Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1873-01-17
Miscellaneous Reading.
THE BETTER WAY.

J
is il st as good now as eVerl:
Farmer Gray had a neighbor who was
not the best-tempered man in the world,
though mainly kind and obliging.S He
was q shoemaker. His name was Barton.
One day in harvest-time, when every
band was as busy as q bee, this man came
over to farmer Gray and said, in rather g
petulant tone of voice: s~- = s.. A@,t5
"Mr. Gray, I wish you would send over
and drive your geese home"
"Why so, Mr.. Barton what have my
geese been doing ?" the farmer said, in q
mild, quiet tone. &s
"They got into my garden, and will
not have it." 5- -to -
81 am very sorry for it, neighbor Bar
ton, but what can do %
''Why, yoke them, and keep them on
your own premises. 1t is no kind of a
way to letyOur geese run all over every
farm and garden in the neighborhood. ~
But l cannot see to it now it is har-
vest time, friend Barton, and every man,
woman. and child on the farm has as much
as they can do. Try and bear it week
or so, and then Twill see if I can possibly
remedy the evil"
81 can't bear it, and won't bear it any
longer l' the shoemaker said. "Soif you
do not take care of them, friend Gray,
| shall have to take care of them for you. y
'Well, neighbor Barton, you can do as
you please" farmer Gray replied, in his
trouble you, but | cannot attend to them
now"
"I'll attend to them for you, see if /
DON'T" the shoemaker said, still more
angrily than when he first called on far
mer Gray.
''What on earth can be the matter with
them geese !" said Mrs. Gray, about fif-
teen minutes afterward
81 really cannot tell, unless neighbor
Barton is taking care of them. He
threatened to unless yoked them right
off"
"Taking care of themG How taking
care of them?'
'As to that I am quite in the dark.
Killing them, perhaps. He said that if
didn't take care Of them he would. So |
suppose he is engaged in the neighborly
business of taking care of our geese"
"John! William! Run over and see
what Mr. Barton is doing with my geese, "
Mrs. Grey said in a quick and anxious
tone, to two little boys who were playing
near.
The urchins scampered off, well pleased
to perform an errand.
ooh he if has dared to do anything to
my geese Twill never forgive 'him!' the
good wife said angrily.
Hush, Sally! makeno rash speeches!
1t is more than probable that he has killed
two or three of them. But never mind
if he has, hewill get over his pet and be
sorry for it,"
eyes, but what good will his being
sorry do nae? Will it bring my geese to
lifeF"
"Ah, well, Sally, never mind. Let .s
wait until we hear what all this disturb
ance is about"
In about ten minutes the children came
home bearing The bodies of three geese
each without head.
e"Oh, isn't this too much for human en-
durancew ~
eve found them laying out in the
road,' said the eldest of the two children.
"And when we picked them up, Mr.. Bar.
ton said, Tell your father that I have
Yeked his geese for him, to save him the
trouble, as his hands are too busy to do
it.'n ...,. !. s.,-.--.s s. So ,e- s ~.
"1'd sue him for it!'t' said Mrs, Gray, in
an indignant tone. - .,r.s..., ...,-..~..,s.
''And what good would that do?'' '&
"Why, il. t.wOuld do great deal of good
1t would teach him better manners. 1t
would punish him. 80 h3
"And punish us into the bargain. We
have lost three geese now, but we still
have their good fat bodies to eat. A law
suit would cost us a good many geese,
and not even leave US so much as the
feathers, besides giving us, a world OF
trouble and vexation. No, no, Sally, just
let it rest, and he will be sorry for it, ]
know" .St{faE TDtwaHWs 4 aa8g Ell III
.'tSorry for it, indeedl And what good
will his being sorry for it. do US, should
like to know. Next, he will kill a cow
and then we must be satisfied with his
heing sorry for itl Now, can tell you
that don't belieyein that doctrine. Mo-
DO l believe anything about his being
sorry, the Grabbed, ill-natured wretch!'
'Don't call hard names, Sally" farmer
''NeighbOr Barton was not like himself
other angry person he was a little insane
and he did what he would not have done
had he been in his right mind. When
you are little excited, you know, Sally,
that even you do and say unreasonable
things"
"Me do and say unreasonable thingsI'
exclaimed Mrs. Gray, with look and
tone of indignant astonishment; "me say
and do things when am angry? / DOM
understand you, MIR. Gray"
MAYBE can help you a little. DOM
you remember the churn?"
eyes, but never mind about ii"
$50 you have not forgotten how unrea
sonable you were about the churn. /
wasn't good for anything-you knew i
wasn't; and you'd neverp a jar of cream
into it at long as you ived-that yol
wouldn't. And yet, on trial, you found
that churn the best you had ever used
and now you wouldn't part with it OF
any consideration. So you see, Sally, tina
even you can say and do unreasonable,
things when you are angry, just as well a
Mr. Barton"
Mrs. Gray saw that her husband wa
right-but still she felt indignant at tn
outrage committed on her geese. So sh
took her three fat geese, and after strip
ping off the feathers, had them prepared
for the table.
On the next morning, as Mr. Gray wa
passing along the road, he met the shoe
maker, and as they had to pass very nea
to each other, the farmer smiled, an,
spoke kindly. Mr.. Barton looked and fel
- very uneasy, but farmer Gray did no
seem to remember the unpleasant inciden
of the day before. ~
1t was about eleven o'clock on tn
same day, that one Of farmer Gray
little boys came running to him and cry
aOh father! father! Mr.. Barton's hog
are,in, our cornfeld ~. agaT1y9 ~ :
eThen / must go and drive them out,
said MIR. Gray in quiet tone.
.'Drive them out" calculated Mr
GRAY. "Drive 'em out, indeedl 1