The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1883-04-19

4 20 / kept thinking about it all the
| afternoon while we were building the
fort, | wondered how the minister
would look when he opened the pack
age in his study, and saw the block of
wood and the card with april Fool -
| written on it.
] wondered if he would show it to
! Miss Maria, and what awful things she
| would say about me. ] wondered if he
| would tell father, and what father would
think was bad enough thing to do to
a fellow who made an April Fool of the
minister.
Father was over at Millbury that
/ afternoon, and / was glad of it.
hoped his sick people would keep him
away till it was dark; till it was too
late for the minister to come and tell
him about me. / wished / was some
body else. 1 wished even l was Nate,
whose mother didn't believe in lun-
/ cheOns. l would have changed places
/ with Bob Talbot, whose father wouldn't
let him skate, or 90 in swimming The
more l thought about It, the worse it
seemed.
About four o'clock father came home
/ from Millbury, and just as he was dTiv-
ing into the yard / saw the minister
! cross the street and speak to him.
/ Then, Of course, | knew it was all
/ over with me, and | went up to the
/ fence, though | felt much more like
running behind the barn; but some
thing seemed to make me 90 right up
to the minister.
They were not talking about me,
though, after all; they were talking
about some books that the minister was
going to lend to a sick man over in Mill
bury.
But l suppose the sight of me re-
minded the minister, for he laughed
just as he was going away, and said he:
20, Theodore, l was sorry l was out
this morning when you called on me
and left your card. -
Well, of course, after that knew I'd
got to own up, for father isn't the kind
to let anything pass without knowing
all about it.
Ted said father. ''what did he
mean?''
He has way Of firing questions off
like that, short and sharp, like the
crack of "A whip. SO then / had to tell
him the whole story; for | don't lie,
whatever else l do. l told him all
about it-about Cousin Babbett and
everything.
He put up his hand and pulled his
WhlskerS minute.
Go tell your mother, said he.
Mother was setting out the dinner
she'd been keeping hot for father. The
chicken was in the oven, and the flo
pudding was in a saucer on top of the
tca-kettle, covered over with another
saucer.
| stood and watched mother till the
dinner was on the table, for l wanted
to see her alone, and not in the room
with Cousin Babbett
But l told her all about it. She was
making biscuit to rise fOrtea, and she
Just put down her cutter and looked so
sorry and sort of disappointed. She
said she was surprised.
That's the worst thing about mother.
She doesn't scold, but She is so quiet,
and she looks such a way, that a fell
low q heap rather she'd box his ears.
Then she said it was bad to be disre-
spectacle to any grOwn-up person, but
worst of all to a minister; and [ must
90 to Miss Parker's early the very next
morning, and tell him that / was sorry. |
| knew | should have to do it as soon
as she said so, of course; but didn't [
hate to! And the more l thought about F.
it, the more | hated the idea; and at
last / hated the minister and Cousin |.
Babbett and Nate and myself and April /
FOOLS Day all in bunch.
But next morning, right away after /
breakfast, off | had to 90. Nate Wins |
low was sitting on a post by his front |
gate and saw me coming, and sang:
april FOOLS Days gone and past
And you're the greatest fool at last!'
Nate is fellow that doesn't mean any
harm, and there's nothing he isn't will .
ing to do for you, but he seems to have |
a knack of saying just the wrong thing .
to everybody.
Now, if he had thought a whole year.
he couldn't have thought of anything |
more hateful to say than that. 1t |
seemed as if he said it on purpose, butt
knew he didn't. So when he asked T.
whore l was going and said he would 90
to, | didn't care, only l told him he
could not 90 in with me.
g don't want to go in said Nate,
q wouldn't dass. Tell you what. Ted.
it's a pretty bad thing to make game of
a minister! Don't YOU remember those
fellows in Sunday-school lesson last
week that called the prophet names, and
about the bears, you know, that came
and ate them up? Oh, 1 wouldn't be
you for a heap!"
Wen, at last we got to Miss Parker's,
though we stopped and played with all
the dogs, and did everything to make
the way seem longer.
Nate hid behind the syringa-bush.
The door was open and Miss Maria was
sweeping the front entry with a green
veil tied over her head. At first she did
not know | was there, and she sent a
whole cloud of dust flying out the door.
and l sneezed and then she looked at
me.
She stopped sweeping and said:
s. Don't come in; your boots are snowy
and muddy. What do you want?"
- want to see the minister" said I. /
50 and | must go in because it's private
business
Private businessr' said Miss Maria.
50 You! Wipe your feet on thatl'
She threw mat made of corn-husl<s
put on the step, and when had rubbed
my boots on that, | had to rub them on
a braided rug inside the door, and last
If all on a drawn rug with green roses
)n it, Just outside of the minister's d,
study
She took me by the collar with one !
land and opened the door with the
other. and marched me in to the min
ster exactly as if she'd caught me steal
nc.
Heres the doctors boy wants to
zee you, said she, Ion private bust :
lcSS.'
And she laughed and shifted and
BANGED the door. And l spoke right ,,
Up without thinking and said:
" My mother says l must apologize ,
or sending YOU that bundle, but for my ;
part l don see why l should apologize :
o minister more than to ANYBODY :
Use. | don't see as they're any better ,
han other good people"
1 did really. l said just those very /
words to the minister And he didn't I