Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-31
The Tale OF the Surprising Family,
Elizabeth Cummings Story in st. Nicholas TO
February.

The Tale or the SMpp0Stng FHmtty,
Elizabeth Cummings Story in st. Nicholas foc
February
Once upon time, in the land of Some
where, in great castle, there lived fam
lily by the name of Surprising. There was
Sir Timothy Surprising and his wife, Lady
Surprising, and their. only son, Tobias
Eliakim Surprising.
Tobias Eliakim was a fine looking boy,
with blue eyes and waving brown hair, like
his mamma He had two tutors, an old
one named Socrates QuIdquodibus, who
taught him Latin, Greek, mathematics,
and every sort of ology, and young
one, named Apollo Bangs, who taught him
music and painting. But Tobias Eliakim
was always saying to himself while he
studied: ''What if oh!,what if get to be
just like Professor Quidquodibus, and, in
stead of having to put spectacles over my
poor tired eyes, as he does, what if / be-
come stone blind from studying so many
books?" The only way the good professor
could make him study enough to learn
anything was by asking him the still more
terrible question: what if you grow up
a Ounce, Tobias Eliakim? and you GER
tainly will if you do not study"
Professor Bangs, III giving him some
finger exercises, unluckily told him that
the composer Schumann broke one of his
third fingers in his effort to make it do his
will. Tobias Eliakim was off the stool in
minute. "Tn never touch the piano
againw he cried. II should not be eur
prised if my fingers were injured now.
They frequently feel as if they were COM
ing off, And no amount of coaxing or
scolding could make him change his mind.
One day while he was painting, the pro
fessor began giving him lecture on the
pigments. Everything in the world, my
dear boy, has some benefcent qualities.
Arsenic, now, which is such virulent poi
son that it causes the most intense suffer
ing, if taken into the stomach, furnishes
US this brilliant green with which shall
touch up those beech trees in the fore
ground of your picture" and as he spoke
he squeezed some of the color on his pallet
and set to work. But this ended Tobias
Elaikim's painting. Il will not handle
poisons," he said; ''what if should acct
IDENTIFY swallow tube of that paint?''
And thereafter he would study nothing but
drawing.
Besides his tutors he had dancing
master, and a fencing master, who had
also to teach him to shoot at a mark, to
ride and to slide down-hill.
He did very well With the dancing, but
when he attempted to fence, he was so
afraid that the buttons would come off
from the tips of the foils that the lessons
had to be continued as hest they could be
with wooden swords. The first time he
fired gun, the recoil of the weapon nearly
knocked him down. "What if that gun
had shot off backward-who knows that it
will always shoot off frontward-and if 1
lose my head, how can L get another?' he
said. ''No, Master Middlebury, I shall not
use that gun again" Sir Timothy regret
ted his sons Acknowledgement he
said, gentleman's education is not COM
plete without knowledge of fre-arms;'
but Lady Surprising, who had opposed
these lessons from the first, was delighted.
Sir Timothy was DESTROYS that Tobias
Eliakim should be an expert horseman. eff
there should be a waf. when he grows up,"
he said, ''the king would undoubtedly want
him to command an army, and there would
be times when he would have to ride; but
as there is no telling what horse may do,
in giving my son lessons, want you al
ways to ride the horse with him, and hold
the reins, so as to be near in case of acct
dent"
Tobias Eliakim at first rode in front of
Master Middlebury, but one day Jeremiah
Stumbled. 'What if this horse should take
a notion to kick his hind legs straight up?'
said Tobias. Il should, no doubt, pitch
over his head and break my neck" After
that he rode behind, till one day when they
were going up small hill, he noticed that |
under some circumstances he could slide |
of over the horses tail only too easily, and |
then he would not ride at all.
Once the teachers complained to Lady |
They said they felt their eff
forts were almost thrown away, their pu-
Pill progressed so slowly. Lady Suppos
.ng was very much distressed, and sent for
the family doctor.
Assoon as he received the message, the
1octor packed his ssddle-5ags full of his