The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1876-08-10
FOR THE YOUNG FOLKS.
BY MRS. A. NJ. DIAZ.


"You must know, children" said
Uncle Joe, "that l have taken great
pains to collect dreams. Whenever
strange ones or funny ones are told me,
| write them down in this dream
book Some of them would make you |
laugh till the tears run out OF your eyes. |
It is really curious what singular things |
do come to us in dreams. Such wonders!
such jumbles! such sillinesses! And
yet they all seem right enough when we
are dreaming them.
"Now there was little Barnabas
Springer, who dreamed he was blowing
with an OK on the seashore (of all
places in the world to be plowingD and
that the OK made stifed rumble
grumble' sound in its throat several
times. When they reached the end of
the furrow, he dreamed that he saw
standing there tall lady, whose head
now mind this-was set on in such q
way that her face came over her right
shoulder; and this tall lady spoke to
him in loud voice, like a person scold-
ing
HsBarnabas Springer! That OK was
trying to tell you to say 'sGee!" to him,so
that he might ''gee," and not wet his
feet!'
"Now Gee means Turn to the
right and the tall lady's face looked
over her right shoulder, and when Bar
nabas woke up, he was lying on his
right side, with his eyes, nose and mouth
in the pillows; all of which is something
to think of.
| "Then there was my pet niece Susie
dreamed she was her own kitten, trying
to catch her own canary bird! and that
she understood every thing the bird said,
in his flutterings, and just what his
feelings were. The poor child cried
herself awake, and no wonder.
"But among the strangest of the
strange ones in this collection" said
Uncle Joe, opening his dream-book, sis
that of Jimmy, my little nephew. He
dreamed he was q fly, and that he walk
ed with sorrowfal butterfly (Which
died, in the dreamy, and with blue
bird, and also with curious being, who
wore five tall black and white plumes-
one in his hat, and two on each shoul-
der. The curious being also wore a
cows horn, standing in front of his hat,
for which reason he was called the
Great Head Horner.'
"He had fourteen Helpers These
Helpers wore one plume only, but had
no horns. Their plumes stood up
straight, in the middle of the crowns
of their tall hats. But you will hear
about them presently, for / have the
whole dream written down here, word
for word, just as Jimmy told it to me,
dialogue fashion.
at happened in this way. One sum-
mer afternoon JIMMY had been doing
something naughty-you viii find out
what it was by -and-by-and his mother,
after talking with him, read him story
about q boy who had done the same
thing, and other things somewhat like
it. She also told some true stories of
cruel men whom she had known, and
. read several short pieces of poetry on
the same subject.
"Now that I have spoken the word
. 'cruel,' may as well say that Jimmy
had been tormenting insects in ways
which it would give me pain to tell, and
give you pain to hear, and that the mer
of whom his mother spoke had been
cruel to dumb animals.
"While she was talking, three or four
officers in uniform passed by. I men,
ton these things in order that you may
the better account for Jimmy's curious
dream.
"Jimmy fell asleep during the reading
of the verses, and dreamed of being in
. strange place, where he saw, close
beside him, large, golden-spotted
| b,,<to,4v Ho Iroo nod fho< - rryoo a
| moaning, signing, sorrowing butterfly,
and-what seemed more strange-that
it spoke to him and called him fly j!
And stranger yet, that he thought, for
, a time, he was fly, though he felt like
, himself all the while! Even this, how
; ever, is not SO strange as the rest.
I" In this dream-dialogue I call jim
my by his true name, because, as he
said, he felt like himself. You will OBJ
! serve that the sorrowful butterfly be-
gins
Butterfy-Speak to him! Ask hir
, not to do it, dear pretty fly!
Ji'nmy-You are not talking to me,
, butterfly, are you?
Butterfy-Yes, fly, l am talking to
you.
Jinsmy-But am not fly, butterfly
, l am boy, Jimmy.
Butte.fy-You are fly, and this viii
, prove it. Can a boy understand but
terfy talk?
) Jmmy-But if / were fly, butterfly
Icould fly.
Butterfy-So you can fly. Fly! Flap
and try!
"He tapped, in his dream, flew up
then flew down."
Jinsmy-But if I were a fly, butterfly.