The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1880-09-16

ltI IA us Own mouse. ne MOulG DC InllOcd OF
things would crack, an come 20 find out he
was Jest twisted round his wife's finger like q
hank o. darnin' cotton, all the time he was
Dustin with boastin'. They're queer creturs.
Like enough, now, II you let Bezaleei alone,
an keep a-peggin' at the boy how't he's got
girls name tackled onto him, why, he'll git
sick ont himself when be comes 10 years, an
drop it."
"Well, declare for'tl never thought o.
that, responded the astonished widow; and
Just then being called to help roll the quilt,
she had no chance to say any more on the mat
ter, for the minister's wife came in, and the
state of religion in the village became the
topic Of conversation, in Difference to her Off
cial position.
But the stubborn fact remained that Bezy
Hills would call his boy Amandar-a name he
had, indeed, invented, after much study, and
a dull sort Of sense that few II any feminine
names ended In T, and several masculine ones
had that termination. Possibly Keery might
have taken the counsel of the serpent from
Polly Paine, but she did not live to try the
force OF iteration; before Amandar was i've
years old his aunt died, and her place in the
family was taken by fat and kindly woman
whose husband had run away and left her In a
drunken fit and never been heard Of since.
Indeed Sally SWEET took no pains to discover
him; she did not wish to marry again; and in
taking care Of Bezaleers house, and bringing
up little Mandy, she was happy as she never
had been during her married life, the only
skeleton in her closet being the fear that
Apollos might yet appear on the stage, and
deprive her of a home.
Mandy grew up as most country children
grow, sunburned, ragged, dirty, but by ns
means neglected, for the motherly heart of
Aunt Sally never confronted with
offspring of her own went out to
the motherless boy, for whom she de-
lighted to make and mend. to cOncoct pies,
NJ orinrrprbraad and fantastic dOflorh-
nuts; she let him make endless work for her
in the kitchen with his pans of molasses
candy, kettles of strip to sugar off, pots of
evil-smelling ointment for his little boots and
roastings of chestnuts that would explode and
hy in savory fragments all over the kitchen
floor. But for all Sally's indulgence she did
not wean Amandar from his father, no tempta-
ton of food or fun could keep him from the
lonely mans s:5e. By the time Mandy was
fifteen it seemed TO him that the whole farm was
linked to such tender associations of his I'M
unknown mother, and her memory made so
living to him by the iterations of his fathers
love and loss, that it would scarcely have
startled him to see the delicate face waiting at
the window, or hear the young fresh voice call
from his door.
Perhaps he loved her all the more from the
fact that he had borne her name at the expense
of much circulation; for from the moment he
began to attend the district school, that name
had been the scorn and jest of all the other
BOYS. Day after day he came home, his lips
set with indignation and his eyes red with
tears, but never could his father get a word of
complaint out of him, except, " Them boys
plague me.n
The child, young as he was, felt that hisfather
would be even more hurt than he to find that
this dear memorial name had become only oc-
casion ofanger and shame to the son who bore
it.
But Sally was q woman, and finding it in vain
to question or coax Mandy, her curiosity was
fired at once, and by various feminine arts and
stratagems she succeeded in discovering the
secret from some of his playfellows; and one
night when Mandy was safe asleep up stairs
and his father toasting his feet by the kitchen
fire preparatory to his own retirement, shelaid
down her knitting and blandly plunged into
the middle of things at once.
''I've got to the bottom of 'Mandy's red eyes
now, tell We Squire Hills. l set a sight by
that youngster an it's took me aback to hev
him come home every mortal day a-lookin' mad
and sorry too. It's them boys to the school.
| say fort, / don't want to fault Provi-
dence, but do wish the Lord he'd kinder con-
trived some way to carry on the world 'thout
boys. They're the most trouble, to the least
puppusSpf anything that was created, except
mabbe Dutchmen an muskeeters; but seein'
they be here, the matter in hand pears to be
to do a bOdy's best to sarcumvent 'eR, as you
may say. But I'm beat eff know what TO do
ABOUT NleSe uCTC DONS. they've ROb HOlu U
'Mandy's name, it 'pears-I guess twas writ
into his speller-an' they're a-plaguin' of him
TO pieces; CALM of him Miss Hills an love
ly 'Manda,' an a-askin' ofhim efhe's a-makin'
a quilt aginst his weddin', an all sorts o. talk
like that, an wuss, if wuss can be. The little
Teller can't thrash 'em; he's the smallest of the
hull lot; an I've fggered ont all day, but
can't do nothin' as l know of, so thought I'd
tell you about it, for yum I'm to my wits
ends"
A look of keen pain fitted across Bezy Hills
face as Sally pratSled on. He had not thought
of this contingency. He was a slow-minded
man, possessed all these years by one domi-
nant idea, and everything else fell into the
background. His daily duties had been done
because they must be; his sole enjoyment had
been thinking of his wife and talking about
her to his boy. He had given him her name
as nearly as he could in order to make her
near to the child who had never seen her, and
the appellation was sacred to him. He had
never thought it could be made the jest and
weapon of rough boys, or torment instead
of pride to Mandy.
Nothing could be done about it now; the
name was given and he had sense enough to
see that for him to interfere in the affair would
only exasperate it; perhaps he had better not
speak of it even TO Mandy.
The next day was Saturday, and as it was
good sap weather-weather that - friZ by night
an thew by day." as Sally said-'Mandy went
up to the sugar camp with his father to stay
till Sunday morning.
When noon-mark was Strengthened out by
the great gnomon of a tulip-tree on the turf
dial where the shanty stood, Bezy set some
apples to roast before the fire, placed his tin
pot of coffee on the ashes and toasted some
thick slices of cheese at the Goals to eat with
their rye bread and doughuuts-a meal fit for
any king, Mandy thought, its only objection
being that hearty dinner did somewhat limit
the possibilities Of eating maple wax; but the
keen air edged his appetite and demanded solids
as well as sweets.
While he was munching his last doughnut
the silence of the repast was suddenly broken
by his father.
"'Mandy," said he, " I've heard tell that the
boys to school plague We heap about your
given namen
hair. "They do plague some, pa, p" he said, hon
estly, though choking little, perhaps from the
overdry doughnut.
% Well I've figgered ont some, an don't
see but what ye'll hev to stan it for a spell.
Ye amt big enough to thrash 'em nor to knock
'em over; when you be | s'pose you WILL
"You bet,n exclaimed the eight-year old
hero.
" But meantime don't We fret about it no
more'n We can help. Ye've got mothers name
as near as | could fix it, an We an me think
sight o. mother, don't wee"
Mandy nodded; his mouth was still full, and
pathos was not his forte.
" Ye see, eff ye'd ben a little gal why 'twould
hev come right; but We WANT, an don't know
as / wanted for We to be-"
I" didn't, shouted the indignant boy.
"But, for all, | wanted We to hev mothers |
name. She was the best an the beautifulest |
cretur ever was, an them boys hain't any one !
on em got no such mother. | expect if they |
he'd they'd be proper glad to hev her given name |
tackled TO 'em"
Bezy sighed and said no more to him about |
his school troubles but what he had said dwelt |
long in the child's mind and had its effect
The old saving that % the blood of the mar
tyrs is the seed of the Church, is as applicable |