Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1881-03-09

tude of the offence When this hap
pened during the preparation of dinner
or while waiting upon the table, it
was productive of unpleasant feeling.
i said nothing at first, but waited un-
til Ah Gin wanted to go to the city
to do some shopping. AS usual, he
came to ask me to accompany him, at
which | flattened myself against the
wall and said nothing The subject
was dropped at once, and All Gin
stole sheepishly away. After several
days he took courage to speak again
about going 10 the city, and again 1
promptly and silently took his position
against the wall This went on until
he voluntarily promised to abstain
from all flattening and sulks in the
future, and had no more trouble with
him on that score.
Being too proud to associate with
his fellow servants, the poor boy had
very dull evenings. Like most of the
boys have had, he pent a great part
of his time in study, both in Chinese
and English. But when be was tired
or bad finished his self-imposed tasks,
time hung heavily upon his hands. 1t
was great pleasure to him then
when | was alone, to be allowed to
come in and talk to me He asked
many questions about the government
and politics of America, some of which
puzzled and many embarrassed me to
answer. so that | was glad to shift
the talk into other channels But
what | liked even more-shal con-
fess it THAN the conversation of my
wittiest friends, was to listen to All
Gin " hen be stood before me (he re-
fused to sit in my prPsenee,) his little
brown hands crossed upon his brea st,
his head thrown back, his eyes shining
a narrow obique line between his
partly-closed lids, and recited what |
might call the folklore of his country.
His countenance remained impas: i've
throughout, and his position. never
changed, hut his voice thrilled and
vibrated with the passion and the ter
ror or the pathos of his story.
| shall never, never find another
China boy like Ah Gin. And | lost
him b, what foolishness, do you sup
pose By the deadly insult of requir-
ing him to use fne-tooth comb. He
had given his word not to fatten, so
there was nothing for it but to shake
hands and say good-by.
After my experience with Alb Gin,
my first pre- position to a new boy was
the use of the comb or its equivalent
If he refused, well and good the bar
gain was off If he consented, my
heart was glad, for then there was less
likelihood of coming to a rupture with
a good boy after had grown to like
him and he had become familiar with
the ways of the house. (Let me whis-
nese servants that it is the safe thing
to compel a new boy, no matter how
neat and clean he may appear, to wash
his head in solution of fsh-berries
and alcohol or larkspur-seeds boiled in
water, remembering that both are a
deadly poison when swallowed
Nv next venture WAS called Ah
Sin, bright, dapper lad of fourteen,
of facetious turn of mind and merry
most musical laugh took him down
to Monterey with me for the summer,
where we lived in little rose-ombow-
cred adobe cottage with two Spanish
ladies, Sonora Bonifacio and the lovely
little senorita her daughter Between
the Sonora and All Sin war was at
once decla. ed An indignant outburst
of Spanish would startle me as | sat
drawing ut the window, and | would
hasten out to find the sonora, one hand
clutching the shawl over her head,
| gesticulating with the other as she
volubly explained that she would not
and could not allow the 'Chinito' To
climb upon her garden-wall and fasten
| his clothesline to her favorite pear tree,
thereby shaking off the unrpe fruit
The more emphatic the old lady grew,
the more All Sins expression become
that OF one serenely meditating upon
ia. away scenes, while the knots of his
rope were drown tighter as his abstrac-
tion become deeper When | insisted
that the rope ;hould be removed, he
smiled and undid it, but a. soon as
my back was turned found some other
means of attaining his object. He
seemed entirely unaware of the Sc
nora's existence, and skipped about
her whstling Baby Mine and dodg-
ing under her arms as though he sup
posed her some ordinary vegetable pro-
durtion sproutng from ber own garden
The sonora kept all gates securely
locked, especially the door in the gar
den wall, which was strictly tabooed
to All Sin but no locks or bars inter-
fered with his incomings and outgo-
ings Whether he said Open, sesamn
in Chinese or had made himself pri-
vate key | do not know, but be smil-
ingly came and went at his own
sweet will.
During work hours, while the ma
cbinery of the house was in motion,
A Ah Sin went about with the air Of a
man of serious responsibilities but,
the dinner well under way, everything
polished and in order, he rolled up his
white apron-and his cares with it
and ran out into the garden for a romp
with little Sam. The air rang with
their gleeful shouts as they wrestled
and pelted each other with fallen pears
and and play ed ball and other games
dear to the heart Of boys. One of
their amusements consist d in practis-
ing with a rifle, with which Alb Sin be-
came so expert that he could shoot a
bird on the wing.
Sam had pony. 1t had long been
dream of All Sins to have Il ride be-
hind Sam on his little horsey.' [
gave them permission one morning to
go riding double to gather wild straw
beraies in fields. All Sin providing him
self with a grain sack to carry the
fruit In ate in the afternoon | fnnnd