Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1873-11-28
"Should you be willing to swear

eyes, SIR"
81 thought SO. Now, you have,
doubtless, imagined yourself here
among enemies. wish to show
you that you are not so. We are
all your friends. If you do wrong,
yon do so against those who love
you. Is that right?"
"No, Sir"
"Well, then, am willing to be.
lieve you have done those things
from bad habits-from want of re-
fection-from ignorance ofthe char
acter of llc instructors. | Ipardon
you. Go down among your com
panions. BE better boy in the
future. l shall never have cause to
complain of you again, shall II"
"No, sir.''
"Go, then, my dear child. Re
member the way to be happy is to
be virtuous.'
eyes, sir"
"That if you intend to be respect
! ed in society, youNmust. begin AS a
boy the honorable conduct which
you mean to practice as a man. l
could have punished you for the
faults you have committed, had |
so pleased, but punishment makes
the master and scholars enemies. l
wish you for my friend. Here is a
piece of plum cake for you. Go out,
my dear boy; do not forget that you
have done wrong, and that you have
been forgiven, DO you hear?"
eyes, Sir" said jim, with his
mouth full of cake.
"Go, then; remember that love
you and trust to your generosity
that you will not hereafter infringe
any Of the rules. Good morning,
my dear son."
"Good morning, sir" said jim,
putting into his mouth the last bit
of cake.
Two days after this occurrence,
one of the ushers found pin very
ingeniously fixed in his chair, to the
great arrangement Of his own ideas
and the undisguised mcrriment Of
the whole school, when the discoy
cry was proclaimed. The next day
the cat was killed, a creature which
had been beloved by all, and was
universally lamented; and in the eve
ming one of the little boys was sca:
ed into fits by IL ghost fourteen feet
high with the head of a pumpkin
and eyes rs large as teacups.
The culprit was discovered in jim
Gosling, and he was confined to a
bread and water diet for three days
which did not prevent several Of the
boys stockings being filled before
they arose in the morning with
prickly pears; and the. usher, who
slept in the room with the lads, on
waking in the night, found his toes
tied together with long string com
municating with the toes of six boys
who were also thus tied, the whole
being linked together. Mr.. Strap
looked grave at this, and James Cos
might thank his stars that he was an
inmate of an institution where "they
never whipped" He had to wear a
FOOLS cap two feet hi gh, with pair
Of fjackass ears attached to the top;
but one OF the little boys near him,
being unable to repress his laughter
James gave him a blow on the eye
that blinded him for a month. That
very night Mr.. Straps foot caught
in a string laid across the bottom
Of, the stairs, in such way as to
nearly break his neck. He took
James into the closet and talked to
him for an hour. The arguments
which he used would be quite too
long for the limits of this article.
At the end he gave him another
piece of cake, and sent him to the
schoolroom with kindness more
than parental. James was this
time melted. He wiped his eyes and
blew his nose, and Mr.. Strap went
on with his argument, till the wor
thy disciple ofthe new system felt
assured Of its success.
"IIe is mine," said he to himself,
with rather benevolent smile He
feels his errors; he will do wrong
no more. How much better to thus
overcome his errors, than with the
british force of this!" And he re-
garded q small bamboo cane, which
he usually carried out with him in
his walks.
The month had expired and this
was the day appointed for the visit
of Mrs. Gosling, In the afternoon
Mr.. Strap went to his library where
James was on some errand. He had
been detained by curious attrac-
tion. A beautiful little canary bird
accustomed to fill the house with its
music, had been hanging in his cage
against the wall; the repentant boy
had taken 1t down and pluckcd all
it's feathers, and was amusing HIM
self with regarding its contortions
and distress with a grin of delight.
Mr.. Strap forgot his system, but
obcying the honest and doubtless
correct impulse of his soul, seized
the young reprobatc by the the col
lar, and having c,idently in his
hand the bamboo cane, gave him
what people in the everyday world
would call a good trouncing. Mrs.
Gosling entered while he was in the
act. The naked canary revealed
the story.
81 ought to apologize" said Strap
taking breath.
"For licking my Jim?" asked Mrs.
Gosllng, surprised.
"No, madam, but for ever having
been such fool for supposing my
self wiser than Solomon. l shall
hereafter renounce new systems, and
take the world as it is!'' and poor
Jim, after his briefrcprieve, rccciv-
ed his daily portion as regularly as
ever.
A Mino of Spanish Coin Unearshed
on the Bay Of Fundy
The Boston Journal of Nov. 18th
contains the following:
"There has really been discov-