Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1880-11-03
Pops Idea of Fun.
A STORY WHICH SOME OF THE BOYS
WILL APPRECIATE.

WILL APPRECIATE.
Only this morning Pop punch ed me in
the ribs, and winked, and whispered be-
hind his hand, ANY more sprees on hand.
Bob?' | was dsgusted and didn't say
anything Ifhe'd been boy of my size
Just then. things would have been different;
but Pop is a kind of man it isn't pleasant
to offend smiled in sickly way, but
was never more disgusted in my life.
Any more sprees! I should think not.
I'll leave it to any one if this kind of spree
pays. Count me in for. the next racket,
Bob" he said at the breakfast table, and
then he wnked again. | declare | was
that sick | let my buckwheat cake get
cold.
Here's the way it was. We lived in
nobby kind of place, you see. Almost
everybody owns his own house and
grounds, and spends all his spare time in
fixing them up. Most of the gentlemen
day, but before they 60 and after they
come back, they're always fussing around,
making little alterations and what they
call Improvements. 1t makes 'em awful
mad if the place is out of order the seven
teenth part of an inch. The ladies raise
flowers, fix baskets and roses, and all that
kind of gimcracks, and the men 90 potter
ing about, making more fuss over their
plats of ground than big farmer ont west
does over his thousands of acres. Well, we
boys get together sometimes and arrange
everything to suit ourselves. In II single
night it'll be like transformation scene
mt a pantomime-may be not so pretty, but
every bit as funny. Fun! We've laughed
ready to split our sides to see the poor old
barber come limping up for his pole in
runt of the doctors and the doctor go
fblustering down there for his hitchng-
post lot of pavingstones against the
door of the real estate office, and the COWS
and chickens running loose about town.
But this particular lark was what we
called specially, Only gates were to be
touched, and these were to undergo a
regular tribulation. The weather was
about right-muggy- the mud in
some places knee-deep. We arranged all
the preliminaries at recess, and Tom Jones
was to 90 around about 9 o'clock and let
us know if the coast was clear; bnt he
wasn't to give our regular call-all the
place knows that. 1t goes something in
this way, "Ki-yuah uah-yuah, yoo-o."
with prolonged howl ut the end We
always drop it when anything secret is on
hand 1t was agreed upon that Tom Jones
should 90 to each house, if all was right,
and have coughing and sneezng spell
that wouldn't arouse suspicion; then we
were to creep out, when the folks were
gone to bed, and 90 to work. And it
happened to be work this time, you'd bet.
ter believe!
We were all sitting around the table
when the clock struck 8. Pop had his
spectaces on, and was reading an editoria
to ma, the girls were busy with theil
lessons and | had finished my last example
when all at once we heard Il terrible
coughing and sneezng in the street
That was the worst of Tom Jones-ht
| always overdid his part If he'd hat
: pneumonia, ,whooping-cough, asthma bron
chitis, and had been hired to 90 arount
; with cough medicine to cure 'em, h,
couldn't have turned himself further inside
out. OF course Pop began to notice it
, ani ma looked up in alarm. why
.. said ma, " that boy s got Il fearful coldm
Fearful" said Pop, with IL queer twis
of his under lip, and when Tom Jones
. like biz donkey, went across the stree
to jim Cancy's house, and began tn
/ whole thing over again, Pop wanted tt
+ know why that boys cold was like tn
e paper he held in his hand. We all CAV,
it up and Pop said because it was period
4 ical Ma and the girls looked mystified
but | was afraid then he'd tumbed t
something, and couldn't hel p getting re
lN,, e
j plagued skin-it's so thin the blood show
. right through it.
. There were no more OF the boys house
k in our avenue and pretty soon we all wen
I I to bed. | slept in the little room on tn
second floor off the hall; it was an eas,
. thing to climb out the window and dow
by the Virginia creeper to the from
+ garden. | went around to our place .
!, meeting, and there they all were. Th
o wind had sprung up pretty brisk, an
5 there was thin coating of ice over tn
mud; but that was all the better for tn
$ gates we wanted to bury. We owed
7 grudge to old Jake Van Coulter, and w
made up our minds he'd have nice tim
] getting his gate back. The miserable oil
' caboode was rusty, and nearly tore on
I hauled it off to marshy lot, where W
sunk it in the mud. Then to avert susp
II cion we took our own gates off with tn
0 rest. We were getting pretty well tire
!. out and ready for home, and had laid m
i gate up against IL neighboring fence, whe
s who should be standing right there in tn
e shadow of the wall but Pop! We wer
n all so thunderstruck that we didn't move
e and to my surprise Pop began to laug
/ and beckon to the boys to come close
h, They were not to be caught by that bal
/ and stood off pretty considerably, whe
n a Pop whispered over to us, in quite joll
; tone of voice: Don't be afraid boy.
= l like 10 see you enjoy yourselves. | WI
1tt boy once myself. Bless your hearts
. like fun yet as well US anybody"
10 Then he laughed ready to split, ber
b. himself double, and we all began to fe,
= easy, and laugh too. Tom Jones said b
n wished his father was ike mine, and Pc
At began to encourage us to do more. W
d. were so spurred on by him that we hard
III left gate in the place where it belonge,
lee Pop going along with us, acting rs u kin
al of scout, he said, and seeing that nobod
Z Z was near to disturb us. Once or twice
ii gave signal of alarm, and we all crouc
h ed down as still us mice, Pop stiller tha
Ia any of u.s. never was SO dumbfound,
Y in my life, for I'd never seen Pop vel
X jolly that way before. The boys we
re re delighted with him; they al agreed
As make him president of our club, and Pc
r said he d take the position when he q
iss back from the legislature.
Well we'd come to the conclusion Il
place was completely done, and Jim Clant
proposed we should 90 home. Jim b,
at torn his hands rather badly with Unc
Id Jake's gate, and didn't feel very goo
IN when suddenly Pop said:-
it Yes, boys, of course wen go hon
p, pretty soon, when we're through, "
1t know; but we must put ali the gates ba
II in their places again tirst"
We all looked ut each other aghast for
'' minute. "Bt ok again" cried the fellow
f1i Well | guess no! Not much
he Hardly !" and all sorts of dcrisve refus,
u went round.
#. Pop stood among Us, whirlng his car
nd smiling all the time, and said d:-
" "Oh, yes you will, boys, when you thi