The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1883-01-31
GRANDPAPA,s TOWER.
As TOLD BIZ DICK.


II YOU want me to tell you, will but
I amt used to telling things if they're
long, and likely as not IN get it all
mixed up, and the wrong end first.
Charley could tell it beautiful, sup
pose. He's the smart one of our family,
and can do just about everything he sets
out to. All the same, it's always him
that's getting Us into scrapes. Smart
folks are that way. They get people
into things people would never think of
themselves, and then somehow they turn
up all right, and it's US that catches it.
The whole business was his doing; none
of the rest of Us would ever have thought
of such q thing.
sesntly began to talk about Tower. He
said he wasn't going to have Tower left
at home whining about and breaking his
heart all alone for any stupid dinner at
Grandpa's not he-the dog shoulS go.
The idea was so perfectly absurd that
when Betty sald, f'Nonsense; hold your
tongue i,,s none of US thought q word
about il.
Grandpa is very rich man-''most
dreadfully horribly rich," Jack puts it.
He lives in the city, and has an i'm
mense house, nearly as big as our barn;
the furniture Is something wonderful,
and there are horses and carriages and
everything. ---
Just what relation we are to Grandpa
il would be awful hard to make out.
Poor mamma, who died when we were
little tots, was only his adopted daugh-
ter, and somehow we don't think he
cared for her much; but Betty says she
ssknows what's what" and as long as
he'll have us young ones there once in
Ia
stGrandpa," we've got to go. Betty
talks about our 'schances;" but when
we wanted to take chance in q grab
bag at a fair she said it was wicked.
It was Just a week ago that we were
packed in the wagon ready to start
Charley says our wagon came out of
the Ark; but it isn't true. A great
many things may be very old, but when
YOU come to talk about the Ark, it's
.nonsense.---It looks-ikely, too, that
Noah would have taken such q wagon
As that aboard when he was rich enough
to have all those animalsi 1 like reason
in things, and there's no reason in that.
Our machine looks so funny in Grand
pas big coach housei I can always
hear James giggle when we drive up.
But this time i think we looked little
better than usual, for Charley had on
twins, have got so used to being mixed
up that we don't pretend to have any
thing separate. People never know us
apart, and when he's naughty Betty
generally whips me. l suppose l wore
i his clothes, but we both looked nice.
Bob's so little he don't count, but the
new collar Betty did up for him nearly
cut his ears of.
..ili Charley always drives. He's twelve,
and, after all, Dobbin couldn't run away
any more'n COW. Besides, it's only
ten miles to Grandpa's- We're just
outside the city, where rents are cheap
We hadn't gone two miles that day
q before Charley gave whistle, and
there was Tower right alongside the
wagon.
ssYou darsn'ti" said I.
"Darsn't I?n said Charley. "HeI
stay in the house, and I'll run ou
now and then and speak to him. W.
amt had him q month, aud / couldn'
leave him behind"
NY hair Just stood on end l dom
believe there's anything Charley darsn'
do. It's Just as said before. He know
three times as much as the rest of US, ant
he inst imposes on It to do as he likes. Blu
then the idea of taking Tower to Grand
pa'si knew trouble would come o
Il. and knew, too, that if it did, Char
lev d get out all right; and
there were any consequences, we'd b
the ones to take 'em. You just ough
to have seen the trouble we had to ge
out of that coach-house without Towze
following Us. Charley got US all Out
and then he shut the door qnick, an
ran. Tower howled frightfully, an
we heard him all the way into th
house.
Dinner at Grandpa's is. always YER
solemn affair. There's lots and lots {
everything, one kind after another; bu
the trouble is that If we take some {
each, and Betty says it's good manners
we haven't any room left for the ice
cream and cake, and all those sorts {
things which we like best. Anotht
trouble is Grandpa He sits up 50 sti
and stately, and his eye is Just awful
not that he scolds. but he looks so 81
we're, as il he was just going to. Bo
sits in his high chair and scarcely dar'
swallow mouthful, and the next da
at home he cries about the good thing
because he hasn't got 'em.
Now the most wonderful thing abol
Grandpa's table is the dishes. They a
lust perfectly beautiful-glasses tn
YOU'RE afraid your breath will bio
away, and plates and cups of all kin'
inst filled with painted flowers and 8
manner of shapes. David, who wal
on the table, says they have nam
like sssevers'' and ''clothes on you" eI
s.jolliky."
Well, we were just getting to the IL
cream. Grandpa had been very kin
and Bob was so little scared that
plate was half empty, when sudden
we heard 8 great scratching; then
fioundering, skurrying noise Chart
turned deathly pale.
/ couldn't think what was going
happen, and everybody else looked pc
fectfv astonished. ALI of sudden I
door few open with bang. aud wi
one tremendous spring in jun ped To
ger. Mrs. Davis, who keeps house I
Grandpa, and sits at the head OF {
table. screamed the most awful screa
ever heard.
At first Tower didn't see Charlie
Then he caught sight of him. An awi
iunp under Grandpa's elbow threw t
wine all over his shirt bosom. Then the
was wriggle, and Towers big {
knocked pieces and pieces of .'clott
on your and ''jolliky" into one mass
bits the ice-cream pyramid went dow
and oranges and grapes dew rou
like big hail-stones.
twas the most awful moment e'
knew.
Charley gave one look. l thought