The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1874-12-25
A taaIf-Do1en Young KascaI..


land of soberness or gained their title
to respect and reverence by gray boards
or bald heads. Every boy or girl who
may read this true story will know
something about the scene of it. Why,
1t used to stare at me from my geogra-
ply; used to come up to plague me out
of my history; the teachers used to talk
about it almost every day, and we
scholars used to sing about il from our
small, green-covered singing books.
The picture which used to stare at
me always seemed like a mean sort
of family portrait for / could go to
the scene itself, and my young eyes
We're practiced enough to see how
bad the picture was. And yet it looked
enough like Bunker Hill Monument to
make. me feel a little proud when I
thought, 9 live right side of it and
there are lots of fellows and girls who've
never seen it at all" The geography
used to read, '' Charlestown is situated
on a peninsula, Immediately north of
Boston, and is the seat of the Navy
Yard and the celebrated Bunker Hill
Monument" or something like that, as
well as y can remember it /; for / have
not seen. the old geography for over ten
years. The history told us about the
battle which had been fought near by,
and we boys used to go and lie down on
the grass behind the breast works, and
shoot imaginary red-coats by the mill
ion with our bows and arrows, and then
hunt for the lost arrows. Often we
would sit down on the stone which bore
the inscription, g Here fell Warren"
etc, and complacently eat apples, un
mindful Of the sacredness of the spot.
My story is about Bunker Hill Monu-
ment and a half-dozen Toys who went
to school near the tall granite shaft
boys who played ball IN the streets
which run aloCgside the green grounds
upon which the shaft stands, or PLAYED
'' three holes " with marbles, or tTun-
died hoops about the brown paths.
Somehow, at recess one day, it came
out that one of the boys had family
ticket which allowed linn to climb up as
often as he wished to the four windows,
which seemed to open a whole world to
our youthful minds, as We gazed out to
sea, or toward hills and over cities. He
was easily king among US then for all
the rest must pay to go up, and even
''half-price for children % was a heavy
draw upon our, pocket money.
Couldn't we he AN cousins of his
and go up on his ticket? He was good
natured in his kipgship, and took
three or four OF rs up one day, and then
increased the number on succeeding
ing for some ten of us boys to trot up
to the top of the monument each pleas
ant recess. Sightseeing grew monoto-
nous, aud We must do something to
hold our interest in going up. One day
I dropped my hat out, and it sailed
away so gracefully that other hats, al
most of their own accord, followed mine
and found a quiet rest in the grass be-
low, until we could run down the stone
stairs and regain our head-gear After
hats, in few days went jackets, and to
see them spreading. out to the breeze
was lovely, we thought. Possibly some
one of us would have jumped out at
last, if a substitute had not suggested
itself to our brilliantly mischievous
minds.
We were one whole week at work, and
doubtless the one-armed custodian q
recoIlect I used TO wonder if he had
lost his arm in the revolutionary war;
he certainly looked old enough to me to
have been psrt of those stirring
tines) missed our regulartramp through
his little office and up the stairs. Then
1t was ready. It was wonderfully
constructed efigy. Tom had furnished
trousers; Joe had supplied an old coat;
Bill had brought a hat; Jack gave the
straw to stuff out the creature, and ]
had promised pair of square-toed
boots and the backyard in which the
man was to be constructed. We were
pledged by some fearful pledge, such
as boys manufacture on special occa-
sions. not to reveal any of our proceed.
ings, and I was held answerable for two
small sisters who peered wonderingly
out from the kitchen windows as We
labored. The man was made, and 10
he was a fearful sight to behold.
couldn't go to sleep from thinking oi
him down there in the yard, and almost
believed he would come to life and
would run and tell the monument
man what we wers going to do.
Next day was bright and pleasant
Before school we whispered it about
that there would be fun at recess, anC
few lessons we're well learned that day
Ours was a boys and girls school, and
the girls were given the upper hall
which looked out on the monument
grounds, for a play-room at recess
When the bell struck which released III
for a half-hour, the girls all ran to the
hall windows, and the boys all hurried
to the monument grounds. The chic
conspirators were soon dragging the
effigy up the green slope, and in less
time than it takes to tell it, the body
was over the wire fence which bounded
the monuments base. We did not wal
to go through the Office this time, bu
with rush, were twenty steps up befor'
the one-armed man could halloo to u
to come back. We couldn't think o
coming just then, and, with shouts
and laughter, hastened to carry tn.
effigy to the top of the monument
Each moment we Thought we heard tn,
old man calling to us and painting
up behind us. There was no tim
to lose, and in a jiffy after W
reached the top, out went man, as i
seemed, frem the little square window
Boys shouted and girls shuddered. Th
boys knew what was sailing throug
the ar but the girls really though
- one of us had fallen out. How grand
oI1r man went down What magnif
cent crash he made as he struck th
gravel of a walk below and spread out hi
fnely-shaped limbs in the most lifelik
or Efeless manner. Then we rushe
down again, and gave him a decen
burial in q neighboring field. Recef
being over, we went into school to RI
ceive Eve black marks each for disc