The Grange advance., 1877-01-03
GARRETT ADVENTURE,
A New Years Story.
BY NJ. NJ. D.


tsSnow! snow! snow! ..-..... ....
So it did. But Ned Brant need not
have been so cross about it. He
seemed to think, as he said the words,
that of all unfortunate, ill-used fell
lows he was the most to be pitied ; and
of all hateful, malignant things, those
soft, white, downy specks, fitting past
the window, were hatefulest and most
malignant.
''Christmas week, too,'' said Ned
bitterly
So it was ! and perhaps Il. ought to
have been ashamed of itself but it
didn't seem to be- : r. .~,r.t T.y =
At this moment a great Gathering
was heard at the back door. s'ssszss '.s'sss'ss
'sThey'yes come LATTER all,''''s cried
Ned, rushing out Of the room and
down the stair, all his Wretchedness
gone in an instant.
His two sisters were at the door be-
fore him, and the three opened it to-
gether.
so, O, howdy-do? we were afraid
you wouldn't come - said two voices,
and ''Hello where's your scraper g.
tPooh F.! we weren't going to mind
such little snow as this cried
others, all ina chorus. S Sc ss @a
Six visitors! Think of that. I've
lived next door on one side, and two
lived across the way. The first pair
were named Wilbur and Rob !; the sec.
ond pair were Herbert and Dickie I;
and the third pair were Jamie and
Tommy. Wilbur had on an overcoat
and muffler, for he had weak chest.
Rob had.a tippet tied over his CAP, for
he was subject to ear-ache. Herbert
had cap and a grey overcoat /; Dickie
had a cap and no Overcoat; Jamie
wore Scotch suit; and Tommy wore
short bob-jacket and long trowsers.
tell you this so, you may know how
they appeared. AS for their faces,
they were 50 rosy and bright that they
all lookedg alike wi hen the doc rEopened
All the visitors were boys, as any one
would have known who heard the
tramping as the party went upstairs.
Yes, upstairs thy went, nine OF
them, talking every step of the way
The home children, Ned, Ruth, and
Dot, almost always took any visitor
Il that came. right to their mother s
room to introduce them, out of respect
to- her, or at any rate, to give them
the benefit OF her hearty 'sHOW do you
do, my dears e., But this time they
went straight past her door, up, Up, to
the very garret.
s'Ned," his mother had said in the
morning, s'if the children come this
afternoon to help you keep the holi.
days, either play in the yard or up in
the garret, for I shall be quite busy
Have all theSfun you can, but4be sure
not to break anything and not to take
cold.
You may wonder why Mrs Brant
did not say: 'Be sure not to be
But she would almost as
soon have said sssBe sure not to, cut
off your heads,'' az to have said that
She knew her children too well tc
think they did not wish to be good
Az for telling them stnot to take cold, =
that only meant they must be sure tt
dress warmly if they played out o1
doors. The garret was never very
chilly. because the heat from the fur
mace always crept up there whenevei
it had chance.
It,gas lovely old garnet, Light, yet
myS0lOuS, WILL plcHIy VI oCOlou
away things in it to make it interest
ing, and great cleared space, to play
in. just now it was even mo more DC
-Hghtful than ftu ~ ..pneG cornel
of it was very big heap OF ''pottel
bakers clay
$50, what's that?'' cried the visitors
the moment they reached the garre
door.