Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1876-08-31
The Boy, The Beetle, md the
Dog.

-
The BOY, The Beetle, md the
Dog.
from Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer.Pl
The minister gave out his text and
droned along monotonously through
an argument which was so prosy
that many head by and by began
to nod-and yet 1t was an argument
that dealt In limitless fire and brim.
stone, and thinned the predestined
elect down to company SO small as
to be hardly worth the saving. Tom
counted the pages of the sermon;
after church he always knew how
many pages there had been, but he
seldom knew anything else about
the discourse. However, this time
he was really interested for little
while. The minister made a grand
and moving picture of the assemb-
ling together of the worlds host at
the millennium. when the lion and
the lamb should lie down together
and a little child should lead them.
But the pathos, the lesson, the NOR
al OF the great spectacle were lost
upon the boy; he only thought of
the conspicuousness Of the principal
character before the unlocking ma
tions; his face liz up with the
thought, and he said to himself that
he wished he could be that child, il
IL was tame lion.
Now he lapsed into suffering again
as the dry argument was resumed
Presently he bethought himself of a
treasure he had, and got ID out. 1t
was a large black beetle, with for
midable jaws-a ''pinch- bug" he
called 1t. 1t was In percussion cap
box. The first thing the beotle did
was to take him by the finger. A
natural FLIP followed, the beetle
went fioundering into the aisle, and
IL liz on its back, and the hurt finger
went into the boys mouth. The
beetle lay there working its helpless
legs, unable to turn over. Tom
eyed 1t, and longed for 1t, but it was
safe out Of his reach. Other people,
uninterested in the sermon, found
relief In the beetle, and they eyed IL
to.
Presently vagrant poodle dog
came idling along, sad at heart, lazy
with the summers softness and the
quiet, weary of captivity, signing
for change. He spied the beetle;
the dropping tail lifted and wagged.
He surveyed the prize; walked
around 1t; smelt of 1t from safe
distance; walked around again;
grew holder, and took closer smell;
then lifted his lip and made gin
gerly snatch ut it, just missing it,;
made another and another; began to
enjoy the diversion; subsidized to his
stomach with the beetle between his
paws, and continuing his expert
ments; grew weary at last, and then
indifferent and absent-minded. His
head nodded, and little by little his
chin descended and touched the
enemy, who seized IL. There was a
sharp yelp, flirt Of the pocdle's
head, and the beetle fell couple Of
yards away, and lit on its back once
more. The neighboring spectators
shook with gentle inward joy, sew
eral faces went behind fans and
handkerchief, and Tom was entire
ly happy. The dog looked foolish,
and probably felt so; but there was
resentment In his heart, too, and a
craving for revenge. SO he went to
the beetle and began wary attack
on 1t again; jumping at il from
every point of circle, lighting with
his fore paws within an inch OF the
creature, making even closer snatch
os at it with his teeth, and Jerking
his head till his ears tapped again.
But he grew tired once more, after
a while; tried to amuse himself with
fly, but found no relief, followed
an ant around, with his nose close to
the floor, and quickly wearied of
that; yawned, sighed, forgot the
beetle entirely, and sat down on IT,
Then there was a wild yelp of agony,
and the poodle went sailing up the
aisle; the yelps continued, and 10
did the dog; he crossed tho house in
front ofthe altar; he few down the
other aisle; he crossed before the
doors; he clamoured up the home
stretch; his anguish grew with his
progress, till presently he was q
wooliy comet, moving on its orbit
with tho CLEAN and speed of light.
AT last the frantic sufferer sheered
from its course and sprang into its
masters lap; he flung 1t out of the
window, and the voice OF distress
thinned away and died In
the distance. $50 Tom Sawyer
won't home quite cheerful, thinking
to himself that there was some sat-
isfaction about divine service when
there was bit Of variety In il. He
had but one msrring thought; he
was willing that the dog should play
with his pinchbug, but he did not
think 1t was upright to carry 1t of.
In 1868 a proposition was intro
iuced In the United States Senate,