Show a SHE NS IS ARTISTIC by FRANK FILSON yes teg ma maam am we e can board you on the farm it ou dont don t mind eating H hi 1 and mo and the hired man S alx ix d dollars ol 01 I 1 a rs a kcf R teits our price you thought it anas as ninea it used to be nine mania maam but that was vas when Lin borough used to be artistic and when folks wants art the have to pay ay for it how did wo we stop being artistic that 8 B quite a story ma am our baag be lug artistic came on us quite like IL flash ma maam am one summer we was waa lust just folks same as we are now and the next we w was as artistic you dont like our furniture 9 I 1 in certainly not surprised to hear you say eay that maam mrs higginbotham and minnie used to have haie convulsions whenever they looked at it IL mrs higginbotham ran that art colony up on the hill the big barn that B falling ailing to ruin no we been artistic tor for three or four years now and the colony has moved moed to greenfield minnie 0 minnie a our daughter sort bort of a fine girl HI and I 1 thought her and that a why we sent her to college sam dunn bunn the plumber was sweet on her and ill HI and I 1 hoped they would hitch bitch up together when she come home tor for sim sam a s a nice quiet sort ol of fellow felloe and always was saving well too but of ct course a plumber dont know about being artistic it stands to reason for or they the didn dian I 1 have plumbing in them artistic times well maam minute minnie came home college and III hi and I 1 noticed she bhe sort ol of sniffed the first evening eveling the matter min asked her father have you got a touch of 0 catarrh no pal pa answered anaw ered minnie 1 I was just looking at the furniture well you ou dont need to smell it do you youa asked ill HI not understand lag ing father said minnie now that I 1 am home I 1 am going to improve things a little well that suited hi and me be first rate for or we naturals natura nat lh thought she means that she was nas going to help us old folks out with uth the chores there was a heap of cleaning to be mn 1 V IC af the matter mm min done and it always took my strength polishing the stove but minnie didn dian t mean that at all what she meant was being artistic shed she d got to bo be fast friends with that higginbotham woman and next day she broke the news to us that rented the old hopps hoppe place lor for an art colony and some so 60 students ot of both sexes was coming sure enough the did come within the week about halt half and halt half as to the sexes although it v aan t always easy to tell which v was as which from the way by they looked the townspeople was glad for things were a bit dull in Lin borough the only person who t glad outside our house was sam bunn buna min lie seemed to have soured on the ille plumbing business and sam soon saw it wasat much use hanging around the first shock come when minnie had the house re papered HI and I 1 always liked bright papers on our walls roses and lilies and such things but minnie had bad the place papered in a sort ot of sickly martha says HI to ms me when ho he saw tho the finished result this is more than I 1 can stand minnies gone crazy 1 I reminded him how mrs higginbotham was taking all our eggs and butter and that sort of reconciled him the next thing was the furnishings nish ings our furniture which you ou can see came from rom HI his a grandmother but minnie and some ot of the lady stu dents borrowed ed our woodshed and the first drat thing we know knew the furniture was up in fit the garret and we had some new chairs and tables all rough wood with brass nails sticking out after that ill HI moved into the garret and spent ills his evenings there I 1 dont think he d have stood tor for it much longer only wo we put up our price from six dollars to nine and we got quite a superior class of 0 sum guru mer boarders they used to stand outside our house bouse in groups and ad mire it especially after minnie had bad painted a sign the old tavern and he hung n g it from HI his s window I 1 like it myself being a temperance woman roman but minnie had painted ted it artistically so that it was did sult cult to read HI ell thought it read the rho old caidin and he ha wis was nata naturally rally mad till explained but I 1 was nab going to tell tel you how Lin borough stopped being autistic it was wag all very vcr well while summer bummer lasted arid and prices were v ere good but it w aan t till fall that any of the girls in our town would look at the he young oung fellows fel loas and by b the time they the had crept bick into favor again summer was coming round once more mrs a came back and the tha furniture was getting ready to go into the attic and I 1 saw minnie looking at the tavern sign which hi had put away awa in the woodshed and it if If minnie flarrie hadn haan t been at college all the winter inter wed hano baio had no peace at home nov I 1 was telling you about sam bunn hed always admired minnie and though she hadrit t treated him well he still hankered after her so ho he and some other aung young men c come n e ar up to talk it over with HI and the result was a society for the promo tion of being artistic it was beating mrs higginbotham at her own game it began when she found the frost had bad burst her pipes arid and sent tor for sam sam listened respectfully respectful 1 I in sorry sorri mrs higginbotham he ha says when she gets through but I 1 ve joined our new society for the promotion of being artistic and I 1 cant can t fix em why not asks mrs higginboth at am pipes aint artistic answers sam only wells stells art an old oaken buckets la Is artistic no maam I 1 can cant I 1 fix em well since sam tas nas the only plumber in town she had to send ov over er to greenfield then there was ed keggs the tha butcher lie he wanted easiness but ho he w wanted anted mabel gough more and mabel was mas artistic so he had joined the society and he w t sell lamb choDa kr or ribs chops aint ain t artistic mrs higgin botham 1 he explained what Is ar ap is barbecues ill sell you iou a kibble whole ox to roast upon a spit spits la Is artistic As for jim saunders the grocer he sell anything but herbs he said canned goods was vulgar and since the root roof was leaking and there nobody knew how to thatch one mrs higginbotham gave up the fight and left yes it did pay us being artistic but we dont envy deerfield and all ai hi as saia a he dont want to be artistic arti unless his armchair and pipe goes goei with it minnieb Minnie 9 0 ashes been mrs D bunn these two years past they ve got a brand ne new cottage up Nob scott way and a pianola and two babies and sams doing well in the plumbing business so as I 1 was saying saving its only six dollars again but you 11 hav to cat w ith the hired man mam maim copyright 1913 by W G chapman |