St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1882-05-20
Animals.

Animals are awfully intelligent, but
they haven't any souls. There was once
an elephant in a circus. and one day
bow said to him: sWant lump of SUI
car, old fellow?' The elephant he nod
ded, and felt real grateful, for elephants
are very fond of lump-sugar, which is
what they live on in their native forests.
But the boy put cigar instead OF q
lump OF sugar in his mouth.
The sagacious animal, instead of eat
inc up the cigar or trying to smoke it,
and making himself dreadfully sick,
took it and carried it across the circus
to a man who kept a candy and cigar
stand, and made signs that he'd sell the
cigar for twelve Jumps of sugar. The
man gave the elephant the sugar and
took the cigar, and then the intelligent
animal sat down Oh his hind legs and
laughed at the boy who had tried to
play Joke on him, until the boy felt
that much ashamed that he went right
home and went to bed.
In the days when there were fairies
only I don't believe there ever were
any fairies, and Mr.. Travers says they
| were rubbish--boys We're frequently
changed into animals. There was once
| q boy who did something that made a
wicked fairy angry, and she changed
/ him into cat, and thought she had
punished him dreadfully. But the boy
i after he was a cat used to come and get
on her back fence and yowl as if he was
ten or twelve cats all night long, and
she couldn't get wink of sleep, and
fell into a fever, and had to take lots of
r,J
So she sent for the boy who was cat.
YOU understand, and said she d change
him back again. But he said: ''Oh
no; L d much rather be Il cat, for l m so
fond OF singing on the back fence"
/ And the end of it was that she had to
give him tremendous pile OF money
before he d consent to be changed back
into boy again.
Boys can play being animals, and it's
great fun, only the other boys who don't
play they are animals get punished for
it, and l say it's unjust, especially as |
never meant any harm at all and was
doing my very best to amuse the chill
dren.
This is the way it happened. Aunt
Sarah came to see us the other day, and
brought her three boys with her. l
don't think you ever heard OF Aunt
Sarah, and | wish | never had. She 8
one of fathers sisters, and he thinks a
great deal more of her than would if
She was nv sister, and don think it s
much credit to anybody to be sister
anyway. The boys are twins, that Is.
two of them are, and they are all about
three or four years old.
Well, one day just before Christmas,
when it was almost as warm outdoors
as it is in summer, Aunt Sarah said:
Jimmy, want you to take the dear
children out and amuse them few
hours. I know you're so fond Of your
dear little cousins and what fine manly
, bow YOU aren' SO I took them out,
though | didn't want to waste my time
with little children, for we are response
bic for wasting time, and ought to use
every minute to improve ourselves.
The boys wanted to see the pigs that
belong to Mr.. TAYLOR, who lives next
, door, so [ took them through a hole in
, the fence, and they looked at the pigs,
and one of them said:
:, "Oh my how sweet they are and how
I would like to be little pig and never
be washed and have lots OF swillI'
, So said 'sWhy don't YOU play you
, are pigs, and crawl round and grunt?
It's lust as easy, and I'll look at you. -
: You see, thought | ought to amuse
them, and that this would be a nice way
Q to teach them to amuse themselves.
Well, they got down on all tours and
9 ran round and grunted, until they be-
gan to get tired of it, and then wanted
to know what else pigs could do, so
/ told them that pigs generally rolled in
| the mud, and the more mud pig could
! get on himself the happier he would be,
, and that there was q mud-puddle in our
D back ward that would make q pig vcry
e like child with delight
The boys went straight to that mud,
puddle, and they rolled in the mud un,
i, til there wasn't an inch OF them thai
: wasn't covered with mud so thick thai
: you would have to get a crowbar to pry
T it off.
: !. Just then Aunt Sarah came to the
= y door and called them, and when she saw
= them she said: "Good gracious, wha1
: on earth have you been doing?" anC
Tommy, that's the oldest boy, said:
= "We've been playing we were pigs
. ma, and it s real fun, and wasn't Jimmy
. good to show us how?"
think they had to boil the boys il
. hot water before they could get the mu(
off, and their clothes have all got to b.
: sent to the poor people out West who's
things were all lost in the great floods
If you'll believe it, never got the leas
: bit of thanks for showing the boys hov
9 to amuse themselves, but Aunt Saral
said that I'd get something when fathe
s came home, and she wasn't mistaken
9 I'd rather not mention what it was tina
q I got. but got it mostly on the legs
and think bamboo canes ought not t
be sold to fathers any more than poi
son.