A BAD PLACE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 6, Issue 1590, 23 January 1884, Page 3

A BAD PLACE.

Tko country hotel is not a placo of blissful repose, and there is one in Arkansas "which is rarely visited the Becond tirao by tho same man. Several nights ago a gentleman, hungry, wet, and tired, stopped at the place, and after partly satisfying his hunger, with corn bread and bacon, went to bed, Just ns he snnk to sleep a negro camo into his room, shook the tired man and said: "Boss, yer'll hafter git outen this bed. De bos's sou hah jes got married, an' liab fetch his wifo home. Hato tor stlirb yor, but do 'uppy par must hah (lis room." '■ Why didn't you tell mo before I took tho room?" said tho tired man arising. " Case da wa'n't married den, sail." " Didn't you know that he was going to marry f " Sorter 'spicioned it, sail, but yer seo de lady dun fooled de boss's son threo times, an' we didn't know but she was gwine tcr fool him agen," • "I wish she had. I don't see why people want to marry when it imposes 4S hardship on others." mL 11 Doan see roys'f, boss. Jes stop dis show yer ivgood room." ■ The tired man was shown into a room which could not have been much • - worse than the 0110 he had just left, and which was certainly no better. Ho throw himself "on tho bed, and had probably, been asleep five minutes when the liegro entered again, shook him, and said} " Hates'tcr intemip' yer, Colonel." " Then why the devil do you 1" " Showed yer 111 do wrong roc m, gili. Dis'un had dun been engaged by a tvavellin 1 gentleman," " Ho can't have it." " I'd 'vise yer, boss, not ler urjy wid him. Bad man, an totes a self-cocker. Show yer tev yer room, sab." The tired man followed the colored gentleman to another room, which was little better tlian a stable. "Yer can rest here, sal), mighty peaceable." The man was soon asleep, but after a whilo he was roused by the negro who said: "I hate ter 'stiirb yer agin, sah, . travcllin' man down stairs what 'gaged dis room. Said dat ef I didn't gib him de room or a dollar extra wot he paid . for it, dat ho'd kill bof of us." "Here, take him the dollar." " Tankee, sah. I feel safo now," and he left. The next morning the man learned that there had been no marriage, but that the negro had been paid extra by two travellers for the best l'OOni, aild that the dollar secured him his room, and the last man who arrived only offered the black rascal fifty cents. Mr Henry Richard, M.P., recently stated, as a result of calculations, that the actual workers of the kingdom worked twenty-six minutes every day in tho year to pay the National debt, twenty-eight minutes for the maintenance of our armaments, five minutes for the cost of collecting taxes, nino min ?s for the relief of the poor, nine minfltas for local taxation, and twelve minutes for the cost of civil government.