The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1877-12-13

tn0 eject Oh the boy. Going after the
cows was 4 serious thing in my day.
had to climb hill which was covered
with Wild Strawberries In the season.
Could amy boy pass BY those ripe ber-
ries? And then, In the efragranthill past
ure there were beds Of wintergreen
with red berries, tufts Of columbine,
roots of sassafras to be dug, and dozens
of things good to eat or to smell. that
l could not resist. 1t sometimes. even
lay in my way to climb tree to lopk
for q crows nest, or to swing in the
top, and to try if I could see the steeple
| of the village church. 1t became very
important sometimes for me to see that
steeple, and in the midst Of my ,investi-
cations the tin horn would blow . great
blast from the farmhouse, which would
send a cold chill down my back in the
hottest days. I Knew what it meant.
It had frightfully impatient qnaver
| in it. not at all like the sweet note that
called as to dinner from the hay field.
1t said, g Why on earth doesn't that
boy come home; it is almost dark, and
the cows amt milked?" And that was
the time the COWS had to start into a
brisk pace and make up for lost time.
| l wonder if any boy ever drove the cows
home late who did not say that the
cows were at the farther end of the
pasture, and that "Old Brindlen was
hidden in the woods and he couldn't
find her for ever SO long! The brindle
COW is the boy scapegoat many time.
No other boy knows how to appre-
ciate holiday as the farm boy does,
and his best ones are Of . peculiar kind.
Going fishing is, II course, One sort.
The, excitement of rigging up, the
tackle, digging the, bait and the antici-
patton of great luck-these are pure
pleasures, enjoyed because they are
| rare. Boys who can 60 fishing any
time care but little for it, Tramping
all day through bush and briar, fight
| ing flies apd mosquitoes, and branches
! that tangfe the line and snags that
break the HOOK and returning homo late
and dhungry with wet feet, and alstring
Of speckled. trout on a willow, twig, and
having the family crowd out at the
kitchen door to look at 'em and say,
Pretty well done for you. bub; did
you catch that big one yourself?''--this
is also pure happiness, The like of which
| the boy will never have again, not if he
comes to be Selectman and deacon and
to "keep store..'' -. 3,5f =,
But. the holidays Irecall with delight
were the two days lin spring and fall
when we went to the distant pasture
land, in neighboring town, maybe, to
drive thither the young cattle and colts
and to bring them back again. 1t was
wild and rocky upland where our
great pasture WIS, many miles from
home, the road to sitrs running by q
brawling river and up dashing brook
side among great hills. What a day g
adventure it was! Hwas like a journey
to Europe. The night before l could
scarcely sleep for thinking of 1T, and
there was no trouble about getting me
| up at sunrise that morning. The break
fast was eaten, the7 luncheon was
packed in q large -basket,-swith bottles
OF ROOT beer and; = pgsof s~itchei,
which, packing 4 superintended with
1.-THE greatest interest; hhdstheksthe cat
| tie were to be collected for the march,
and etbe horses aiitcHedC Ap. Did
shirk any duty? Was l slow? think
not. l was willing to run my legs of
after tire frisky xseers, who @seenied to
have aniidea they were going on a lark
and, frolcked about, dashing into all
gates and through all bars except the
right ones, and how cheerfully l did
yell at them; it was q glorious chance
to aholler," and have never since
heard any public speaker on the stump
or at camp-meeting who could make
more noise. / have often thought ii
fortunate that the amount Of noise in a
boy does not increase in proportion to
his size; if it did, the world could NOT
contain it. 3 e
The whole day was full Of excitement
and of freedom. We were away from
the farm, which to boy is one of the
best parts of farming. We saw other
/ farms and other people at work. had
the pleasure of marching along and
swinging my whip past boys whom
knew who were picking up stones;
Every turn of the road, every bend and
rapid of the river, the great powders by
the wayside, the. Watering troaghs, the
| giant pine that had been struck by
| lightning the mysterious covered bridge
over the river where it was most swift
and rocky and foamy, the chance eagle
| in the blue sky, the sense of going
somewhere why, as recall all these
4 things feel that even the Prince Impe
rial, as he used to dash on horseback
Through the Bois de Boulogne, witt
fifty mounted hussars clattering ut hi
heels, and crowds of people cheering
/ could not have been as happy as was l
boy in short jacket and shorter panta
looms, trudging in the dust that day be
hind the steers and colts. cracking my
blackstock whip. 20 49, Z
i wish the journey would never end
/ but at last, by noon, welreach the pas
lures and turn in the herd; and aftel
making the tour Of the lots to. Wak'
Esdre thefS Sares no breaks in the fehces
we take our luncheon from the wagoI
and eat it under The feeesby the spring.
This is the supreme moment of the day
This is thsv-way to live; this is Ike th'
srSwiss Family Robinson,'and all tn
Frestsof my delightful acquaihtances IL
romance. Baked beans, rye and Indial
bread (moist, remember) ,doughnutsl AM
cheese, pie and root beer. Whatrrich
cos, CO.'S Or. if those Frenchmen do not "a
each other up, at Philippe's, in the Ru
% "a Tissesorsr s,s ,,se,,.- 49, - al 80 ~ Cnod
4 dinner as anybody; but you will &c
therefneither doughnuts, nor pie, no
root beer, nor anything SO good as tina
h;SS MI an,on. ~ the' M.ssachns.stts hills
~ W. ,.,;s1 M, eSs, s ;f1 VIM livesto he th
o,Jas. Ia !" - ~ ~ :, t the worid have anv holi
ss J.n eouoI nj r. - the one have described
S MY TIE sis.S - va rScssfts.l sthsf i d;tf IA