The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1881-06-17

/ I have lately had a letter from my
nephew. Johnny Briggs A. the spell
| ing and grammar are little detective,
| will only give the pcstscripts. which,
however, contain the pith IL the letter
itself. Thss run thus:
r. :. on- Recsen have decyiii 70 Goto
see. = bccatrc Am 20 foni Of Fun and nd
sPxs. can rire quickest in the nasey "
by going In ne AsTchant ssrsis. ...
Il IS great many years since l was
boy like Johnny--a great many: yet
not 50 long ago but that, after reading
his letter and its postScripts. fully I'M.
derstand Johnny's frame OF mind. He
Is tired Of the samencss Of life--the eat
ing and sleeping and going 70 school
are all SO n0cyentful. There are no
pirates. or wild Ind ans. or trphoons 10
be- encountered in this prosa;c exist
ence. no fair vvung maiiens to be res
cued from peril Of field. fire or food.
His ardent soul pants for adventure,
and he i a1ame 10 encounter the ex-
element which he fondiy believes to
be inseparable from
"A life "a the ocean wave.-
According 10 his letter. this new born
desire j. due to - unquenchibel Spirit
Of Rowing which he darby hints
j. an Inheritance from 4 very re-
mote ancestor. who Is mentioned
BY Johnny as > freebooter. Nv
own impression. however. u that Il
arises from the fact that the news.
dealer NJ the corner 81 the block where
Johnny lives deals IN five-ccnt nautical
novels Of the most startling kind. /
saw one Of them once. Ii was called
The Boy Blockader; or. The Strange
Secret Of Hampton Hail. I was inter
estei 10 notice that the publishers an
nounced il As Of thrilling interest. and
intended especially for the instruction
and edification of youth An for five
centsl but ! am wandering from my
subject
Now Johnny his asked mr. advice on
This matter Of going 10 sea True. III
know that, like adyice asking peoplein
general. he win only take 50 much Of il
~ comedies with his own ideaS--the
remainder will be contemptuously
ignored as the views Of an o'd forv.
But Day with . big ID stands at INV
elbow. 80 out 81 NV past experience /
have evolved the following:
My LEAR NEPHEW $3.50. The Burlinv-
ton Hrrkeye man. who i one Or the
most charming persons l know. saws
this: Every body likes candid man
till he gives candid opinion that in
ter'eres with their own. Then he :
bigot. So before / finish this letter
Won y know what bigot Is, and that
will something.
4 lour fondness for fame and adj
venture - II may 50 express i, -
family weakness. II sent your father
10 California in '49. and brought
him home with rather less money than
he took away with him. Me Il sent a.
70 sea; and II learned nothing else
there. ! found out that present-day sea- |
going hasn't quite as much fun OF ad- \
venture about il rs present-day sea.
stories would have rs believe. n YOU.
my dear Johnny, should 20 20 sea. YOU \
would probably make the same dis
cDvery. doubt even II you would find 1
among your shipmates daring Dick !
romantic Ralph Rackstraw.
DR. even jolly Jack Easy. The men |
who have taken the place 81 these /
heroes Of fiction are literally on earth.
earthly. rather than OF the sea. salt. I |
i0n't know just why the salt should \
have - lost is SAVIOR since The DAYS
d Cooper and Marryatt hut one
would think nowadays that il was
ienccforih IL for nothing hut 20 be
,ast OUT and trodden under foot Of men,
'uch = downtrodden race are the sailors
n to-day.
For you will no longer, my dear
Johnny, find tho jovinl tar who in this /
words Of your favoritc song.
"'sinzs a be views me gathering cloud.'
o be She manly. independent mariner
Il fiction. Rather II he literaIly. sft- \
'ntimesi under the iron heel Of brutal /
askmaster.
" have never heard heard him sing
: he viewed the gathering cloud. |
hough hdpe heard him, under his |
breath. nse nnpleaSanily emphatic
words ON the subject 81 the weather
md my impression l.. my dear nephew.
hat after Won nave been 10 SEA 4 short |
lime, you Yourself will not look upon |
he gathering cloud in the light of
ubject for tuneful melody; because |
When man y called out u his watch |
,ciow 70 help shorten sail four OF i've !
lines every twcnty-four hours, he is apt |
. lose his ear for music
"Why, the summons 20 this unplcas-
Int duty Is Of itself calculated 10 make |
. lnx fItoL - Lr...n ~. 4u......- - Il