The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1874-08-21
OLD DIGGLYBONEs.
By cr.ARA Q. poLL1YER.

OLD DIGGbYBCNES.
BY CLARA q. DoLLIvER,
You would think from his aanas that
he was old and wrinkled, bel. and
brown, with dreadfullx or ing,
wicked face; but he isn't at al His
cheeks are round and soft and tovny,
and pink like peachess and he hs5 such
a bright, innocent look that he wake
into your heart at once without mock
ing.
We call him Diselybones beeans he
is SO fond of the play in which q d. cad
full wicked old man steals all the lady
children and turns them into pics; the
poor lady, heartbroken for her los, s'oes
60 the bakers to console herself T. b &
pie. She calls for gOoseberry hl NJ
sooner has she received it than s. e1
claims
"Mercy me! This is my dar IteT
Amelia!' Then old Digglybohes lies
out ''Pie, pie, pie" and chases her
home. IF he catches her he gets Ar lis
back, and the poor mother has to &C ne
buying again.
You would never think that our attle
round checked boy would be able to
run fast enough 60 make a successful
Digglybores, his legs are so fat and So
short, but he can catch the mother and
get Amelia back four times out of Gve.
He has big sister nanad Rose he
calls her Woeie with his little unman
ageable tongue, and thinks she is the
most wonderfully wise, perfectly beau
tiful, dearest and best sister In the wide
world.
Wosie is eighteen and still goes tc
school, where har anxious teaol srE
haven't half such high opinion Of LEI
as Digglyboncs has though they calI
help liking her after knowing her {
little.
There is a tall young fellow viii
black eyes and great mustache who
comes to see her sometimes, and ! zeal
Iy believe that he quito agrees viii
Digglybones in isi5 high opinion of Wo
sic; at least the little boy put his Eaugh
ty eye up to the keyhole of the parlol
door one day and saw the black mus
tache as near wosie's mouth as his owI
sweet lips ever gos,
One fine summer morning while D g
glybones was building an Indian for
with his blocks on the dinning-ro0n
table, there came terrific peal at the
door bell.
"Land /" cried grandmother, nearly
leaping out of her seat. What do paO
pie want to ring that bell in that STYLE
for? It's set me all IN hutter. RuI
to the door, pet"
Grandmother doesn't call him piggly
bones she thinks it is a dreadful name
When, after no snail amount of tug
ging, he succeeded in opening the door
be found the postman there, not LOOKING
so very pleasant as he might, because h,
had been kept waiting so long. "Here
bub," he said, "kere's letter for you
and don't let the grass grow under you
feet another time.
Digglybones was so astonished ab0u
the grass that he let the letter fall on
of his hand, and did not shut his moutl
or pick the letter up until the pOstmal
had disappeared, and might have stoo,
there longer if his mother had no
called out to him to shut the doc
quick, before the house was full of flies
When he took the letter into grand
mother the good old lady read the ii
rections out loud
"Miss Rose Sillingfieet. City"
"IIand! she said, 81 guess that
from Mr.. Afford. I wouldn't wonder j
Rosie would give the best two bits sh
ever saw to get this letter. Well, put
on the table In her own room, dear.
Digglybones trudged off up stair
with it, thinking all the time, as hart
as he could think with his busy lit
lie brain; he had never breathed
word of his putting his eye up to th
keyhole, for he had strong suspicio
that every body, from grandmotle
down, would strongly disapprove q
such a performance on his part; but l
hadn't forgotten it all, and he 'guessed
that Mr.. Afford, the owner of the blaa
mustache, was the most dangerous riga
he had; and he thought to himself tina
Wosie lCouLd give two bits to get tl
etter.
After a while Digglybones knocke
down his Indian fort and went out q
doors to play he knocked at Jima-
Lees back door and asked Mrs. Lee, /
his sweet voice, "Could pease Jimu
come out doors and play soldier ?"
But Mrs. Lee said Jimmy had gonc
town with his auntie, and wouldn't b
back until Iunch-time; so DigglybO4a
PLAYED soldier by himself for hit
while.
But he found it exceedingly dull to b
captain, lieutenant, company and every
thing, and began to wish he had som
candy, or somebody to play with, h
didn't care which.
Grandma" he said, strayiug int
the house, 81 wish you would dive
five cents"
"What for, pet ?" said grandmotl
who had been reduced to the verge
bankruptcy by Digglybones already.
"I want some tandy."
SIT isn't good for you, " replied gral
mother. 'fSome of these days sor
dady will say, why hasn't that j
little boy any teeth 2 and somebc
will have to answer, Because his naug
tv grandma gave him so much candy
"Then I can buy teeth like your
answered Digglybones " want 50
tandy anyway"
But grandmother shook her head, a
that day she was proof against teasiI
although Digglybones teased his lie
He found his mother equally untrs
able, and then his busy little brain
gan to think; and he tn ught, amo
other things, that Wosie had some ''t
centses," !" and if he gave her that let
she would give him some of the
Grandma had said that she would G
two bits to get that letter, and he W
sure there was a good many ''f
centses" in two bits; and visions of
unlimited amount of candy passed
fore him.
He knew the school where Wosie wei
and was sure he could find it; he b
watched her go down street so ma
times.
SO, without saying word to anybo6
he put the letter in his little jacl
pocket and started off. The letter stu
up so high that it scraped his soft SIX
SO he doubled it up and crowded
down. He walked along very comp
Gently, with his ragged straw hat one
side, totally unconscious that his fl
was dirty and his hair in his eyes;
fact, he felt perfectly satisfied with hi
self.
By and by it occurred to him that
was pretty hungry, and it was gu
that he did not find the high scho
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