Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-04-14
TOMMY'S WISH.
BY MRS. CLARA w. T. FRY.

TOMMY had played oil through the
beautiful summer, and covered his cheeks
with roses and dimples, and his lips with
smiles, and filed his eyes with sparkles,
and his breath with sweetness, and his
whole little heart and life with happiness
and sunshine.
When it was early fall, Tommy began
to go to school. One bright, warm after
noon, Tommy had learned and recited his
lesson, and began to be pretty tired stay
ing in school. By-and-by, his teacher
told him he might go home, and so he
went, by the meadow path and the little,
low bridge over the brook. He stopped
there, and sat down on the bank and
watched the bright, golden water, bub-
bling and ripping along with such a soft,
cool, quiet sound.
He could see the fishes darting by 80
fast, and the round, wet stones looking so
smooth and bright under the water, and
the shadows of the bushes beside him,
waving, waving, so slowly on the top
Of it,
Poor Tommy was very warm and very
tired; he had been tired sitting down, and
now he was tired walking; his lesson had
been pretty hard for his little mind to
master he even began 10 think he had a
headache; and altogether, Tommy wasn't
nearly as happy as usual. He took off his
shoes and stockings, and put his plump,
little feet in the brook, and laughed to see
the trout come swimming along close by
them, as If they thought them little, white
fishes
The cool, bright water went slipping
over his tired little feet, and felt 80 COM
Portable and good to him that Tommy
wished he was in it all over, and SO he
said:
go. do wish was trout"
Pretty soon he took out his feet, and
lay down on the grass, with his head close
beside the beautiful brook and watched
the little fishes, and the same cool, wet,
round stones under the water, and the
same little shadows, waving so slowly on
the top Of it, and somehow he kept re-
what he had said, 90, do
wish | was trout"
He looked into the blue sky, and some
little, white clouds came sailing along, and
IL seemed to Tommy as they made o'nndy
letters.
0, / DO WISH!
90, dsdr :" said Tommy Tommy /;
and he looked down into the brook again.
He began to feel very queer began TO feel
as if he was growing smaller. lie was
sure he had never felt so before.
First, there was little singing in his
ears and then he couldn't hear the brook
ripping any longer, for his ears were
gone Then his arms grew shorter and
shorter, and finally they changed into lit.
tie, reddish brown fins, with black and
white edges. Then he couldn't tell where
his clothes were gone and his beautiful,
white skin began to turn yellow and
brown, with little black marks and red
spots over 1t. His legs grew short, just az
his arms had, and some more fms and
tail came, and another long fin on his
back. He couldn't sit in his little chair
in the schoolroom now.
Tommy was so astonished he snapped
his eyes, or rather he tried to, and then
he found his eyelids were gone. lie
knew all his curly hair must be gone, too
but he couldn't put his fins up to feel hi
smooth head.
The next thing he knew, he was in the
water; and Mrs. Trout came swimming
along, and said, in the fish language:
"Why, where have you been, my dear
little boy3 I've missed you long time
and hunted everywhere for you"
That made Tommy think how his OWE
dear mamma would miss him when the
children came home from school withou,
him, and he could never come again
because he had wished to be . trout, In
the brook. The tears came into his poor
little eys, but the ripping brook washed
them away, and nobody, except Tommy
himself, knew how sorry he was, fol
fishes eyes don't show the feelings, al
children's do.
"Now, come with me-" said Mrs. Trout
"and swim nnder the bridge, in thu
shade .
Tommy wondered how it happened tina
he could swim 80 well, until he remem
bered that he was trout.
He swan along with a sad, little heart
until they were under the bridge, ant
Mrs Trout said that they must stay Their
until the children had gone home from
school, for she saw a fish line hanging on
Of Alexis pocket, as he went TO school
at noon, and he might stop to fish on hi
way home.
Poor Tommy opened his mouth +
scream, but there came no sound, and Mi
Trout said: .bsr#4 F. 3HgA
"You are gaping, my dear; put ysu
head Oh this little, cool stone, and take
nap" ,,g,,
Now, Aleck, was Tommy's big brother
and Tommy was thinking how dreadful
would be, If A1eck should come fishinj
and catch him, their own little Tommy
and carry him home for supper. But, o
course, Mrs Trout didn't know this
He remembered how he had felt whel
he had wished he were trout; but
seemed now as If his lessons hadn't bee
very hard, after oil, and he hadn't bee
very tired, either and, altogether, he we
la great deal more wretched, now he was
trout, than he had been while he was
little boy. - ..a.a... -,
He began to hope that other little boy
would be very careful what they wishee
ua thor0bt n thew conld only know {