, 1883-08-25
Peck's Bad Boy.

"Hello," said the groceryman to
the bad boy, as he came in looking
sick at heart, and all broke up, GLOW
is your muscle this morning?"
Gan right enough" said the boy,
with look Of inquiry; as though
wondering what was coming next.
"Why 9''
40, nothing, only was going to
grind the hatchet, and some knives
and things, this morning, and l
thought maybe you would like to go
out in the shed and turn the grind
stone for me, to develop your mus
cles. Turning a grindstone is the
healthiest thing a boy can do"
"That is all right enough" said
the bad boy, las he took up a sweet
cracker, "but please take a good look
at me. Do look like a grindstOne
boy? Do l resemble a good little
boy that can't say mo- and goes off
and turns a grindstone half a day
for some old duffer, who pays him
by giving him a handful of green
currants, or telling him he will be IL
man some day, and the boy goes off
one way, with a lame back, while
the good man goes the other way,
with sharp scythe, and a chuckle
at the softness Of the boy? You are
mistaken in me. / have passed the
grindstone period, and you will have
to pick up another sardine who has
never done circular work. Not any
grindstone for Hennery, if you
please"
"YOu are getting too smart" said
the grOceryman, as he charged a
pound Of sweet crackers to the boys
father. "YOu don't hare to turn the
grindstone if you don't want to-"
"Thats what l thought" says the
boy, as he takes handful of blue
berries. "You grindstone sharps, who
are always laying for fool boy to
give tafTy to, and get him to break
his back, don't play it fine enough.
You bear on too hard on the grind
stone. have seen the time when n
man could get me to turn a grind
stone for him till the cows come
home, by making believe it was fun,
and by telling me he never saw a
boy that seemed to throw 50 much
soul into turning a grindstone as l
did but have found that such men
are hypocrites. They inveigle a bov
into their nest, like the spider does
the fly, and at first they don't bear
on hard, but just let the blade Of the
axe or the scythe touch the grind
stone, and they make boy believe
he is a bigger man than old Grant.
They bet him he will get tired, and
he bets that he can turn grindstone
as long as anybody, and when the
boy has got his reputation at stake,
then they begin to bear on hard, and
the boy gets tired, but he holds out,
and when the tools are ground he
says he is as fresh as a daisy, whe he
is tired enough to die. Such men do
more to teach boys the h0llowness of
the world, and its tricky features,
than anything, and they teach boys
to know who are friends and who are
foes. No, sir, the best way is to hire
a grown person to turn your grind
stone. rememberI turned a grind.
stone four hours for a farmer once,
and when l got through he said
could go to the spring and drink all
the water l wanted for nothing. He
was the tightest man l ever saw.
Why, tight! that man was tight
enough to hold Kerosene"
"That's all right. Who wanted
you to turn grindstone, anyway :?
But what is it about your pa and MI
being turned out of the church L? l
hear that they scandalized themsel-
YES horribly last Sunday"
"Well, YOU see, me and my chum
put up a Job on pa to make him
think Sunday was only Saturday and
ma she fell into it and l guess we
are all going to get fired from the
church for working on Sunday. You
see they didn't go to meetin' last
Sunday because mas new bonnet
hadn't come, and Monday and Tues
day it rained, and the rest of the
week was so muddy no one called
or they could not get anywhere, so
Monday l slid out early and got the
daily paper, and on Tuesday my
chum he got the paper off the steps
and put Mondays paper in its place.
I watched whom thay para reading