc.n not only shoe a
horse himself, but he can make a horse
shoe.
5N0.25.
“The Pacific Slopo”—The Quaker
Peace Commissioners ruuning from the
Indians.
In what case is it absolutely impos
sible to be slow and sure ? In the case
of a watch.
If you let the cat out of the bag,
never try to cram it back again; it only
makes matters worse.
There is a religious sect at Bristol,
Vt., who wash each other’s feet. There
is also a sect at Washington who white
wash each other’s reputations—but it
isn’t a very Religious sect.
. A female clerk in a candy store In
Kansas City heard she had fallen heir
ess to a fortune in England,and im-
V*
mediately refused to attend customers,
but perched herself on the counter and
chewed gum drops the rest of the day.
A Lucky lowa editor won a very
nice bet on the presidential election. A
young lady presumed to be pretty—
agreed to kiss him once a month for four
years if Grant was elected, and is keep
ing her word like a man. We hope for
the sake of the editor’s peace of mind
that he is not a married man.
A. G. WHITEHEAD, M. D.,
WAYNESBORO, GA., .
Office at old stand of Buroell & Whitehead,,
Residence, corner Whitaker and Myric sts.) ;
Special attention given to Accouchement
and Surgery. I
Thanking the public for past patronage,
solicits a continuance of the same.
janl3—ly
DENTISTRY.
GEORGE PATERSON, D. D. S.,
OFFICE NEXT TO PLANTERS' HOTEL,
WAYNESBORO’, GA.
FAMILIES desiring his services at their
homes, iti Burke, or adjoining counties, can
address him at this place. dec23-ly
R. O. LOVETT,
ATTORNEY AT LAW ,
WAYNESBORO’, GA.
W 11 practice in the Superior Court of the
Augusta, Middle, and Eastern Circuits.—
Special attention given to Justice Court
practice. febls-ly
A. M. RODGERS,
ATTORNEY AT LAW ,
WAYNESBORO, GA,
• OFFICE A T THE COURT HOUSE.
PERRY BERRIEN,
ATTORNEYS AT LAW ,
WAYNESBORO, GEORGIA.
Office in Court House basement—northeast room
JAMES s. HOOIC. | JA'IES GARDNER
HOOK Sc C3-A.H3D3STBR,
ATTORNEYS AT LAW,
AUGUSTA GEORGIA
Will practice in the Augusta Circuit and in tho
United States District and Circuit Court* far tho
State of Georgia. Cases attended to in other
countios and in South Carolina by special con
tract. janl3-6m
JOHN D, ASHTON | HOMER 0. GUBgOg.
ASHTON <fc GLISBON,
ATTORNEYS AT LAW ,
WAYNESBORO’ GEORGIA
Will practice in the Superior Courts cf the
Augusta, Eastern, and Middle Circuits, the
Supreme Court of the State, apd in the
District and Circuit Courts of the United
Statist, at Savannah. Claims collected and
ens enforced. novl6-ly
mat7bpe rkins,
PROF. OF SCIENCE AND LITERATURE OF MUSIC
WILL TEACH CLASS-SINGING,
CONDUCT MUSICAL SOCIETIES,
AND l ■
Organize and Drill Choirs, with special reference to th
wants of the Church.
Address, MAT B. PERKINS,
jy22* Lawtonville, Burke co., Ga.
JETHRO THOMAS,
DEALER'IN • 5
FAMILY GROCERIES,
LJryGroods and. Olothing
(.Opposite Planters' Hotel ),
WAYNESBORO, GA.
~ W. A. WILKINS,
DEALER IN
DRY GOODS, GROCERIES,
DRUGS AND MEDICINES,
TOILET ARTICLES, ETC., ETC.
WA YNEBB OR 0\ GA .
11. BARR,
; DEALER IN
GROCERIES, LIQUORS,
DRY GOODS, CLOTHING,
ETC., ETC.,
WAYNESBORO, GA.