American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1874-07-11
WILLIE.
BY +. DEFINING.

BY T.. DEMING.
1r frightened us good deal when W,
found the little dead boy. We wer,
three country lads going home across til,
lots at noon for our dinner. In passin.
lonely pasture ground we saw a little
basket lying ahead of us upon the grass
We made race for it and Ed captured
the prize; a little further on we picked
up small hat which we at once recog
niZed as Willie Dedrick's. Then we
turned the angle of the zig-zag rail fence
and there in the corner, damned close
under the bottom rail, was beautiful lit
tie Willie. only five years old
His clothing was torn and bloody, and
he did not move; we felt little afraid
because he was so still, but we went up
to him. He was dead, and his plump
little features were all blackened with
great bruises.
1t shocked us very much. Only three
hours before we had been playing with
Willie at the pond We felt that it was
a terrible thing to find him dead in this
unlocked for manner. We asked each
other what Walter and Mary would do
when they should hear of this; Willie
was the only boy they had. And then
the question came up what we ought to
do under such circumstances There was
no one in sight to tell us. 1t was sug-
gested that we might take up the body
and carry il home to Walter and Mary :;
it was not far through the lot and down
the bank 10 the pond, where their home
was 1t seemed natural and right at first
that we should take the chubby little boy
and carry him home. But We shrank
from the presence of death even in the
form of little Willie; and besides that
we had certain dim and confused ideas,
as country lads do who read the city
newspapers that somehow u Coroner was
necessary, and that it would not be law
full or safe for us to NEEDLE with Willie
thus strangely found dead from an un-
known cause.
So we sat down upon the large stones
near by Willie and held "A council. There
was no chairman appointed and no secre-
tary, and none of the surroundings that
ordinarily belong to deliberatiye bodies !;
nevertheless in all the essentials of a
great council this occasion was very
eminent Here were three lads seated
upon three fragments of the ancient
granite which strews the northern slope
of the Adirondack Mountains, and below
them stretched the wild woods, away to
the valley of the mighty st. Lawrence :;
and in their midst, upon that bright sum-
mcr day, sat the skeleton king with his
awful scepter and his iron crown, pressing
upon their young hearts those matchless
terrors which have ruled the world since
time began.
1t was an august presence, and the
bows felt their responsibility more than
members of councils ordinarily do. Their
final conclusion was that one of their
number must go and tell Walter and
Mary, while the other two watched the
body 1t required quite as much courage
as wisdom to reach this conclusion, for
to tell the parents was a task the boys
dreaded
The lot was cast, cOuntry-boy fashion,
with three blades of grass, to determine
who should be the messenger of evil
tidings. The lot fell upon Phil, and he
Immediately rose up to start Ed. sug
gested at this point that in sending word
the death ought to be ascribed to some
cause The boys had been very much
puzzled from the first to know what could
have done it. They gazed about the
pasture ground to discover what sugges-
ton could be made. There were a couple
of horses some cows, and some sheep
grazing in a distant part of the inclosure-
As soon as it was suggested that one of
the horses might perhaps have done it by
kicking Willie the boys accepted that as
the natural and undoubted solution of the
mystery. And so Phil took that word
with him.
Phil went upon little trot through
the lot and down the bank, moving rap
idly so that his heart might not have
time to quail or shrink; and in less than
five minutes he stood by the little house
near the pond.
He looked in at the door, which was
wide open upon this warm summer day,
and there he saw Walter and Mary.
Walter sat cleaning the lock of his rifle,
while the gun itself was lying across his
lap. Doubtless Pills face was somewhat
pale as he went in at the door, for Mary
looked at him as if she saw something
there, and dreaded it.
The lad had good sense; he did not
blurt out the sad news suddenly He
said to Walter in a quiet way, will you
please to step out of the door with me;
wish to see YOU
1t was the earnestness of the voice,
perhaps, that caused the man to put
aside his gun and obey SO quickly.
When they were out of the house Phil
said, % L have bad news for you; we have
found your little son in the lot, kicked by
a horse, and we are afraid that he is so
bad that he is dead"
Phil had thought of this way of saying
il before he got to the house. When he
said dead, Walter gave little start and
said, Is he dead."
Phil had to say. ayes, we are afraid
he is, and we think he is
Walter stepped into the cottage and
Phil stood at the door to see how he
would tell Mary. Walter said, without
any preface, Mary, our little Willie is
deadr'
"That was not prudent thing" the
boy thought, as the tragic words fell
upon his ear and fixed themselves in his
memory.
The effect of the words upon Mary re-
minded the boy of the way he had seen
ritie-skOt tell upon a rabbit or partridge.
The woman passed through kind of
futter or shudder for a moment and then
sank straight down in little heap upon
the floor. Then followed series of
quick gasps and catching for breath, and
short EXPLANATIONS of 90 dear! o
DEAR and then the stified shrieking be
gan.
Walter took his wife up in his strong
arms, and tried to undo in part the sad
work which had been accomplished upon
her by the few words he had so suddenly
and imprudently uttered. He said that
Willie might not be dead after all, but
only hurt And so he placed her upon
bed and he and Phil left her there and
started to 20 and see Willie.
Not many words were said as the man
and boy climbed the bank and strobe
hastily along to the. fatal spot. As they
neared it there sat the two watchers,
faithful to their post and as still as
statues.
Phil and Walter turned the angle of
the fence. and the father came up to the
BODY of his little son. He had not
seemed stricken with grief until now, but
l. 4 4