Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-08-30
was Charlie Ford.

tuOu9l udu UOt 80 luuCu W nOdsl Oh
in that way myself, yet, in comparison
to Charlie, | was a giant. Even Jim
Bruce, the fighting boy of the school,
while he made no hesitation in decar-
ing that be believed himself vastly my
superior in muscle, utterly declined to
try it, at my oft-repeated invitation.
The boys said there was something
about my eye, when | was mad, that
frightened them; and, to confess the
truth, | am rather glad that such was
the case, and / was spared a muscular
demonstration. To go back to Char
lie, | was about to say that it was
the first protection | extended over
him that first knit our friendship for
how we'll we all know that we love
that best which is in any way DEEPEN
dent on us On the first day of Char
lies entrance at school, l had on his
behalf, plying the pleading look of
his soft, blue eyes, grabbed Jim Bruce
by the collar, and promised to give
him frst-class thrashing, if ever he
offered the slightest trouble to the
new boy again. From that time
Charlie had entire immunity from
those thousand trifes which frequent
ly make unresisting boys lives at
boarding school curse rather than a
blessing. 1t was not a usual thing for
me to interfere in favor of new boys,
as / am rather inclined to the belief
that, as a general rule, it is good for
them to fight their way to a social
level, or to gain it by the force OF
mind. 1t settles the status of the boy,
as it does the man, though in the lat
trr case the mental forces may be
brought to bear alone.
The cause of my interference in the
case of Charlie Ford was not so much
his physical inferiority as it was what
| saw in those pleading blue eyes. |
had noticed it before Jim Bruce open
ed his batteries on the boy, as he al
ways did on every new boy, and it
brought back memory of a few
years before, and little, blue-eyed
sister, who afterward went to dwell
among the angels. There was some>
thing of my sister Lettie in Charles
eye; and | felt upon the instant that
| could like that boy very much,
though l was for years his senior. |
thought further, even before | had
spoken, a word to Charlie, that |
should like very much to know wheth-
err he had a sister and whether she
looked like him, Especially about the
eyes.
This idea was strongly uppermost
in my mind when / first saw Charlie !;
and, strange to say, within very
short time after / had rescued him
from Jim Bruce, in our conversation,
it came out. Yes, Charlie Ford had
sister. Delicacy forbade my asking
too many questions about her; but,
from what Charlie told me without
solicitation, and what elected by
sundry artfulIy-put questions, | was
convinced that Charlie Ford's sister
must be a paragon of loneliness. She
had blue eyes-that was certainty !;
and curls-plenty of 'em that was an
other certainty. She sang, too, di-
vinely; in fact, according to Charlie,
it would have only been necessary
that the service of his sister should
have been secured to have made the
Italian opera a complete success. And
then, what charming ginger-snaps and
pound cake she could make! Would
| like to taste them? Of course |
would. And so Charlie Ford took
me into the dormitory, and unfolded
the cakey-treasures ofhis trunk. Wheth-
err in those days my mind was suf-
fciently enlarged on the subject of
cake to constitute me an unprecedented
Judge, or whether my growing inter
est in Charles sister influenced me, |
cannot tell but one thing | do know,
which is, that the cake suited me ex-
actly then, and had no hesitation in
discussing a second piece, with the
health and general happiness of his
sister.
AS I started with the intention of
making full and free confession, |
may as we'll at once admit that | was
in love with Charlie Ford's sister, and
| am inclined TO the belief that | was
influenced somewhat in my friendship
and social bearing with Charlie by
that affection toward his sister. If
such were not the case, | can hardly
account for the evidences of attach
ment that / always lavished on him,
such. for instance, as a frequent re-
nunciation of portions of my daily ra-
tons, for, l must confess, Charlie, for
so small boy, had large appetite,
and a general espousal OF his tasks
and difficulties.
In fact, Charles sister was my
load-star, the point to which | was
continually directing the Prov of my
bark. | can recur, now, with the
most delightful remembrance to the
hours we would sit together, while all
the other boys were deeply engaged
in play, and discuss her. There was
no topic, not even the untailing one of
self, that could so please me, and GER
tainly none that could so please
Charlie. Once in while, to be
sure, Charlie would get little maud
lin over the talk, when he would tell
of her wonderful capabilities on mince
pie, or crollers, or of the affectionate,
sisterly way in which she used to
comb and brush his hair, and dress
him up for a walk but soon got IN
way Of confronting these outbursts
by suggestions about the fun we
would have in vacation, by a general
time of dissipation and revelry, mix
ing up our joint parental mansions,
and giving way to series of festive
occasions, in which, as matter OF
course, Charles sister should reign
queen-b bee. This vacation was far
away, for our school only gave an in
terregnum once year, and that dur
ing the Christmas holidays. Charlie
had Joined us in January; and the
result was that all this revelry was
only to be hoped for during the COM
ing Christmas and New Years time.
Through that long year we cherish
al tha nrosanca of Gnarlie's sister al