“What unsuspecting buyer shall we try first?” asked Glenda.
“Let’s pack up all our autographed first editions and then give the rest of our books to the college library. That will get us a tax deduction and a prospective buyer.”
“That’s right. Mr. Zimmerman is interested in antiques. Do you think he’ll be smart enough to detect our little additions?”
“Not if we play it smart. And I figure, if we give the library the books, he’ll feel obligated to buy something,” Miriam said.
“Sister, you really have a good head for business.”
Soon after lunch, Mr. Zimmerman arrived and examined the books that the Haynes sisters were offering to the college library.
“I have chosen twenty-six books which I believe the library will be able to use. The remainder, due to condition and/or content, will not be acceptable. An official letter of acknowledgment and appreciation will be mailed to you in the near future. For the present, here is a signed receipt for them and my sincere thanks.” Mr. Zimmerman stacked the books into tote boxes and looked around the room. “Are you planning to sell any of your furnishings?”
“Yes. It breaks our hearts to part with our old family heirlooms, but we just won’t have room for much in the apartment,” Glenda said, wiping her eyes with the corner of her apron.
Miriam spoke up. “While we realize that family pieces have mostly sentimental value, we understand that the intrinsic value has increased some of late.”
“Yes. The demand for both collectibles and genuine antiques has increased,” Mr. Zimmerman said.
“We don’t know anything about antiques or buying and selling. Maybe you could tell us what this old tea chest is worth,” suggested Miriam.
“It has been in our family for generations. As long as I can remember, we have kept our picnic ware stored in it,” added Glenda.
“Is that why you call it a tea chest?” Mr Zimmerman asked, looking at the large, footed box.
“Oh, no. It is our understanding that England shipped loose tea to the colonies in this very chest. It was footed to protect the tea from dampness in the ship’s hole. Of course, we have no way to verify that.”
“Did you have a price in mind?” Mr. Zimmerman asked, trying to get an idea of the Haynes sisters’ dollar value.
“Well, we know it is a little rough so we were thinking maybe in the neighborhood of three hundred dollars.”
Mr. Zimmerman raised the lid. The corners were not dovetailed, and the nails were too uniform to be hand wrought. He was about to close the lid when he saw the label.
“What does the label have on it?” he asked.
“Label? Why, Sister, did you know that the old chest actually has a label in it?”
“How interesting,” Miriam remarked, as she bent over to look at it, as if she had never seen it before. “Here, let me move some of this old stuff so we can read it better.”
Mr. Zimmerman was helping straighten up the contents of the box when he noticed their so-called picnic ware.
I better tread softly, he thought to himself, for this may be another hoax. But there they were — a tall stack of twelve-inch flat pewter plates with eagle touch-marks. There were also a large pewter pitcher, two bowls, and at least five porringers. He did not dare pick up the pitcher or examine the porringers for fear of disclosing his interest before the watchful eyes of the shrewd ladies. Quickly he calculated that there was at least a thousand dollars worth of early American pewter among their picnic ware.
“If I were to buy your chest, what will you do with your picnic ware?”
“That will be a problem, since we’ve always kept it stored in the tea chest, but we will have to manage,” replied Glenda.
“We seldom use it, now. Not that it is not still good, but our new set of Merrimac is so light and pretty,” added Miriam.
“You ladies are fortunate to have two sets of picnic ware.” Then, Mr. Zimmerman’s face took on a studied look. “I was thinking … No. Three hundred dollars is really out of the question for me.”
“You were considering buying the chest?” asked Glenda.
“Well, not really. My wife will have a birthday next week, and she does like American primitives, but I don’t know what she would use a chest like that for. She doesn’t have any picnic ware to store, and three hundred dollars is just more than I can spend on her gift.”
“Sister, since it’s for his wife’s birthday, couldn’t we let him have it for two-fifty?”
“I think we should and let him have the old picnic ware for her too.”
Mr. Zimmerman’s heart skipped a beat, and he had to wait a second to get his composure. “You ladies are so very kind and generous, but I’m afraid I’ll have to refuse your offer. I love my wife very much, but you see, two hundred dollars is all that I can spend on her birthday this year.”
“Two hundred?” pondered Miriam.
“Yes, I’m sorry that I can’t get this for her. I know she would just love it.” Mr. Zimmerman closed the lid and gave the chest an affectionate pat.
“Well,” Miriam started.
“No, no,” Mr Zimmerman interrupted. “I can’t ask you ladies to part with such a valuable piece of Americana for a mere two hundred dollars.”
“We insist,” both said in unison.
“Nothing will make us happier than helping to make your wife’s birthday one to remember,” Miriam added.
“Since you put it that way, I’ll pay you and get the chest and books out of your way.”
As soon as the door was locked behind their first customer, Miriam waltzed around the room, waving the handful of bills. “Sister, that little memento paid off.”
“Yes, but that young man was so naive and personable, I was tempted to exchange our pretty new Merrimac for that old picnic ware.”
“We needed to do no more. Didn’t you see the satisfaction that swathed him as he carted Papa’s old kindling box out of here?”
“Yes. He looked as happy with that old box, excuse me, tea chest, as we are with our cash,” said Glenda.
“Almost.” Both ladies laughed.
“Glenda, that transaction proves your point — Ignorance is bliss.”
Telling time: 19-20 minutes
Audience: adult shoppers
Usually women enjoy this story more than anyone. But there are men who are shoppers too, and some will identify with one or more of the characters in the story even if they are not shoppers. It is a worthy story for the teller’s repertoire.
Index of Places and Names
The index that appeared in the print version of this title was intentionally removed from the eBook. Please use the search function on your eReading device to search for terms of interest. For your reference, the terms that appear in the print index are listed below.
A
Alligator (Lake City)
Alligator Creek
Apopka (The Lodge)
Appalachian Jack
Arcadia
B
Bartow
Bevis, Bill
Belair Grove
Big Cypress Swamp
Bushnell
C
Caldwell, Benjamin F.
Caloosahatchee River
Carlson, Ruby
Castillo de San Marcos
Cedar Key
Chase, Richard
Chatham Bend
Chatham River
Chokoloskee Island
Cracker Jack
D
Dade County
Dade, Maj. Francis
Daytona
DeSoto County
Devil’s Millhopper
Donaldson, “Big Ed”
E
Emeraldo Island (Lake County)
Enterprise
Everglades
Everglades City
Everglades National Park
F
Folkston, Georgia
Fort Brooke (Tampa)
Fort Butler
Fort Denaud
Fort Gatlin
Fort King (Ocala)
Fort Mead
Fort Myers
Fort Ogden
Fort Reid
Franklin County
G
Gainesville
Green Swamp
H
Halifax River
Horn, Carpenter
Huse, H. P.
I
Immokalee
J
Jacksonville
Jernigan
Johnson, James Mitchell
Joshua Creek Cemetery
K
Key West
Kissimmee
L
Lake City
Lake County
Lake Eola
Lake Jessup
Lake Monroe
Lodge, The (Apopka)
M
Matanzas River
McConnell, “Doc”
Melbourne
Mellonville (Sanford)
Miami
Mizell, Morgan Bonaparte “Bone”
Mosquito County
N
New Britain Colony
Newnansville
O
Ocala
Okefenokee Swamp
Orange County
Orlando
Ormond
Osceola
Osceola County
P
Palatka
Pavilion Key
Peace River
Pioneer Park
Punta Rassa
R
Racepond, Georgia
Reeves, Orlando
S
St. Augustine (San Augustin)
St. Johns River
Sandy Beach Lake
Sanford
Sanford, Gen. Henry S.
Seminole County
Silver Springs
Smith, Hannah “Big Six”
Smith, Lydia
Smith, Nancy
Smith, Sarah (McLain) “Ox-Woman”
Speer, Judge
Summerlin Jacob “King of the Crackers”
Sumter County
T
Tampa
Tate’s Hell Swamp
Ten Thousand Islands
Tinsley, Jim Bob
Turner River
U
Umatilla
V
Volusia County
W
Watson, Ed
Waycross, Georgia
Wekiva River
Z
Zolfo Springs
Here are some other books from Pineapple Press on related topics. For a complete catalog, write to Pineapple Press, P.O. Box 3889, Sarasota, Florida 34230-3889, or call (800) 746-3275. Or visit our website at www.pineapplepress.com.
More Tellable Cracker Tales by Annette Bruce. More memorable characters from Florida history come alive in these folktales and legends, tall tales, and gator tales. Pull up your favorite chair and a few listeners and start your own storytelling tradition with the gems in this collection.
Sandspun compiled by Annette Bruce and J. Stephen Brooks. Folktales teach, inform, heal, and most of all entertain. Here’s a collection of homespun tales told with flair by some of Florida’s best storytellers.
Grits & Grunts: Folkloric Key West by Stetson Kennedy. A portrait of the Key West that was, this book is a treasure trove gleaned from the rich culture that came to full flower on “The Rock” during the first half of the twentieth century, “when Key West was Key West.” You’ll find an abundant sampling of the art of Mario Sanchez, as well as many never-before-published photographs.
Legends of the Seminoles by Betty Mae Jumper. This collection of rich spoken tales—written down for the first time—impart valuable lessons about living in harmony with nature and about why the world is the way it is. Each story is illustrated with an original painting by Guy LaBree.
Legend of the Lowcountry Liar by Brian McCréight. Thirteen tall tales told by Jim Aisle, the Lowcountry Liar. These tales are for telling aloud; the funny and the fantastic betide true Southern characters in a style as smooth as morning on the Stono River.
A Land Remembered by Patrick D. Smith. A sweeping saga of three generations of Florida settlers. Winner of the Florida Historical Society’s Tebeau Prize as the Most Outstanding Florida Historical Novel.
Forever Island by Patrick D. Smith. Forever Island has been called the classic novel of the Everglades. It’s the story of Charlie Jumper, a Seminole who has lived his whole life on a patch of land that developers will stop at no means to acquire.
Allapattah by Patrick D. Smith. is the story of a young Seminole who lives in despair in the white man’s world. He must wrestle the crocodile, or allapattah, to set himself free.
Alligator Tales by Kevin M. McCarthy. True and tongue-in-cheek accounts of alligators and the people who have hunted them, been attacked by them, and tried to save them from extinction. Filled with amusing black-and-white photographs.
Tellable Cracker Tales Page 9