The Oxford intelligencer. (Oxford, Miss.) 1860-18??, 1860-11-21
NUMBER 25.
Cutting Robbie's Hair.


AND so this little household flower of ours
must be shorn of some of its superhuous
beauties. Even roses and geranium must be
pruned sometimes, aud these uncut siken
riggs, with the golden sunshine of three sum
mels entangled in their meshes must make
the acquaintance Of scissors at last Grand
papa says so, and adds that if it is not done
shortly, the low PLAN boughs will make
another Absalom of Robbie, some time when
the blue eyed gander is in hot pursuit. r..
There is no denying that the curls need
trimming; that they arc too many aud too
thick, and they make the lille head droop
uncasily to one side, like hal.blown moss
rose. bud under the weight of its own moss,
and struggle sometimes into The mouth and
eyes, Yes, they must be cut; but it seems
such pity! Little curls that we have
twined around oar fingers when all wet from
the morning bath; little culs that we have
played with while singing the evening lul-
hbg; little curls that our tears have fallen
upon when the little baby eyes were shut in
sleep! All only mothers know how dear
such cuIls are 10 mothers hearts.
Here are the scissors. Robbie must sit
very still, now, while his hair is being cut.
Why sir, why do you smile and look at me
so bcamiugly with your blue eycsl How do
you know that | am not going to cut off that
saucy bead of yours, with these great, sharp
scissors' o, holy faith of childhood! If
We could only trust our God as implicitly as
babies do their mothers! Except ye be.
come as little children, We shall in no wise
enter the Kingdom Of Heaven"
Be very sill, now, while comb out these
threads of shining floss. The mother is the
fist barber 10 her boy; no other fingers can
perform the sweet Office so gently but when
fifteen or twenty years have flown, rougher
hands will comb and cut those locks, all
bronzed by suns and winds, and clustering
above the brow of manhood. The white
aproncd, clean handed barber wil then ar
range them in the latest style of trimming,
pomadinG, pefiu- my boy will not
be dandy! by these strong limbs, and the
sturdy look in those eycs-no.
But to think tie down of manhood will
gather on the cherry upper lip aud on chin
and cheek, dimplcd as though with an angels
finger! To think that this round neck of
alablster will be choked up with mans
neck-tie, aud those lily-bud feet will wear
hish-heeled boots, and-Faush! | cannot
realize that this fair babr Of minc-but three
summers out Of Paradise, and still smiling in
his sleep, remembering what the angels said
thcre--shall ever be so metamorphoscd.
And yet the bows babyhood seems rapid
Iy fleeing, and the scvering Of these ringets
seems like cutting the golden thread that
links his iuf,ncy with his childhood l can
call you baby" but little longer You blue
eyed elf! You are already rebelng at being
treated as one. You had rather run now,
after your painted wagon, than lie in your
! rose-cuItained crib and hear NE sing of the
baby whose cradle was the trce-top, and
whose nurse was the winds. You will not
wear your corals, because grand tpapa saws
they are for babies, hot for men; you'd
rather hunt hens nests than play bo-pecp,
and when hold out my arms to you as you
stand in the doorway twirling your hat, you
turl your head on Que side like a halftamed
bird a-perch on ones finger, while your
dancing eyes seem to say, You'll see, you'll
cee! III soon take flight" Pretty soon
you will net believe in the wolf that talked
to Red-Eiding Hood, and will lose faith in
Santa Claus.
l can not keep the bud in its sheath.
can not stay the little bark that slips SO rapid
ly down the hunyiag stream of life. Soon
the rill will broaden into river, and the
realm of roses and sunny skies will be passed.
And the gold of those ringlets dimmed by
time, and the roses pcrchance drop from
these pretty checks, and sorrow and sin, it
may be, cloud the clear blue heaven on these
innocent eyes.
There | am crying. How grandpa would
laugh if he caught me, and say wanted the
curls to stay, and make a girl of his boy.
See! there are tears glistening in those sum
nv clusters of hair, like dew among the
golden colored jassamine vines, and your
eyes are looking at me with wide-open won
der, and your red lip beginning to quiver
with ready sympathy. o, Robbie even if
the worst should come, and | should have to
lay this bright head, with its locks of undm-
med luster under a coffin lid, and see the
grass grow between nv darling and the bo-
som he onced slept upon, should still thank
God for having given him, for having crowned
my life with the holy blessing of mother
hood; for it is such little arms as these
around our necks, Robbie, that make us feel
strong 10 do and 10 suffer; it is drawing such
little heads as these close, close to our breasts
that keeps the hearts of scme of rs mothers
from breaking.
There! that is grandpa's step upon the
siai.s, and the task is just com pleted-the
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