The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1879-01-09
THREE CHAPTERSIN A.BOYiS LIFE.



His advent is heralded in the brief
but strong sentence just quoted. No
matter. what hopes have been INDUCED |
concerning girl babies, what lists of
names sounded over to catch the most
musical and euphonious ones, there is
something in the pithy announcement,
Its boy" which dispels all fanciful
dreams and sets every body squarely on
prose basis. His very voice, as it ut
tiers defiant war-whoop to the grand
army of humanity, tells the story to ex-
perienced years. The vision Of dainty
girl darling very soon vanishes before
this positive piece of prose, who kicks
his sturdy heels through the delicate
pink socks intended for his sister, and
who grows red as turkey-cock's head
at Thanksgiving times when he is ex-
pected to show off to good advantage
before callers. He persists in an alb
normal development of nose and puff
finess about the eyes, along with sever
al other little tricks known only to in
terested parties. Parents and nurses
become reconciled and accept him on
trust, seeing no other alternative. He
emerges from his puffy and rosy OBJ
stinacy to roly-poly, wide-awake thing
of beauty, which is a joy fully one-half
of the time. There is process from
infancy to little boyhood, a sweet time,
when the manchild is half baby, half
angel. In the clear depths of his inno-
cent eyes is world of trust and hope
and love. His white brow is a freshly
opened lily, and his lips as sweet as
hermosa roses. He is most witching at
this age, for the peculiarities which
mark the enfant terrible are yet unde
veloped. He is an armful of love and
beauty and promise and dread and hope.
Love him while yet there is no guile on
the tender lips, no sin in the unwritten
soul, no touch of the worlds breath up
on Gods finished work.
CHAPTER H." GIT UP, OLD HoRsEY!"
"Mercy, what noise! Look at that
chair, with string tied on the arms
made fast to the writing-desk and
fower-stand, all to be driven tandem by
that young imp in kilt skirt and fancy
hat and shoes! Who upset that work
basket? and, good gracious! what work
has been made with my wool and thread !!
There's the last Graphic torn to scraps
and stuffed in the cuspidor with my
screw-driver, that I lost a week ago
What is he doing with the catP and deaf
me! if he hasn't thrown grandma's
spectacles into the grate!"
Where's Harry! Run to the kitchen
and see. All the eggs are broken in the
basket of folded clothes, and the milk
for pudding has been fed to the cat and
dog. Bridget Lannigan is in tower
ing rage and says, "Phat's the use of
shaving to kape clane wild such young
divil fornist YEP" Miss Fridgity Fuss
bunch calls, and is Mortified by being
requested to "be horse and let Harry
ride straddle to Boston," She is ques-
toned, also, on many delicate points,
and asked how many little boys she has
and whether she has seen his blue mon
key that performs on yellow stick, and
his "rooster that crows if you just blow
in behind" He gets very close to her
and asks what that white stuff on her
face is, and what makes her wear such
a funny little hat.
A few years of this juvenile terror and
then appears another stage of the boy.
He gets fever only appeased by mar
bles. 1t is useless to head off this
phase; if it is shut off in one direction
it breaks out more violently in some
other. 1t goes through a period of six or
seven years and costs much in anxiety,
broken window panes, and mortified
pride. He is afflicted with rats, pigeons
and other boyish complaints, which are
harmless, but annoying. He brings in
six dirty steel traps to amuse his sick
sister, who grows worse under it, and in
his solicitude ne straps his legs fast to six
feet OF stills and stoops to enter the door
OF her room, to the horror and dismay
of his mother. He brings little notes
home from school, which he tries to ex
plain in favorable light, but fails tc
convince his parents that it was " only
because Bill Wilson dropped his SLATE
on Abe Hennegan's toes and made mt
laugh" He carves his awkward mi
tials on old Mrs. Williams's cellar door
and she threatens his arrest. He goes
to see e" Humpty Dumpty," and comes
home and throws real brickbats at his
aunt, and Bridget is met with q batter
ing blow from his head in the region Of
the diaphragm when she is bringing in
the coal. He makes life burden, and
home q snare and delusion. He tears
the comforts in more ways than one
and Sits the pillow cases to match
them. Gradually he leaves off his hur.
!y-burly life and imperceptibly glides
into sas : -
CHAPTER II.-"wHERE's MY BLUE
TIEp'
s'Where is the backing brush9 I am
going to a little surprise, and went be
home till eleven. Is my percale shirt
done up nice? | wish you'd make my
collars sitter. don't thank some one
tor throwing my coat down and getting
it wrinkled all up. How do you like
this hatp Think it looks better than my