Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1876-07-20
A Sketch from Mark Twain's TON Sawyer y

A Sketch from Mark Twain's tom Sawyer"
The minister gave out his text and
droned along monotonously through an
argument which was so prOsy that
many a head by and by began to nod
and yet it was an argument that dealt
in limitless fire and birthstone, and
thinned the predestined elect down to
Il 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 any
thing else about the discourse. How.
ever, this time he was really inter-
ested for a little while. The minister
made 4 grand and moving picture Of
the assembling together Of the worlds
hosts at the millennium, when the
lion and the lamb should lie down to-
gether and little child should lead
them. But the pathos, the lesstn, the
moral of the great spectacle were lost
upon the boy he only thought of the
conspicuousness of the principal char.
acter before the unlocking nations
his face lit up with the thought, and
he said to himself that he wished he
could be that child, if it was Il 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 it out. It
was large black beetle, with formi-
dale jaws--a 'spinoh- bug he called it.
1t was in Il percussion cap box. The
first thing the beetle did was to take
him by the finger. a natural flip
followed, the beetle went ilomdering
| into the aisle, and lit OH its back, and
the hurt finger went into the boys
mouth. The beetle lay there working
it's helpless legs, unable to turn over.
Tom eyed it, and longed for it, but it
was safe out of his reach. Other PEG.
pie, uninterested in the sermon, found
relief in the beetle, and they eyed it
too.
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 for the beetle ; the dropping
tail lifted and wagged. He surveyed
the prize walked around it; smelt
of it from safe instance walked
around it again grew bolder, and
took closer smell then lifted his Lip
and made gingerly snatch at it, just
missing it (; made another and another:
began to enjoy the diversions; subsidized
to his stomach with the beetle between
his paws, and continued 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 it. There was a sharp
yelp, flirt Of the poOdle's head, and
the beetle fell a couple of yards away,
and lit on it's back once more. The
neighboring spectators shook with a
gentle inward joy, several faces went
behind fans and handkerchfers, and
Tom WAS entirely happy. The dog
looked foolish, and probably felt So
but there was resentment in his heart.
too, and Il craving for revenge. So he
went to the beetle and began Il wary
attack on it again; jumping at it from
every point of circle, lighting with
his forepaws within IN inch of the
creature, making even closer snatches
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 4 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 en-
tirely, and sat down ON it Then there
was Il wild yelp of agony, and the
poodle went sailing up the aisle; the
yelps continued, and so did the dog
he crossed the house in front of the
altar; he flew down the other aisle
he crossed before the doors; he clam
ored up the home.stretch his an
guish grew with his progress, till pres
emily he was woolly comet, moving
in its orbit with the CLEAN and the
speed of light. At last the frantic
sufferer sheered from its course AND
sprang into it's masters lap; he flung
it out of the window, and the voice OF
distress quickly thinned away and died
| in the distance. Tom Saw.
yer went home quite cheerful, think
ing to himself that there was some
satisfaction about divine service when
there was a bit of variety in it. lie
had but one marring thought. he was
willing that the dog should play with
his pinch bug, but he did not think it
was upright to carry It off.
! Soups.
A thorough housewife writes the
following useful chapter OH soups:
cit is not at all necessary to keep a
special fire for five hours every day in
order to have at dinner a first course
of soup. Nor need good, savory,
nutritious soup for Il family of five
cost more than 10 cents. There is nc
use hurting any remarks about ''swill.
pails." Every housekeeper who knows
anything of her kitchen and dining
room affairs knows there are usually
nice clean fragments of roasts and
broils left over, and that broth in
which lamb, mutton, beef, and fowl
have been boiled is in existence, and
often there's a bowl of drippings from
roasted meats. All these, when sim
mered with rice, macaroni, or we'll
chosen vegetables, and judiciously
seasoned, make good soups, and can
be had without a special fire and with
out special meats. name few OF