Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1882-02-03

, the top of the stairway; for, to tell th
truth, dassent 60 on. He hurried on hi
clothes, and went on ahead, and there sh
Law: there Miss banks wus, on the fool
in historical fit.
i Josiah, thinkin' she wus dead, run Ii
and ketched her up, and went to put he
on the bed; and she, just as they will ii
historeks, clawed right into his hair, AM
tore out most all he had on the nigh side
Then she struck him a fearful blow On th
off eye, made it black and blue for week
She didn't know what she wus about. Sht
wuzn't to blame, though the hair wus 6
great los to him, andsI won't deny it,
Wal, we stood over her, most all night, tt
keep the breath of life in her. And the
Oldest boy bein skairt, it brought on some
fits he wus in the habit of havin', sort
of fallin' fits. He'd fall anywhere; he fell
onto Josiah twice that night, almost
his age. Dredful big and fat. It seemed
as if there wus sunthin' wrong about his
heft, it wus so uncommon betty, for boy
of his age. He looked bloated. His eyes
which wus a pale blue, seemed to be kin
der sot back into his head. and his cheeks
stood out below, some-like balloons. And
his mouth wus kinder open good deal of
the time as if it wus hard for him to breathe
He breathed thick and wheezy, dreadful
uncomfortable. His complexion looked
bad, too; sallow, and sort o. tallery lookin'.
He acted dredful lazy, and heavy at the
best of times, and in them fits, he seemed
to be as heavy as lead.
Wal, that wus the third night after they
got there; and, from that night, as long as
they staid. she had the historicks, frequent
and violent, and Bill had his fallin' fits.
and you wouldn't believe, unless you see
it, how many things that boy broke, in
fallin' on 'em in them fits. 1T beat all,
how unfortunate he wus. They always
come onts him Unexpected, and it seemed
as ii they always come onto him while he
wus in front of sunthin' to smash all to
bits. I can't begin to tell how many
things he destroyed, jest by them fits;
finally, says to Josiah, one day. says I:
ibid you ever see, Josiah Allen, any
body so unlucky as that boy in his fits:
seems as if he'll break everything in the
house if it goes on"
Says be: "It's pity he don't break his
cussed neck.'
[ don't know as l wus ever more tried
with Josiah Allen than wus then, or ev-
er gave him a frmer, eloquenter lecture
aginst swearin'. But, in my heart, 1
couldn't help pityin' him, for knew Bill
had jest fell onto some tomato plants, of
extra kind, that Josiah had bought at great
expense, and sot out, and broke 'em short
off. And it wus only the day before, that
he fell, as he was lookin' at the colt; it
wus OILY week old; but it wus an oncom-
mon nice one. and Josiah thought his eyes
of it; and Bill wus admirin' of it; there
wuzn't nothin' ugly about him; but fit
come on, and he fell right onto the colt,
and the colt, not expectin' of it, and bein'
entirely unprepared, fell fiat down, and
the boy on it, And the colt jest lived,
that is all. Josiah says it will never be
worth anything; he thinks it broke suthin'
inside.
AS I said, there WuZn't nothin' ugly
about the boy. He'd be awful sorry when he
broke things, and flatted 'em all out a fall
in on 'em. All blamed him for, was bis
prowlin' round so much. I thought then
and think still, that, seein' he knew he
had 'em, aud was liable to have 'em, he'd
have done better to have kept still, and
not tried to get round so much. But, his
mother said he felt restless and Uneasy. [
couldn't help likin' the boy. And when
he fell right into my bread, that wus a.
risin', and split the hull batch-and when
he fell onto 1.-The parlor table, and broke
the big parlor lamp, and everything else
that wus on it-and when he fell onto a
chicken coop, and broke 1t down, and kill
ed hull brood of chickens-and more
than fifty other things, jest about like 'em
why. I didn't feel like scoldin' him. I
s'pose, it was my lofty principles that boy
ed me; them, and the thought that would
come to me: mebby Josiah Allen will hear
to me, another time; mebby he will get
sick of summer boarders, and takin' of
'em in.
But must finish, at another time. I've
told how ave took in boarders. You be-
GIN to see that they "took US in."-Peter-
sons Magazine.