The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1883-01-27
st etching Things.

"rm almost dead It is as hot as
fire, and I've been more than a dozen
miles after that colt -
Andrew threw himself at full length
on the hung. and wiued the perspra-
ton from his forehead
Where did you goP" asked his
father.
al went over to Briggs corner and
back by the br dye
THAT is less than a m lie and a half
1t is so very warm, AndyP 1t seems
quite cool here.
No. not so drea lful, don't sup
pose, if I'd taken 1t mo ierate, but ! ran
Ike lightning and got heated up"
You started about five O clock, my
son, and now it lacks a quarter of SIX
said his father, consulting his watch.
- Yes, sir, just three-quarters of an
hour" answered Andrew, innocently.
docs it take lightning forty-live
minutes to 90 mile and halfP'
81 didn't mean exactly that, father,
but | ran all the way, because J expect
ed the whole town would be here to-
night to see my new veloc pede," eX-
planned Andrew. reluctantly.
Whom did you expect, Andy? l
WASH aware ch a crowd was to be
here? What will YOU do with them all"
",Jim, Eddy and Tim told me they d
be round after school, and | wouldn't
wonder if Ike came, too; that 5 all. ="
1.-The population of the town is FIVE
thousand, and you expect three of them;
well, as you are very sick, Pm glad no
more are coming You couldn't play
with them at all"
"Siclr' cried Andrew, springing to
his feet; "who says I'm sick?'
"Why, Andrew, you said you were
almost dead; doesn't that mean very
/ sick?"
"You are so particular, father, about
my talkingl l don't exactly mean what
/ say, of course. / WASH t nearly dead,
/ to be sure, but did some tall running,
| YOU bet There was more than fifty
dogs after me, and don't 60 much on
dogs"
"Quite band of them. Where did
! they all come from?'
There was Mr. Wheeler sheep dog,
and Rush's store dog, and two or three
more, and they made for me. and so |
ran as fast as / could"
Five at the most are not fifty, Andy"
There looked to be fifty, any way"
replied Andrew, somewhat impatiently,
Carriers ten-acre lot was full of dogs
Just making for me, and | guess you d
thought there were fifty ii it had been
YOU
Ten acres OF dogs would be great
many thousand; have you any idea how
manv?'
Andrew did not like to calculate, for
it occurred to him what small space
ten or fifteen thousand sheep would oc-
cupy when camping and ten acres oil
dogs would be past calculation.
But his father continued, al
know no better way to break you of the
foolish habit OF eXaggeration than tC
tell the children the trouble you had in
going after the colt, You ran like
lightning, encountered ten acres of dogs
which would be hundreds of thousands
travelled more than a dozen miles to ge
one and half miles in a straight line
expected to find five thousand people
here to examine your new velocipede
and when you reached home was near
Nv dead.
"Please don't, father, the boys anC
girls will all laugh themselves to death
and won eXaggerate again if | liv
TO be as old as Methusalahp'
Laugh themselves to death at
simple story like thsP l hope not. Blu
that it will rather set them to watching
their own manner of telling stories, &
to be sure they do greatly overstat
things. Habit, my son, grows witt
years, and becomes, in time, so deepl,
rooted that it will be impossible for YOU
when you become a man, to relate plain
! unyarnished facts, unless you check tn
foolish habit you indulge in every da,
of stretching simple incidents into tn
most marvellous tales - ChriStia
Neighbour.