The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-08-12
How to be Boys Again.

Syracuse, when Roscoe Conkling met
a man who used to play marbles with
him When he was boy. They got
into conversation about how good a
game they used to play, and each
claimed that he was the boss player
in the olden time, and to settle it they
went out behind store, with some
marbles, made big ring, and played
for Keeps until Mr.. Conkling skinned
his friend, when they shook hands
over the battle and separated as smil-
ing as they were forty years ago, but
not so happy. If such men would
meet often, and 60 through some of
their boyish games, the world would
be better for it, and there would be
fewer bitter enemies among prom
inent citizens.
suppose DaYid Davis and Alexan-
der ii. Stephens should drop the cares
of State some day and take couple
ofja"k knives and sit down on the
grass and play a game of mumblety-
peg. 1t would loosen up their joints,
make them feel young, and do them
more good than dozen bottles of
Liver medicine or anti-fat. OF course
stephens would have the bulge on
Davis when IL came to pulling the
peg out of the ground with his teeth,
but that would be neither here nor
there. Both would greet each other
more kindly and friendly afterwards.
We believe il would do John A.
Logan more COED than a visit to the
hot springs, if he would pull off his
boots some day, put on hickory
shirt, a hat with no crown and the
brim gone, pair tow cloth pants held
up with one gallus, and 90 off in the
woods to drown out a gopher. By
the time he had carried water a
couple of hours from spring forty
rods away, imam old wooden pail, and
poured it in the hole, he would be as
healthy as an Indian, and when the
gopher came to the top of the hole,
soaking wet, and John grabbed him
by the neck and got his thumb bit,
he would be as proud of his victory
as though he had passed pension
bill, and he would walk down Penn
sylvania avenue as sassy as though
he didn't care whether school kept or
not, limping on one heel on account
of stone bruise.
If President Arthur would some
day take baking powder can full of
angleWorms, and take Sterl. Rounds,
the public printer, and Tim Howe,
and Frank Hatton, and the four
should borrow some old clothes of
some poor boys and 90 down TO the
Potomac and fish with tamrOck poles
and Irvine fish mes, for bull-heads, all
the afternoon, they would have the
best sport they have had in thirty
years, and we presume old Tim Howe
would laugh, if Arthur sat down on
a bull-head, so you could hear him
clear to Mount Vernon.
We have often thought we would
like to see Don Cameron and old
Christiancy, and Tilden. and Sunset
Cox, and a whole crowd of those fell
lows 90 down to a creek and peel
themselves and go in swimming old
fashioned. But we know how it
would be. The other fellows would
tie Tilden's clothes in@knots, so he
couldn't unite them without an eight
to seven commission, and when they
got their clothes on they would
run off and leave Christiancy crying
for them to wait for him.
Oh, there would be heap of fun
for those fellows if they only knew
it, going out hickory nutting, COON
ing melons. and acting as they did
when they were young, but they
will lally9ag around their houses,
resting. go to the club and get their
skins full of wine and devilIed crabs,
and terrapin, and by and by you will
hear them at summer resorts drink
! ing water for their kidneys, and after
a while they will die of Bright's Dis.
ease, and congress will 60 to the fu-
neral and get drunk at government
expense.
People try to be too almighty
great in this world, and they lose
half the fun that is going on. IfConk-
ling is the man we take him to be,
he will, now that he is out of politics,
organize marble tournament, or an
old fashioned town ball game, and
make all the old fellows play or keep
score by cutting notches in single.
If he will do 1t, blessed if we don't
vote for him for president and no
questions asked.