St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1883-10-06
AID tho fro was all ont too. It h.

not been such very great fire, anyway.
There was so much smoke and so little
blaze. and the firemen had been ia such
a hurry to put it out.
And then little short fellow like
Jasper did not have half chance TO
see anything, with SO raany grown men
in front of him.
It had not been at all satisfactory
fire, and then just think OF having to
come home in the end and catching
it!'' Poor Jasper!
When he got into the yard he thought
he would Just see how the land lay be-
fore he yentured into the house. So he
neeped into the dining-room window
and if there were not the folks just sit
ting down to piping hot " supper!
They had poached eggs and toast, and
repentant Jasper, hanging on the WIN
dow-sill, thought:
>.How good poached eggs and toast
do look when a fellows been and run
away to the fire, and don't dare go IN
when he's just a-starving''
And then he devoutly wished again
that he hadn't gone to that fire.
Jasper was great boy for wishing,
YOU see; but if he had studied Mother
Goose as thoroughly as | have DONE
he would know that
.sIf wishes were horses,
Beggars might ride.
And that is only poetical way OF
saving: There's no use IN wishing.
Jasper looked on hungrily until he
had seen the last egg disappear from
the platter, and then he felt more
hungry than ever. He noticed that his
mother kept looking at the clock, and
once he saw her lips say:
Il wonder why that boy don't
comet
Then she got up and went to the
| door to look for him, and Jasper hastily
| retreated into the dog-kennel. he
snuggled UP against old Rover, cried q
little, and wished again he hadn't gone
to that old fire; and then he stopped
wishing, and went sound asleep.
But all this while Jasper's mother
| was suffering, as well as Jasper. And
she began. to wish, too. She wished
she hadn't threatened him, but had
| held hold of his hand instead, when she
was talking with Mrs. Coleman on the
| sidewalk. Then he never would have
run away:
lit was all her fault" she thought,
with deep self-reproaeh, ''that she
hadn't looked after him better. =
After while she got so worried that
she lit the lantern, and she and Jasper.
/ father started out on a search Tor their
runaway son.
1--WE had better look around the yard
first said the father, who did not seem
very much alarmed himself. perhaps
he is here somewhere, and don't like to
come in.
So they looked there, and of course
they found him-for the dog-kennel was
not much of place to hide in. There
he was, fast asleep, with his head on
Rover's leg, and grimy tear-marhs on
his cheeks.
ssWell, / do declare! The poor, tired
little darlingr' said the forgiving
mother.
/ And the father picked him up and
carried him into the house, and the
mother gave him three poached eggs or
/ toast and glass of milk, and never
/ even scolded him.
i Jasper was soon in bed and asleeE
again, though he had thankfully Won
! dered why he didn't g catch it. But
J. if he had heard the conversation be
tween his father and mother, before he
came in that evening. he might have
understood better. He would have heart
something like this:
Mother, anxiously-tsI am mortally
afraid he'll get killed some of these
times, running off to fires and things.
Father Pshaw! Boys will be boys
I'll tell you what, Sarah Jane-yo,
needn't expect you can keep in DO,
as big as our Jasper from hire. lie
him go to the fire. 1t don't hurt boys
does 'em good. y
Mother. signing, and giving up thu
point-..I don't see what they want t
go for, though
Now. wasn't he really splendi'
father?
But the reason of it was this:
You see Jasper's father had been
boy himself once, and Jasper's mothe
never had-and that makes all the dit
! ference in the world, you know.
!, But it seems to me that Jasper ough
!, to have been punished for his disobedi
ence, and then, the next time there wa
fire, his mother could say:
g You must not 60 to the fire
Jasper!''
And I'll warrant that he would ODE
her. Golden Days.
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