The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-12-19
A New Way to Pay for q Knife.

A New Way to Pay for q Knife. %
A long TIME ias ago when IsTas aoboy,S +
found it next to impossible to keep q
pocket-knife. Somehow a,knifs3 would
get away from me, ! tEisd ever SO hard
70 keaan' eafh heM 6ne, tha3 came into my
possession, and I really coveted every
knife that hadnns heeH Lost, asit seemed
to me there were lucky and unlucky
knives. Mine were all of the. unlucky
kind. When l lost q knife / would try
for days together to remember where l
lastihad mY knife. II Ilwould fall to sleep
at nighttrying to call up this last place
could call up every other place where
had nsed my knife for week back e1-
cept the last place-that would not come
upaoI y.onld, walk about, start, stop,
look vacant and run my hand into my
pocket every few minutes thinking sure
~ it is in there. I'd turn all my pockets
wrong side out hoping the treasure would
fall out of some corner; but all in vain.
I'd whistle and try to sing but there was
no tune to any thing. had to choke
down my meals, and, my appetite was
gone. I wanted to tell my loss to my
tune. Just as certain as I lost my knife
some one, and always the wrong one,
was-srre 70 oaskmefo for it. Then the sad
truth had to come; but I always felt
better after telling my sorrow, and par
ticularly SO if Igot q word Of sympathy.
My heart was lighter and my boyish
whistle then had some tune to it. If at
last I found my knife, and always just
where I never thought of looking for it,
1 was jistlabopt as happy as boy ever
gets to belinlthis world and itlseemed-
to me everybody else was glad -teo.-
I'd put the knife deep down in my pock=
ct, and every half honrTon so Gfun my
hand down to,maks sure. it Was there, 3
My blessed mother was . poor, widow
and not able to buy me knife oftener
than once year, generally at Christmas
or New Year. They had the Christmases
mighty far apart when Twas 8 boy-they
are getting them too close together now,
When was about twelve years ole, my
brothE9 s@h oF vas three years younger,
and myself were out in the woods at
play. Brother had large white-handle
knife, which, as I thought, he had kept
so long, because the handle was white.
Ihad-eaer.efered him allsmy stock in
trade for it; but he would not sell. His
upwillingnesss to- part from that knife
Only increased MY desire for it. AT the
time spoken Of, brother had just cut
from an old stump, long, keen, beauti--
full dog-wood switch, and he said, "See
what's nice switch, I, have" Instantly;
as ifby a sort Of Inspiration I said !:
Brother, you may hit me hundred
lashes with that switch, if you will give
me your knife" My joy was about full
when brother promptly said, "I'll do it.
We arranged the terms. I was to pull
off fmgsceasia jeans rouadsa.about, nei-
ther of us TO get mad, and 1, was to loan
brother; my my knife, IS be had loaned it to
me, while it was his. 4. + was perfectly
happy atthe prospect of, that knife at SO
small "a price, land tLupulled off my coat
quick, for fear brother would back out.
He was slow, still, patient sort of
boy, and comnsnesd laying on in the
most uninteresting way imaginable. He
did not hurtsa BIT. i laughed at him,
told him it was really pleasant. When
he got up to twenty-five, my back began
to get warm, and sting, and smart.
stopped laughing and began to count
more carefully. Al. fifty, 7 was as hot
as pepper, and said, S"Come, brother,
stop, 7 want to rest" We rested for
some time. My:courage was fast cooling
down. I began to reason.witb myself:
s.I-have taken fifty lashes, there are only
6fty more, and that nine year old boy
can't hit auy harder With some effort
I=saiG, '"Well, brother, commence and;
ba.quick." But: he was in no hurry: =
told you he was q slow beys and he SEEM
ed-uncommonly sloWJust thenS I count
eageventy- FIVE with emphasis, and said,
'.Held :ongne took the k1ifeand looked
ait. It was not such a 'R1ifs s:as.I / had
Thought it was. Indeed, T begun tofeel
like the price was too much for, any
k1Ife. 7 made several propositions for
compromise, but.it was MOI 60. Brother
stuck 20 the original contract, with pre-
yoEingo tenacity, and I could mot well
afford to lose what I had already paid.
IaWas half.a-mim to get t\mad, and, conf
plain of foul play, but my word of honor
was atstake.' Brother thought the whole
thing sgood joke, but for the..life of me;
I could not see any fun in it. Ididnot
cry but / was sorry enough to do so.
My mind came and went so fast, I could
not get it made up to any line of action.
Finallyatbis thought settled me "What
a fool%I ann to take sevehty-fve lashes,
and now hesitate at the remaining twen-
ty-fve n rSoTgrittingCmy teeth, T said,
clay on, 1dcD6E.n Up didn't know who
McDuf was, but had caught the express
siontfron some one and used it, he did
lay on fifteen lashes, when all on a sud-
den my mind underwent a complete rev.
olution, and I told brother "to stop and
keep bis old knife, it never had been
good metal" The fact is, would not
have taken the remaining ten lashes for
forty knives my courage had collapsed!
Results: First, never. after that did L
offer to buy anything at that price. Sec-
oud, never lost knife from that day to
this: When my mother learned this
story, which she did when I changed my
clothes, the. last of that week, she. bought
me knife and I kepti it until it was worn
out.-sWesleya. Chrtstiau -4dvocatc.
FAST rFsArNs.-Fhe4 fastest trains in
the world are claimed by England, the
Great WsstefTi' lying Dutchman," and
u e a. A.