The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1874-08-13
A BRACE OF BOYS.

CONTINUED FROM LAST wEEK.)
Daniel knew how much his parents
wished him to make a figure in the
world and only blamed himself for
his failure, magnanimously forgetting
that they had crushed out the faculties
which enable q man to mint the small
change Of everyday society to the ex-
elusive cultivation of such as fit him
for smelling the ponderous ingots.
With that merciful blindness which
alone prevents all our lives from be-
coming horror Of nerveless selfre-
proach, his parents were equally un-
aware Of their share in the harm done
him, ascribing to delicate organiza-
ton the fact that, at an age when
love runs riot in all healthy blood, he
could not see Balmoral without his
cheeks rivaling the most vivid stripe
in it. They fattered themselves that
he would outgrow his bashfulness {;
but Daniel had no such hope, and fire.
quently confded in me that he thought
he should never marry at all.
About two hours after Bills disap-
pearance under his mothers CONVOY
the defender of the oppressed return
ed to my room bearing the dog under
his arm. His cheeks shone with wash
ing like pair of waxy spitzenbergs,
and other indignities had been offer
ed him to the extent of the comb and
brush. He also had whole jacket
on.
"Well, Billy" said I, "what are
you going to do with your dogf''
II don't know what I'm a-going to
do. I've great mind to be bad,
disobedient boy with him, and not
have my days long in the land which
the Lord my God giveth mel"
"oh, Billy"
Il can't help it. They won't be
long if I don't mind ma, she says ;
and she wants me to be mean, and put
Crab out in the street to have Patsy
catch him and tie cofee-pots to his
tail. I'LL"
Here my small nephew dug his fist
into his eye and looked down.
I told Billy to stop where he was,
and went to intercede with Lu. She
was persuaded to entertain the angels
of magnanimity and heroism in the
disguise of a young fighting character,
and accept my surety for the behavior
Of his dog. Billy and I also obtained
permission to 60 out together and be
gone the entire afternoon. We put
Grab on a comfortable bed of rags in
an old shoe-box, and then strolled
hand in hand across that most delight
full of New York breathing-places,
Stuyvesant Square.
"Uncle Teddy!' exclaimed Billy
with ardor, II wish I could do some
thing to show you how much I think
of you for being so good to me. I
don't know how-would it make you
happy if I was to learn a hymn for
you-a smashing big hymn-six ver-
ses, long metre, and no grumbling ?"
,."No, Billy; you make me happy
enough just by being a good boy"
"Oh, Uncle Teddy?' replied Billy,
decidedly, "I'm afraid I can't do it.
I've tried so often, and always make
such an awful mess of it."
"Perhaps you get discouraged too
easily"
swell, if a savings bank won't do
it there amt any chance for a boy. I
got father to get me a savings bank
once, and began being good just as
hard as ever I could for three cents a
day. Every night I got 'em I put
'em in reg'lar, and sometimes I'd
keep being good three whole days
running. That made sight of money,
I tell you. Then I'd do something,
ma said, to kick my pail of milk over,
and those nights I didn't get any
thing. I used to put in most Of my
marble and candy-money too."
"What were you going to do with
it."
1T was for an Objeck, Uncle Ted.
dy. That's kind of Indian, you
know, that eats people and wants the
gospel. That's what pa says, any
way; I didn't ever see one."
"Well, didn't that make you hap
py-to help the poor little heather
children ?"
"That's just it, Uncle Teddy; they
never got a cent of it. One time !
was good so long I got scared. I was
afraid I'd never want to fly my kite
on the roof again, or 60 any where
where I oughtn't or have any fun.
couldn't see any use of going and saw
ing all my money to send out to the
Objecks, if it was going to make good
boys of 'em. It was awful hard fol
me to have to be a good boy, and il
must be worse for them cause they
amt used to it. So when there wasn'1
any body up stairs went and SHOOK
a lot of pennies out of my chimney
and bought ever SO much tafy, ant
marbles, and popcorn. Was that aw
full mean, Uncle Teddy p
| The question involved such compli
cations that I hesitated. Before :