A Heartbreak by the Snohomish River
A lonely local man is caught in a 'melancholy case' of unrequited love, spending his days watering a hitching post in a lovestruck daze.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A young man in this town, who is usually attending his business matters, was seen the other morning in a dreamy kind of attitude, with a large garden sprinkler in his hand, carelessly watering the hitching post at the upper steamer landing. It has been planted five years and used almost daily. Let him sprinkle away and give his whole mind to it. It is a melancholy case. Is it insanity, absent-mindedness, or love?
“Let him sprinkle away and give his whole mind to it. It is a melancholy case. Is it insanity, absent-mindedness, or love?”
Public spaces along the Snohomish River waterfront remain the stage for local life, but the vulnerability of young men seeking connection echoes through the centuries. While the paper treats his grief with a mix of sarcasm and local gossip, the 'melancholy case' serves as an enduring reminder of how public and visible personal heartbreak can be in a small town.
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