The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1856-12-27
Stealing Wafer Melons.

nclghborhoOd ANNOYED him; damaged his
trees, trampled down his flowers, and hook
ed his choicest fruits He tried various
ways to protect his grounds, but his watch
doys were poisoned, and set traps caught
nothing but his fattcst fowls and favorte
cat
One afternoon, however, just at night-fall,
he overheard a couple of nischievous boys
talking together, when one of them saws:
What do you say, Joe? Shall we come
the grab over them melons tonight? Old
Swipes will be snoring like ten iuen before
twelve clock"
The other objected, as there was high
| all to get over.
Oh, pshaw!" was the reply; al know a
| place where we can get over just easy
know it like book. Come Joe, let's go"
The owner of the melon patch didn't like
the idea OF being an eaves-dropper; but the
! conversation intimately concerned his
melons, which he had taken so much pains
to raise, that he kept quiet, and listened 10
the plans Of the young scapegraces, SO that
he might make it somewhat bothersome to
/ them.
/ Ned proposed TO get over the wall on the
( south side, by the great pear tree, and cut
directly across to the summer house, lust
north Of which We're the melons.
Joe was clever fellow. who loved good
/ fruit exceedingly, and was as obstinate as an
: ass. Get him once started to do a thing
and lie would stick to it like mud turtle to
negroes toe. The other didn't care so
Eiuch Tor the melons as for the fun Of getting
them.
Now hear the owners story
made needtu. preparation for the
visit; pat in brads pretty thick in the scant-
ling along the wall where they intended to
get over; uncovered large ater-vat that
had been filed for some time, from which,
in dry weather, | was accustomed to water
my garden; dug a trench foot deep or so
and placed slender boards over il, which were
slightly covered with dirt, and jus, beyond
them some little cords, fastened tightly,
some eight inches from the ground. pick
ed ali the melons cared to pres, rye, leaving
pumpkins and squasAcS, al out the s.ze and
shape OF melons IN their Places
The boys were quite right in suppos;ng it
would be quite dark; but they missed i a
little in inferrng that "Old Swipes" as they
called, would be in bed. The Old man liked
a little fun well as they, aad when the
time came, from his hiding place he listened:
hist, Joe, don't you hear something:'
think It was very probable that they
did, for hardly were the words uttered than
: ere came 4 sound Of fJrciJle tearin. fus-
tian
ct eff NY coat tail! whispered Joe
" Iherc goes one Hap - sure as gI.s. Why,
get Of, Ned
And Nd was off ard one leg of his
brcechcs besides; and then he was ah''-i-c
and " Oh ing. and telling Joe that he ''be-
lcvcd there was nails Ia the SIDE OF tie wall,
FOR something had scratched him tremen-
dUusl". and torn his brecchcS al II pieces"
Joe sympathzcd WIKI hin, for he SAID
halt OF ms coat was hanging up there
somcwh,rr."
hey rog sta, ted hand in hand. for Ned
believed tie knew the way They had
arrived little beyond the trees, when some
thing went swash swash! into the water
Va I, ..- 49,, . - , ,,, ..,, ,,,,,,,
Thunder that wafer smells rather old
Ned wanted 10 20 home al once but Joe
was too much excited t. listen for a moment
to such proposition
Ncyer heard anything about that ci>tern
before; the Old fellow must have fixed it on
purpose to drown people IN. Curious, tho,
that we should both lal in il"
They pushed on again for the melons
Presently they were caught by the cords
and headions they went INTO a n, ap of bri-
ar>, and thist,eS, and The like, which had
been placed there iJT tAci. express accom-
mediation.
Such a gcttin up stairs" sail one
Nettles and thisties no they prick ~
They now determined TO go on more eau
. tious'y. AtlcHg;h they arrived at the patch.
- How thick they are, Joe. Cone here
There's more than a dozen fat ones right
here"
/ And down they sat in tic midst of them
/ and seemed to conclude that they were am
I ply rewarded for all their mishaps.
Here, Joe" said Ned, take this melon;
isn't it rouser: Sash into 1t.
1t cuts tremendous hard, Ned. Ned, its
a squash ~
- No it isn't, tell you; it's new Kind.
Old Swipes sent TO Rhode Island for the seed
last spring"
/ Well, then all I've got to say, is that the
/ old fellow got sucked in-that's all"
I'm going to gouge into the water melon,
halo there goes halt dollar. I've broke
my knife Ii | didn't know that it was Il
water melon, | should say it was pu,npki
Fact is, believe it is pumpkin
What the boys did besides, while the own
crment 10 the stable and uunuzzled the
dog, and led him into the garden, he couldn't
say; that they took long steps, the onion
and the flower beds revealed in the morn
Ing.
They had paid pretty dearly for the whIs-
tie. They had not tasted a single melon !;
they had got scratched and torn their
clothes, were as wet as drowned rats, and
half scared out of their wits at the rav,n0us
dog and the apprehension Of being disco
/ vcrcd.
The next night the owner of the melon
patch invited all the boys of the village in
cluding Ned and Joe, to feast of melons,
on the principle of returning good for evil.
This circumstance changed the boys opinion
of "Old Swil es, and his melons were never
disturbed again.-Uayper's Magazine.
Now LIvING.--A cotemporary says that
the boy is now living WHO will be President
of the Republic in 1900. What his name
is or where he resides, he does not stop tC
inform u.s. lie may at this moment be ga
thering pumpkins in Oregon, or peddlIng
/ nor-corn around Troy. Daniel Wooster