Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-12-07


John looked so pretty with the wreath of
flowers around his neck; and they patted
him and played with him and pulled his
ears, and talked to him for long time.
Then what a good time the children
had! First they ran about under the
shady trees, and they picked flowers, and
| don't know what they didn't do They
played games. and after while, when
they were tired, they all sat down on the
grass, and one of the gentlemen told a
story, a very funny story, about GA
Merry Cobbler, and how lost his shoe
and found his fortune The story was
SO funny that it made them all laugh very
much. -''.-'~ '--
After this the minister said "Now let's
all sing some songs" and he took a book
out of his pocket that had pretty songs in
it, and they all began to sing; and they
sang one song and then another, all to,
gether, the children and the ladies and
the gentleman. .-.--....--
As for Donkey John, he seemed to be
enjoying himself very much, eating the
grass, and not much notice did he take of
the funny story or the singing, either
Quietly he kept walking along, lnibbling
the grass close by where they all sat, till
all of a sudden, in the midst of one of
the songs, if John didn't stick his head
right over the minister's shoulder, and
then such noise such noise as he
made was never heard before. su
The minister jumped up he was SO
startled, and then he laughed, and all the
children laughed great deal more than
they had before; they couldn't sing any
more, they laughed so much; so the min
lister laid the book down on the ground
and said it was time for dinner.
Then they went to the place where the
baskets were, and where little brook ran
along under the trees, and there they
spread the table cloth on the grass. And
then the dinner-all the nice biscuit and
butter, and the pies and the cakes, and
everybody was so hungry. The children
all thought nothing ever tasted SO good
before; and then there were the apples
and the nuts, which l had almost forgot
ten. One of the boys said he thought
there was more fun in cracking the nuts
than eating them, but the girls said they
liked the eating part best. And all the
time while they were so busy with the
nuts some of the ladies and gentlemen
told such funny stories-one about Nit
Mitting made them all laugh till they
cried t....- .-..yf
But after awhile it began to be nearly
time to go home, and then the children
and the ladies went to get their hats, which
they had left tied on the little trees. Don
key John was there eating the grass still
His eyes were half shut, and he looked as
though he didn't care whether he came to
a picnic or not; it was all the same to
him. But he looked so good and so gen.
tie, you would never have thought he did
any mischief in his life sTfIt
Oh there now! What was that, the first
thing Bernardysaw? There lying on the
grass was the minister's book, all chewed
to pieces. 1hIL.Lc
"Oh, John, John! What have you
been doing? Oh, dear, dear! after all I've
told you Well, ought to have known
it. Such bad beast as you are!"
And then Bernard told Angie just what
John had DONE "Oh, Angie" he said,
"what shall we do?"
Angie felt very sorry about it, and tears
would come in her eyes, and in Bernard's,
too, they felt so ashamed to tell the min
lister. But Angie said it couldn't be helped,
and she would ask her father, when he
went to town, to buy another book just
like it for the minister.
Now all the ladies and the children began
to put on their things; but the ministers
wife kept looking and looking all round,
as though she had lost something.
. What are you looking for!'' asked one
of the ladies.
The minister's wife said she couldn't
find her bonnet; she thought she had tied
it to one of the trees; but she couldn't t
find it. $50 fa lr5 .s.s
So then everybody began to look all
about everywhere; every one but Bernard,
he was busy putting John into the cart;
but all the rest kept looking for the bon
net; and after they had been looking and
looking, some one found it behind bush
and there it was! all broken and mashed
up, and chewed to a wisp. saS z.a
Angie knew, the minute she saw it,
that John had dragged it down off the
tree and lchewed it up. 1t was well he
didn't eat it all up; perhaps it had some
pins in it, which he didn't so much enjoy;
but such looking bonnet as it wasl ~
Angie burst right out crying but the
minister's wife laughed, and held up the
bonnet, and made everybody laugh, and
Angie had to laugh, too. The minister s
wife said she thought it was very funny,
but it was time to gohome, so she straight
ened out the bonnet and put it on.
And now the sun was going down, and
they all started with the empty baskets to
go down the road On the way home,
Bernard and Angie scolded John, that he
had behaved SO badly; but John trotted
along, and didn't seem to care at all
" Just to think of it, John" said Bernard,
" to eat up the minister's book, and the
mistress's bonnet, and then to scare the
minister besides. | don't, know what 1
shall do to YOU"
After the picnic, Bernard worked part
of the time every day in his little garden !;
but the summer was nearly over, and then
after astime, the autumn came, and moth
ing would grow in the garden, and there
would be no grass for John to eat. Every
day he used to wish he could do some
thing to get money to help his father and
mother t ra..
Well, one day gentleman came to
their little house, and he said Bernard,
you have donkey and nice little cart,
haven't you!" and Bernard said, "Yes,
he had" "Well," said the gentleman,
whose name was AlYord, 81 want some
boxes brought over from Brownville, two
miles off, you know. You bring them for
me in the cart, and will pay you"
Bernard said he would, and that he
should like to do errands for people, and
earn little money So he harnessed up
John and off they started for Brownville.
Bernard sat in the cart on the seat which
he had made, for he had begun to teach
John to draw it and to go along as he
ought
And John behaved that day like the
very best donkey in the world; he must
have understood that they were on im-
portant business But along the road he
trotted and Bernard sat on the seat and
held the reins, and John didn't once
stop or jump until they came to Brown
Vile Then Bernard got the boxes and
started for home. And as they came
along the road Bernard met Squire Smith,
and he stopped to tell the Squire that he
was doing an errand with his cart and
donkey for Mr.. Alvord, and that he should
like to do all the errands for people that
he could. And Donkey John stood still
while Bernard said this, but he held up
his ears little, as if he would say: ''Yes,
Bernard and l mean to do a great deal" "
Then after Bernard had talked with
Squire Smith little while, and told him
how his father had got the rheumatism
again, they trotted along and pretty soon
they met Squire Preston; he stopped to
ask Bernard how he liked John. And
Bernard showed the Squire the little cart
he had made, and told him if he could dc
orr lie frr L<>I l,a oI 1a1