SYLVAN VALLEY NEWS Cbaeing a Bat By C. B. CopjTiglit, 1905, by llomctr Sprague Arnold Thompson, bachclor of forty, was bored. He was bored because the warm weatlier had come, aud he must go away to some resort; because he had to buy a new straw hat; because he bad tried the roof gardens and thej^ had of fered nothing new; because he had in dolently tried to flirt with a good look ing girl that day on the street aud she had exhibited her contempt; because of a dozen other reasons belonging to bachelorhood When Arnold Thompson bought a hat it was an event. He argued that the fate of a nation depended on the ap pearance of that hat when i)laced on his head, and he was therefore a full hour in making his selection. It was an hour of anxiety to him and an hour of misery to the salesman who waited on him. On this day, however—on this day when he strolled into his hatter's and made his wants known something out of the ordmary Avas to happen. The !»achelor had tried on only nineteen dif ferent hats and had posed before the glass only nineteen different times, when he made a discovery under the sweatband of the nineteenth hat. It a slip of pai>er. and on it was ten in a feminine hand: he buyer of thi.*J hat is a sin'^le man f^c’itlomnn, ho may v,-rite to Clc-ne- Burton. ddrt'ss was added, aiul as tlie held the slip in his hand a •om:ince iiegan to creep into lliat’s what he had been for for years- romance. He from twenty to thirty, but thirty lo forty an;l came >ion that his heart never ;d again. •*r of this hat is a single single. He was not ou- called rather good look- ad a fairly gond income, gentleman’’— e Avas a gentl(*man, and no d be found lo dispute the fact, should follow? lie v>’Oukl write • imevieve liurtou. The name i)leas- od him, aud as 1k‘ stood then* with the nineteenth straw hat in one hand and tlie slip in the other he called up a vision of a handsom<' face and a curly head and a willowy form. He had no ^]iess lo think (ienevieve good look- ^rly headed or willowy, but he Jhe responsibility and said to Jan, much to the lattei’‘s sur- told that it might have been l ’In any one of half a dozen places they mentioned, and tlie only thing to do was to give up further thought of Gene vieve or pursue his quest. lie decided at once to pursue. He al ways had been flattered by women run ning after him; now he was running after one of tlie opposite sex. and there was something L»ovel in the change. He went to Massachusetts and was sent o • to Vermont. There they sent him over into Canada, and he reached Canada to be told tliat Michigan was his likely field. Tills occupied a full month. The bachelor did not travel by lightning express. He stopped on the way to think of Genevieve and take his Turk ish baths and get his nails manicurcd. He got around to Michigan at last, l^wever. He hatl no sooner set eyes the Maumee river at Toledo than he began to be hopeful. During the lide of eighty miles to Detroit he saw many cattails and much marsh grass and other things of v/hicl/ etiaw hats are made, and his hopes continuetl to increase. Arriviug at the City of the Straits, the bachelor located the only hat fac tory in town and then went to his hotel to make ready for an interview on the morrow. He was alternating between fear and hope when a drum mer with Avhom he fell in reached for his hat in (he familiar way ;»- ped out and asked what AA'as AvantiHl. Mr. 'J'liompson began to talk ab;M!t hats, and he Avas making slow Avork of it Avlien one of the girls canu‘ forward and said to the Avoman: “Kxcusc me, Mrs. I’urtou. but am I seAving this i-ight “Are you Genevieve BurtonV’’ asked the bachelor as siie turned to him again. “I—I am." she replied as she tried to blush. “You—you Avrote your name and slip ped it behind the SAveatband of this hat ?” “I did. sir.” “W-what Avas your object?’’ ‘Must a trick of the trade. I am paid .‘'2 a Ave('k extra for that. That's why Ave call it the ‘liomance' hat. We have sent out iLMiOf) hats, and every one has rny name in. Has it given you a back ache to find out where the hat AA’as made?” “Never again, Genevieve — never again Avill I believe in yroman or I'o- mance:” exclaimed Arnold Thompson in his uiost tragic tones. And an hour later he Avas tleeing the town and try ing to make himself believe that he was traveling to broad(‘u his ideas on his OAvn countrA*. You’re the One We’re After! You who keep your money hidden and at home where it is not safe, instead of puttin.g- it in the bank. Fanners, we solicit your accounts, whether largo or small. We carrj’ insurance, so in case our bank is robbed our depositors do not lose a cent. Our policy is soiuid, liberal and just. We want your business. The Brevard Banking Co. r WHITMIRE & VEJRDERY (Successors to T. W. Whitmire. ) A Are now open and leaoy for business. We will continue to carry a full line of gen eral merchandise. For the next 30 days we are going to give Great Reductions on Winter Goods, Our line of Shoes and Tlats has no equal in the town. Our line of Clothing, Overcoats, Ladies’ Jacketr’ and Dress Goods are all of the latest style, and the prices are going to be cut sufHcient to let them go. We want your business and must have it if nice treatmrnt, honest dealings and low prices will get it—and it sure does. We want all the 30-day customers we « an get and will give same price as if they were [laying cash. Fall dating accounts we are not soliciting, but could carry a few good WHITMIRe VERDERY. T. D. ENGLAND. Ji HAPPY NEW YEMR TO JILL. I feel tliankful to all wlio patronized me in my business the past year and hope to be able to serve you better in the future than I have in tlio ])a;-t. I h(>pe to still hold youi' confidence and also to be worthy of it. I want lo tell you sometliiufx that I want you to t^'ink about. It is tljis; Some mei'chants. when c<.irmencing to do bus ness, put the news out that tliey sell gor»ds cliea])er than the old-timer. After gettinj^ a trade es^tablished and the ])eoi>le Fixed to that belief they will charge exorbitant prices for some things which the people think they ai-»i gettiuii- chea])er than they could ^et anywhere else. Take this for ex ample: I'have a can i)f goods in my store that came from one of the soealled cheap stores and it is marked lo cts. and loi' which I hav’e neA'er asked but H>c for. Still the peo])le ])av for it and think they are getting bargains. 1 am satisfied that if the pe<*])le Avill take tlie timt* to investiiiaie tl)ey will hud it luueh the same all along the line. I want to ])ut you to thinking, for I know that the merchant who sells staples cheaper than I uo has to make it uj) somewhere else or he <*an t make a liA'ing. 1 want to educate aou up to the itiea that it is better to Vuiy things at a reasonable prolit all around than to get some thinoj; as you thinkieheap. and not know what you ].ay for others. Think about this, and if you find th|t I lia\’e told you the truth, remembei- 1 r. D. EN&LA^lSrD 11 take this hat. ‘But is it a good lit?” I said I Avould take this hat lome. s a matter of fact, the hat Avas not d lit, and the l>achelor had meant w over at least nineteen others, struck him that he must have t as Avell as the slip of paper beneath its sweatband. The tAA'o lly AV(*nt together, oon as he reached his club he sat to Avrite to GenevieA'c. He found hard task. She Avas u braider of lAA' hats; she liveii far away; she innocent lioarted; she couldn’t be d to taive a ride in his auto or to tany him to the theater and diu- [le Avas a coy. shy country blue nd must not be startled. The started three different letters doned them aud then sudden- red that he had no address o. lUit Avhy Avrite sit all? nse that hat down until the Avas discovered? :as reached in an in- lour later the man ^asking AA'here eferred to said ck told vou so. tempting to force 30U1I na and New s as- s yymp licited. d to. iins. FEELING IIVER-ISH This Morning? TAKE olic. Cliolera and arrtiof.i Keniedy. , It luav save life. A Gentle Laxative And Appetizer msBBssm