Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1878-09-07

Long" - '"
"That's the sorter talk. Iwapt Y
ter 50 ter school md git ter be ez smar
ez Jennie is, eff ye can. Yeou er few
years older'n she is nd y'ain't nowher
side NV her." ''''
81 know it. l amt nowhere side Il
her." ="
Jennie, the farmers daughter, was
bright girl; and as pretty as a pink
Jim did not wonder that her father an,
mother were proud of her; nor tina
they felt there was vast difference be
tween him and her He thought Their
was himself; and he believed she did
TOR one day of the last summer, whe,
he stumbled onto her ilower-bed. sh
spoke sharply at him and, if he had no
misunderstood her, called him I" beg
gar" p
He was careless and stupid; if sh,
had said as much, he would hay,
thought it iustifiable under the circum
stances. But for her to speak in tha
way-as if his misfortune was his faul
made him almost hate her. He die
not answer back, but the look he gave
her kept her from ever repeating
that taunt and also from forgettipc
that she had once made it.
Yet he continued to be the same care
less "Jimnup to this winter morning
But when Mr., Long had administered
his reproof and returned to the house tC
brush the meal from his clothes, the
/ youth fell into profound meditation
out of which he came with this ejacula
| ton
"Ill do It'll"
When the next term of school began
there were two scholars from Farmer
| Longs.
Jennie and jim.
They went together; but separate d
when they got there, for Jennie was in
a higher department than Jim could
enter. This was the first term the lat.
ter had ever begun with determine.
tion to learn. That he was now SO de-
termined is proved by the answer he
/ gave to his teacher on the first day of
school, when she asked him, among
other things, what he wanted to do; it
was this; 81 want Ter git ter know as
much as Jennie Long does"
How did he come out? Well, he went
to school every term for three years. He
studied evenings, and all the time when
not at work, during vacations. BY in
cessant devotion to his books, through
those three years, he was able to master
all the textbooks used in that institu-
ton; for the last two terms of his course,
was a member of Jennie's class; and,
in most Of their studies, was marked sew
eral points above her.
How did Jim think he came out? Go
ing home with Jennie that las day, after
school had closed. he repeated the words
Mr.. Long had spoken three years before
G'aint nowhere side nv her." and
thought they were truer now than ever.
Had the "want ter git ter know, F." with
which he began, given place toa "wantH
less likely to be satisfied
If Jennie had been aware that her own
views concerning the result of their rival
ry--if it was such-coincided with Jim's,
she probably would not have expressed
herself as she did to her mother, that
evening, when they two were alone. 81
suppose said she, che thinks he's
done a wonderful thing; but don't. If
| had studied and studied and studied as
he has, | should have been far ahead OF
the great-great-giant. But Of course
| don't care fig about it, mammal
Whether Jennie's remarks indicated a
happy frame of mind,o not, 4night be q
question. But without question she used
very happy word when she spoke of
Jim as giant, for he was Il mighty
youth. Jennie was really petite. She
knew it,; but it did not trouble her that
those girls who were familiar with her
called her "Little Jennie Long"
jim knew that he was Of great stature
for his age; and was little sensitive on
that point. | don't think he fancied
being called "Big jim" And it may
have been his aversion to that name
that accounted partly for his blushing
so deeply one morning of his last term,
when he had taken his seat at the open
ing of school. Some mischievous youth
had written a stanza on the blackboard
which was on the wall that faced the
seats-and written it in such large
hand that every scholar could read it
from where he sat. This is a copy of
the lofty verse that the teacher fastened
to erase, as soon as she discovered what
the scholars were laughing at.
But ono daros write-what every one knows
That several Htao follcrs fret,
Because q chance they never get
TO walk and talk with jennie Long,
Who hinders them? Biz Jim-the strong.
He comes with her; and with her goes
And thinks she wants him to, s'pose.
When Jim's eyes caught that, his
face turned very red, as red as--Jen-
nie's.
The youth that wrote that poem
"dared" to write it; but he did not dare
to make himself known.
OF course it was nothing but "boy's
play" but Jim felt that he was near
enough to being a man to look at it
from mans standpoint. And look
ing at it in that light he thought it
proper to tell Jennie that night when
they went home that he was very sorry
that some mean fellow had annoyed
her in such a way; that he would find
out the puppy who wrote the stuff and
give him sound thrashing.
But Jennie, to the surprise OF Jim,
could not see wherein she had been in-
iured to an extent that demanded any
such course as he proposed to take. And
she dissuaded him from his sanguinary
purpose. Not easily, however, but by
arguments made in an earnest manner,
and urged more and more strongly, un-
til he was conquered.
Without meaning it, perhaps, Jennie
said some things, before they reached
her fathers door, that were calculated to
mislead jim, as to the place he occupied
in her thoughts. 1t was not positively
encouraging; but something that came
nearer to being that any thing she
had ever before said to him. Of course
Il must have been unintentional, for
nothing in that line was repeated during
their walks to and from school the re-
mainder of the term. And when the
term closed, as was said before, jim fOlt
tbat she was farther from him than
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