The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1883-06-20


as he came in the store with his face
black and shining, 81 don't want any
colored boys around here. White boys
break me up bad enough"
"Oh, philopene," said the bad boy,
as he put his hands on his knees and
laughed SO the candy jars ratified on
the shelves. You didn'tknow me.
am the same boy that comes in here
and talks your arm off," and the boy
opened the cheese box and cut off a
piece of cheese 50 natural that the gro
Gerry man had no difficulty in recogniz
ing him.
"What in the name Of the seven
sleeping sisters have you got on your
hands and face" said the grocery man,
as he took the boy by the ear and
turned him around. "What you got up
in such an outlandish rig for?"
"Well, I'll tell you, if you will keep
watch at the door. If you see bald
headed colorel man coming along the
street with club, you whistle, and l
will fall down cellar. The bald-headed
colored man will be pa. You see, we
moved yesterday. Pa told me to get
vacation from the livery stable, and we
would have fun moving. But don't
want any more fun. l know when
have got enough fun. Pa carried all
the light things, and when it came to
lifting, he had a crick in the back.
Gosh, / never was so tired as l was
last night, and L hope we have got
settled, only some of the goods haven't
turned up yet. A drayman took one
load over on the west side and deliv-
cred them to a house that seemed to
be expecting a load of household furni-
ture. He thought it was all right, if
everybody that was moving got
load of goods. Well, after we got
moved pa said we must make garden,
and he said we would go out and spade
up the ground and sow peas and rad
ishes and beets. There was some
neighbors lived in the next house to
our new one, that was all wimmen,
and pa didn't like to have them think
he had to work, so he said it would be
a good joke to disguise ourselves as
tramps, and the neighbors would think
we had hired some tramps to dig in
the garden. I told pa of boss scheme
to fool them. Isuggested that we take
some of this shoe backing that is put
on with a sponge, and black our faces,
and the neighbors would think we had
| hired an old cOlored man and his boy
to work in the garden. Pa said it was
immense, and he told me TO go and
black up, and if it worked he would
black hisself. So went and put this
burnt cork on my face, cause it would
wash off, and pa looked at me and said
it was a whack, and for me to fix him
up too. So 1 got the shoe backing
and painted pa so he looked like coal
HEAVIER. Actually, when ma saw him
she ordered him off-the premises, and
when he LATED at her and acted sassy,
she was going to throw billing
water on pa, but l told her the scheme
and she let up on pa. Oh, you'd dide
to see US out in the garden. Pa
looked like Uncle Tom, ana L looked
like Topsy, only amt that kind of a
colored person. We worked till boy
throwed some tomato cans over the
alley fence and hit me, and l piled
over the fence after him, and left pa
1t was my chum, and when L had
caught him we put up job to get pa
to chase us. We throwed some more
cans, and pa come out and my chum
started and l after him, and pa after
both of us. He chased us two blocks
and then we got behind policeman,
and my chum told the policeman it
was a crazy old colored man that
wanted to kidnap us, and the police
man took pa by the neck and was go
ing to club him, but pa said he would
90 home and behave. He was offul
mad, and he went home and we looked
through the alley fence and saw pa
trying to wash off the blacking. You
see that blacking won't wash off. You
have to wear it off. Pa would wash
his face with soapsuds, and then
look in the glass, and he was blacker
every time he washed, and when ma
laffed at him he said the Offulest words,
something like sweet spirit hear my
prayer then he washed himself again,
/ am going to leave my burnt
cork on, cause if l washed II
off pa would know there had beer
some smOuging somewhere. L asked
the shoe store man how long it would
take the blacking to wear off, and h'
said it ought to wear off in a week.
guess pa won't 60 out doors much, un
less it is in the night. am going t.
get him to let me go off in the country
fishing, till mine wears off, and wher
| get out Of town l will wash up. Say
you don't think little backing hurtl
a mans complexion do you, and yol
don't think a man ought to get maC
because it won't wash off, do you2"
"oh, probably it don't hurt the com
plexion," said the grocery man, as h
sprinkled some fresh water on tn
wilted lettuce, so it would look fresl
Willie the hired girl was buying some
"an1 yet it is mighty unpleasant