The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1876-01-13


locked the stable door without key,
and went off for solitary gallop by
moonlight. It's the most extraordinary
case of instinct ever heard of"
He sauntered along slowly in deep
thought, and nearly walked over his own
little boy, who stood right in front of
him with arms stretched out to be car
ried,
"Why, Harry, my little man, you
shouldn't be so far from home at this
time of the morning. But, why, your
face is like chalk what's the matter ?"
Harry, with child's acute perception
and retentive memory, associated white
face with the castor oil bottle, and hav-
ing holy horror of that fluid, replied
innocently:
Nozzin, papa"
"Ah, nothingl Well, run home to
mamma Most peculiar, that, amt it9
Now, when was young un and had
face like that boy, had bellyache and
went for the medicine bottle, and got
over it. But he's got nothing the mat
ter with him."
He pursued his way with head bent
down in deep thought, until loud,
ringing, boyish laugh brought him to
himself.
"Ha there's one of the boys. T'other
won't be far off, I guess, and they're
sure to be playing some little game. Hi,
Tom, what are ye up tos"
Tom, graceless young Giles, the
mischief-maker of the district, pretend
ed not to hear his fathers shout, and
seemed anxious to sneak off !; but
second call made him halt and turn
round.
"What are you up to, say?"
Nothing, papa. wasn't doing
anything"
"Well, if this wouldn't try the pa
tience of Job. 1 begin to think it's
put up job among them all. Nothing
everywhere. 1t looked like a joke at
first, but joke played too often"-
The worthy man had heard loud
Gathering, and his favorite terrier
sprang suddenly through a gateway in
front of him with an old coffee pot tied to
his tail. The farmer shouted, and tore
down the road, and the more he shouted
the faster ran the dog, his novel ap-
pendage dashing every now and again
against some obstruction and setting
him off at still swifter speed. Breath
less aid gasping, Giles met and stopped
a man round turn in the road.
"Did you see dog with coffee pot
at his tail p
The man laughed as he realized the
predicament of both dog and owner, and
replied:
"No, I amt met nothin'."
1t was too much. He had it at the tip
of his tongue to send the man and all he
met to perdition, but possibly remem-
bering that he himself would be in
volved, he simply glared upon him in
silence. The man was the first to turn
and walk away, wondering whether
mad man was chasing a mad dog.
"It 'ud be rare hunt. And how he
looked with his red eyes and tongue
lollin' out Eff the dogs as far gone as
he is, thar'll be mischief
Meantime the farmer sat down to ru-
inmate and cool off. His mind was in
turmoil, and his blood was boiling. He
was not addicted to bad language, but
now, though he struggled hard to keep
it down, his mind and heart were full OF
it, and it would, in spite of him, hiss
through his closed teeth like steam ont
of kettle at the boil. He OWNED al
most instinctively what had passed
through the strangers mind, and in
view of his experiences of the morning,
it seemed perfectly inexcusable. But
he consoled himself.
"He's some idiot out of an asylum.
Look 'ee here, Sol Giles, if that dog and
coffee pot amt fiyin' down the road like
sixty, yonll eat 'em for dinner. If they
are, then, accordin' to this fool, you're
as bad as the rest of 'em, for you're
chasin' nothing. Guess you'd better go
home"
He took refuge there, and finding the
wife of his bosom bustling about the
house, and feeling moody and depressed,
and confident in her sanity, he asked
her what was for dinner.
He liked good dinner, and looked
to it for comfort.
"Oh, nothing in particular.
"Served with sauce, l suppose"
Mrs. Giles looked in amaze and won
derment after her husband as he banged
the door behind him, and heard him go
up stairs and fling himself on the bed,
which creaked under his weight.
" In some of his tantrums, guess. l
wonder what ails him. He amt used
to lying down in the daytime"
And she anxiously followed him to
make inquiries.
"What's the matter, Sol z"
ooh, hang it all, nothing, madam,
nothing. My dinner don't agree with
me before L eat it, that's all"
She left him, according to her rule,
to let him come to himself. When din.
ner time came he got up and went down
stairs. Something unusual struck him
about the table, and his daughter Mary
coming into the room, he asked her,
curtly:
"Who's comm to dinner9"
"N-n-obody, pa"
"Hum 70 he muttered, and sank into
a chair. The family dropped in one by
one, and among the rest came young
Stokes, neighboring farmer and an ad-
mirer of Mary. The old man greeted
him, but his face was thunderous,
though he was learning to bottle his
wrath. He ate his dinner, and under
the influence of the good cheer his
wrathful mood was supplanted by mirth.
He was beginning to see joke some
where. When the table was cleared, he
said:
"Stop, you youngsters, want to
speak to you all. Go, somebody, and
bring in Sue and Dick, and Joe Davis,
if he is here yet"
They all came, though much puzzled
as to what could be the matter.
"See here, all of you, want to tell
you something that puzzled me for a
while I went ont this morning and