Jasper County Democrat, Volume 1, Number 42, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 January 1899 — At the Public Expense. [ARTICLE]

At the Public Expense.

It Is stated that one morning recently a young fellow who had just secured a clerkship In a Government office was considerably startled by a little scene which he witnessed. An elderly man, one of the senior clerks In the room, suddenly rose from his desk, dragged the comfortable chair on which he had been sitting into the middle of the room, seized a poker, and, attacking the chair with great vigor, succeeded in breaking one of Its legs. When it was done the official gave a sigh of relief, and flung the chair into a corner of the room. The budding junior’s first thought was that his senior had suddenly taken leave of his senses, and he almost expected that bis colleagues would forthwith put him under restraint. But, to his astonishment, the other clerks hardly raised their eyes while the work of destruction was in progress. Before the office work was over the new-comer sought Information from one of bls fellowclerks. “Can you tell me,” said he, “why Mr. Dash carried on in that extraordinary fashion? I mean, of course, when he broke a perfectly sound leg off the chair in which he had been sitting.” “Oh, ,that was all right!” replied the 'other, with a meaning laugh. "A caster had come off one of the legs of the chair, ariU, you know, *my lords’ will not provide us with new casters; they will attend to nothing less than a broken leg. So Dash had to break one of the legs In order to get his chair put right at the public expense.” If a man Is a coward he Is scorned and abused; If a woman is a coward s\e la petted and encouraged.