, 1883-06-16


think we had hired some tramps to
dig the garden. told pa Of boss
scheme to fool them. ! suggested
that we take some Of this shoe-black-
ing 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 II it worked he would black his
self So went and put this burnt
cork on my face, cause II would
wash of, and pa looked at me and
said it was a whack, and for me to
fix him up too. So l got the bottle
Of shoe-blacking and painted pa so he
looked like cOlOred coal-heaver.
Actually, when ma saw him she or
dered him off the premises, and when
he laughed at her and acted sassy,
she was going to throw billing wafer
on pa, but told her the scheme, and
she let up on pa. Oh, you'd a died
to see US out in the garden. Pa
looked like Uncle Tom, and | looked
like TOpsy, only l amt that kind Of
a cOlOred person. We worked till
boy thrOwed some tOmatO-cans over
the alley fence and hit me, and I
piled over the fence after him, and
left pa. 1t was my chum, and when
had caught him we put up job to
get pa to chase us. We thrOwed some
cans, and pa come out and my chum
started and after him, and pa after
both of US. He chased US two blocks
and then we got behind a policeman,
and my chum told the policeman it
was a crazy old cOlOrCd man that
wanted to kidnap US, and the police
man took pa by the neck and was 60
ing to club him, but pa slid he would
go home and behave. He was Offul
mad, and he went home, and we
went home, and we looked through
the alley fence and saw pa trying to
wash off the backing. You see that
backing won't wash off. You have
to wear it off. Pa would wash his
face with sOap-suds, and then look in
the glass, and he was blacker every
time he washed, and when ma LATED
at him he said the offulest words,
something like sweet spirit hear my
prayer then he washed himself
again. lam going to leave my burt
cork on, cause if washed it off pa
would know that there had been
some smoUging somewhere. Iasked
the shoe-stOre man how long it would
take the backing to wear of, and he
said it ought to wear off in a week.
l guess pa won't go out doors much,
undess it is in the night. am going
to get him to- let me go off in the
country fishing till mine wears off,
and when l get out Of town l will
wash up. Say, you don't think lit
tie backing hurts a mans complex
ion, do you, and you don't think
man ought to get mad because it
won't wash off, do you?"
"Oh, probably it don't hurt the
complexion" said the grocery man,
as he sprinkled some fresh water on,
the wilted lettuce, so it would look
fresh while the hired girl was buying
some, "and yet it is mighty unpleas-
ant, where a man has got an engage
ment to 90 to a card-party, as know
your pa has tonight. As to getting
mad about it, if was your pa
would take a barrel-stave and shatter
you a little. What kind Of a fate
do you think awaits you when you
die ?"
"We1, Pm mixed on the fate that
awaits me when l die. II l should
go off sudden, with all my sins on
my head, and this burt cork on my
face, should probably be a neighbOr
to you, way down below, and they
would give me job as fireman, and
l should feel bad for you every time
Ichucked in another chunk of brim-
stone, and thought of you trying to
swim dog-fashion in lake of fire,
and straining your eyes to find an
iceberg that you could crawl up on
to cool your parchcd hind-legs. III.
don't die slow, so I will have time to
repent and be saved, shall be toast
ed brown. That's what the minister
says, and they wouldn'tpay him two
thousand dollars a year and give him
q vacation to tell anything that
wasn't sO."-Eeck's SiR.