The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1873-09-04
TAYLoR's BOY.

TAYLoR's BOY.
Down the We'll.
Taylor's boy is a white boy. He is
rather large for his age, which numbers
the best part of ten summers and nine
winters, for he stands on his two naked
feet amid the briars and rocks of Penn
sylvania nigh unto five feet high. And
rather old for his age is Taylor's boy,
for he knows how to unhang gates, fas-
ten tin kettles to dogs tails and suck
eggs better, more securely and more ex-
peditiously than any boy in this-the
stump-speakers'- land. Taylor's
boys figure is like unto a long stick split
at one end and thrust into a short pair of
trousers. Taylor's boys father says the
cotton factories running on short time
can't make cloth fast enough to keeph his
boy in trousers. The truth of which as
sertion is plainly apparent to any one
from even a cursory inspection of Tay-
lor's boys trousers, which, on week days,
reach just below his knees and if hehath
Sunday trousers of longer pattern,
Taylor's boy never wears them. Tay-
lor's boys entire wardrobe seems to con-
sist of one pair of trousers, one pair of
leather suspenders and one straw hat.
Taylor's boy wears the crowno his straw
hat on the back of his head; the front
part of the brim, which is detached from
the rest of his hat, usually rests on Tay-
lor's boys nose. Taylor's boy takes his
observations through the opening be-
tween the crown and the brim. Tay-
lor's boys head is shaped like the heads
of the Aztec children, who used to ex
hibit in the side shows of the moral cir
ems, it runs rather conspicuously in The
rear. Pete Johnsing, as his mother calls
him, is colored boy. Pete is rather
small for his age, which is all the way
from one year to five, just as Mrs John
sing happens to recollect it. Pete is Just
about the size of hand-organ monkey.
Pete is rather young for his years, un-
sophisticated, and innocent like. Pete
spends most of his time catching at the
hind part of wagons, playing in sand
puddles in the road, and in climbing
spouts. The agility with which Pete
Will mount the smoothest spout makes
me think of Darwin. Like Taylor's boy,
Pete runs a great deal to trousers; but
Pete's trousers are as much too large as
Taylor's boys trousers are too small
The average of trousers between them is
all right, but the individual fit is awful
Pete's trousers reach up to his neck, and
trail ten or twelve inches in the rear
Pete's mother is economical in hat;
Pete has no hat excepting his hair A
few days since, while / was drowning
out dyspepsia with the sweat of my brow
in my fathers garden, Taylor's boy loped
over the wall like a young giraffe, and
wished to know if would allow him to
pick some of the raspberries. As Tay-
lor's boy looked as if raspberries would
help him some, consented. Soon af-
ter, Pete Johnsing came over and made
the same request and, as am not the
man to make any invidious distinctions
on account of color as to another mans
raspberries, consented to Pete's pick
ing. In my fathers garden there is a
large cistern, used to catch rain-watcr
for carriage washing and vegetable in
vigoration. Near the opening in tho top
of the eistern, said aperture being about
four feet square, a box is usually kept,
ostensibly to cover the opening, but real
ly to enable any night trespasser to trip
over the same, with lively chance of
pitching into the cistern and there have
been for two years past lying near the
eistern the relics of n pump, one of those
patent pumps which won't pump anG
never would, such as lunatics in
vent and disingenuOus pump-peddlers
beguile honest folk with. When they
had eaten their ill of raspberries, Tay-
lor's boy suggested that they haye cir
Gus. And without consulting me, Tay-
lor's boy selected the top of the cistern,
near the box and patentpum as a suit
able place for his gymnastic perfor-
mances. II is proper for me to state in
this connection that, knowing something
of Taylor's boys idiosyncrasy for get
ting kittens and colored boys into trou-
BILE, should have selected some other
place had been consulted. But as 1
have remarked, I was not consulted. Nor
had any idea there was a circus exhib-
iting in the neighborhood until was
startled by the loud shouting of Tsylor's
boy, Nigger in the well nigger in the
well. Taylor's boys presence of mind
did not desert him. Feeling that fell
low-creature's life was in danger, first,
Taylor's boy threw into the cistern a
piece of plank, and then piekaxe, and
he was tugging away at the patent pump
as If to throw that in, when I acoosted
him. "What are you about there, Tay-
Ior's boy ?"
IS 'Nigger in the well, mister nigger
in the well I'm giving him something
TO keep him up.
Keep him up" Remarked. "How
long do You suppose pickaxe viii keep
the boy ahoat ?"
Taylor's boy made no reply, but voci-
ferated vehemently, " Nigger in the
we'll nigger in the well r.
Taylor's boys shOutings brought Mrs.
dohnsing 10 the door, Mrs. Johnsing be
ing engaged just then at our family wash