The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1867-07-13

scnooI DOCKS. 1t was very strange put
still it was true that this one was called
Jim. He didn't have any sick mother,
either--a sick mother who was pious and
had the consumption, who would be glad
to lie down in the grave aud be ut rest
but for the strong love she bore her boy,
aud the anxiety she felt that the world
would be harsh and cold toward him when
she was gone. Most of the bad boys in
the Sunday y-school books arc named james
and have sick mothers to teach them to
say: snow | lay me down to sleep, +"
etc, aud sing them to sleep with sweet,
plaintive voices, and kiss them good
night, aud kneel down by the bedside aud
weep. But it was different with this fel-
low. He was named Jim, aud there
wasn't anything tho matter with his
mother-no consumption, nor anything oi
that kind. She was rather stout than
otherwise, and she was not pious. More
over she was not anxious on Jim's nc
count. She said if he were to break his
neck it wouldn't be much loss; sue al
ways spanked him to sleep, aud she new
kissed him good night-on tho contrary,
she boxed mis- ears when she was ready
to leave him.
Once thisbad little boy stole the key
to the pantry and slipped in there and
helped himself to some jam, and filed the
vessel with tar so that his mother wouldn' {
know the difference but all at once u
terrible feeling didn't como over him, lis
it right to disobey my motherg Isn't il
sinful to do this Where do-little boys
go to who gobble up their good and kind
mothers jamg And then he didn't kncel
down all alone aud promise never to be
wicked any more, aud rise up with y
light, happy heart, and 20 and tell his
mother about it, aud be blessed by her
tears of pride aud thankfuluess in her
eyes. No; that is the way with all other
bad boys in the books, but it happened
otherwise with this Jim. strangely enough.
lie ate the jam, aud said it was bully, IN
his sinful, vulgar way aud he put III the
tar and said that it was bully too, and
laughed, aud observed that the old woman
would ''get up and snort" when shc found
it out and when shc did fnd it out hc
denied knowing anything about it, and
she whipped him severely, and he did tho
crying himself. Everything about this
10y was curious-eyerythsug turned out
differently with him from tie way IL docs
with the bad Jamescs in the books. Once
he climbed up farmer Acorn's apple tree
TO steal apples. and the liub didn'i
Ibraak and he didn,L fall dawn aud hreak
his arm. and get torn By the farmer
great dog, and then languish ou sick bed
for weeks, and repent and become good
Oh. no; he stole as many apples as be
wan,ed, aud came down all right, and b,
was al Ieloy for the dog, too, aud knocked
him cndways with ROCK when he came
TO ter ham.
1t was very strange. Nothing eve
happened like II in those mlld little books
with marbIed backs, and with pictures il
them of men with swallow tailed coats u,
bell-crowned hats, aud pantaIoons tia
are short in the legs, aud women with III,
waists of their dresses under their arms
aud no hoops on. Nothing like it in an,
Of the Sunday school books. Once h,
stole the teachers penknife, and when h,
was afraid it would be found out, and h,
would get whipped, he slipped it int
George Wilson's cap-poor widow vii
sons son-thc moral boy, the good littl
boy of the village, who always obeycd hi
mother and never told an uutruth. an,
was fond of his lessons, and inlatuatct
with Sunday schools. And when til
knife dropped frOm the cap and poo
George hung his hoad and blushed, us
in conscious guilt, and the grievcd teach
er charged the theft upon him, aud wa
just in the very act of bringing the switc
down upon his trembling shoulders,
white haired improbable justice OF th
peace did not suddenly appear in thei
midst and strike attitude aud say, spar
this noble boy-there stands the culprit
was passing the school door at rcces:
and, unseen myself, / saw the theft con
mitted." And then Jim didn't &c
whaled, and the venerable justice didu
cad the fearful school homily, and tax
George by the hand and say such bo
deserved to be exalted, and then tell hr
to come and make his home with him, an
sweep out the office, aud make fires, an
run errands, aud chop wood, and stud
> law, and help his wife to do househol
labors, and have all the balance of tn
time to play.
I" No; it would have happened that wa
in the books, but it didn't happen til,
way to jim. No meddling old clam
the justice dropped in to make troub
}. and SO the model boy, George, got thrasl
ed, and Jim was glad of it; because, yo
know, jim hated moral boys. Jim sal
he was "down on milksops." Such wi
: the coarse language of this bad, neglecte
boy. But the strangest things that eve
happened to Jim was the time when i
went boating on Sunday and didn't t G,
drowned, aud that other that he g
! caught out in the storm when he was fs
ing on Sunday and didn't get struck
: lightning. Why, you might look al
look through the Sunday school book
from now till next Christmas and W
d would never come acrtss anything Ill
this. Oh, no; you wovld find that !
bad boys who go boating on Sundays i
yariably get drowned, and all the bad bo
who get caught out in storms when th1
are fishing on Sunday invariably &
struck by lightning. How this jim ev
escaped is mystery to me. This ii
bore charmed Iite-that must have be,
the way of it. Nothing could hurt hil
lie browsed around the cupboard aft
essence IF peppermint, and didn't ma
mistake aud drink aqua fortis.