Foxy Ernest

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A domestic altercation is the outcome of Mrs. Ernest Spendquick's extravagance in the purchase of a new hat, which is not lessened by Mr. Spendquick's sudden desire to acquire a grandfather clock. His wife sharply reproaches him in her turn, and in a whirlwind of feminine anger, leaves him to complete the bargain, which is destined never to be made by Mr. Spendquick, for the clock is bought by a gentleman passing with his wife. Mr. Spendquick, divided between admiration for the timepiece and the charms of the lady now owning it, finds out her address, gains admittance to her, and is subsequently hidden in the clock to avoid meeting with the husband. The result is that the clock gets out of order, the hands flying round at lightning speed, and it is sent back to the shopkeeper by its recent purchaser. Meanwhile, Mrs. Spendquick has been joined in her walk by a gentleman acquaintance, who gallantly buys everything for which she expresses a fancy, and amongst other things is the grandfather clock, which she proposes in a spirit of forgiveness to give to her husband. Mr. Ernest Spendquick, therefore, again finds himself beneath his own roof, with comparatively little trouble on his part, and upon his reappearance astutely observes that he had chosen the clock as a hiding place to watch the proceedings of his wife.