' Every body with scant purses wore
coats or pants of it, for the reason that they could not very well buy
any other kind. As the story goes, it appears that 'Old Nick,' as he was
familiarly called, invested in an overcoat of this material, and took
great pride in wearing it, much to the annoyance of the women folks. It
happened that one cold, stormy night the faithful family coachman was at
the house without an overcoat, and Mrs. Longworth, after very feelingly
depicting his forlorn condition to her husband, solicited the privilege
of giving him the aforesaid overcoat. Much to her gratification, Mr.
Longworth assented, and the coachman wore off the 'Hard Times,' the good
wife replacing it by an elegant broadcloth that she had quietly provided
for the occasion. The next morning 'Old Nick' very innocently (?)
overlooked the new coat, and went off to make his usual morning rounds
without one; but it would be impossible to portray the annoyance of the
household when they saw him returning to dinner wearing a duplicate of
the veritable 'Hard Times,' and for weeks afterward it was no uncommon
occurrence to see the 'master and man' flitting about the old homestead
dressed in their gray stripes.
Pages:
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251