The Lincoln County leader. [volume] (White Oaks, Lincoln County, N.M.) 1882-189?, 1883-05-26
Lincoln County Leader.
Saturday, May rs, 1883.
THE BAD BOY.
yrom PICKS Sun.

"There, you drop that said the
grocery man to the bad boy, rs he
came hmping into the store and be
gan to tumble around a box of
strawberries. 81 have never kick
ed at your eating my Goldfish, and
crackers and cheese, and herring,
and apples, but there has got to be
a dividing ineEsomewhere, and /
make it at strawberries at six shil-
lngs a box, and only two layers in
box, hoping some plumber, or
gas man would come along and
buy it, and by gum, everybody
that has been in the store that
sampled strawberry out of that
box, shivered as though it was sous
and gone off without asking the
price," and the grocery man look
ed mad, took a Ratchet and knock
edin the head OF a barral of apples
and said, There help yourself to
dry apples" What was it l heard
about a band serenading your
father, and his inviting them in to
lunch.
Don't let that get out, or pa
will kill me dead. 1t was a joke.
One of these Bohemian bands that
goes about town playing tunes, for
pennies, was over on the next
street, and l told pa | guessed
some ofhis friends who had heard
we had a baby at the house, had
hired a band and was coming in a
few minutes to serenade him, and
he better prepare to make aspeech.
Pa is proud ofbeing a father at his
age, and he thought it was no more
than right for the neighbors to
serenade him, and he went to load
ing himself for a speech, in the
library, and me and my chum went
out and told the leader of the band
there was a family up there that
wanted to have some music, and
they didn't care for the expense, so
they quit blowing where they was
and came right along. None of
them could understand English ex-
cept the leader, and he understood
only enough to go and take a drink
when he is invited. My chum
steered the band up to our house
and got them to play "Babies on
our Block" and baby Mine"
and | stopped all the men who was
going home and told them to wait
a minute and they would see some
fun, so when band the got through
the second tune, and the Prussians
were emptying the beer out Of the
horns, and pa stepped out on the
porch, there more nor a hundred
people in front of the house.
You'd dide to see pa when he put
his hand in the breast of his coat,
and struck an attitude. Helooked
like a congressman, or a tramp.
The band vas scared, cause they
thought he was mad, and some
of them we're going to run, think
ing he "a going to throw pieces
of brick at them, but my chum and
the leader kept them. Then pa
sailed in. He commenced "Fel-
low Citizens, and then went back
to Adam and Eve, and worked up
to the present day, giving a history
ofthe notable people who had ac-
quired children, and kept the crowd
Interested. | felt sorry for pa,
cause | knew how he would feel
when he came to find out he had
been sold. The Bohemians in the
band that couldn't understand Eng
lish they looked at each other, and
wondered what it was about, and
finally pa wound up by stating that
it was every citizens duty to own
children of his own, and then he in.
vited the band and the crowd in to
take some refreshments. Well,
you ought to have seen that band
come in the house. They fell over
each other getting in, and the
crowd went home, leaving pa and
my chum and me and the band.
Eatl Well. l should smile.
They Just reached for things, and
talked Bohemian. Drink l CUES:
they dind't pour it down. Pa
opened a dozen bottles of cham
payne, and they fairly bathed in il
as though they had a fire inside.
Pa tried to talk them about the baby
but they couldn't understand, anc
finally they got full and started out,
and the leader asked pa for three
dollors, and that broke him up. Ps
told the leader he supposed the
gentlemen who had got up the ser
enade had paid tor the music, anC
the leader pointed to me and said
wasthe gentleman that got it up
Pa paid him, but he had a wicked
look in his eye, and me and my