The Republican journal., 1883-05-03
That Awfully Bad Boy.
HIS MA DECFIVES HIM,


Give me ten cents worth of saffron quick"
said the bad boy to the grocery man as he came
in the grocery on gallop, early one morning.
with no collar on and no vest. He looked as
though he had been routed out of bed in "a hurry
and had jumped into pants and boots, and put
on his coat and hat on the run.
81 don't keep saffron" said the grocery man
as he picked up barrel of AK handles the boy
had tipped over in his hurry. "You want to 90
over to the drug store on the corner, if you
want saffron. But what on earth is the mat
At this point the boy shot out of the door,
tipping over u basket of white beans. and dis
appeared in the drug store. The grocery man
got down on his knees on the sidewalk and
scooped up the beans, occasionally looking over
to the drug store, and just as he got them pick
ed up the boy came out of the drug store and
walked deliberately towards his home as though
there was no particular hurry. The grocery
man looked after him, took up an ax-hande
spit on his bands and shouted to the boy to
come over pretty soon, as he wanted to talk
with him The boy did not come TO the grocery
till towards night, but the grocery man had
seen him running down town dozen times
during the day, and once he rode up to the
house with the doctor, and the grocer surmised
what was the trouble. Along towards night
the boy came in in a detected sort of a tired
way, sat down on a barrel Of sugar and never
spoke.
"What was it, a boy Or girl" said the grocery
man, winking at an old lady with a shawl over
her head, who was trying to hold paper over
pitcher of yeast with her thumb
How in blazes did you know anything about
it" said the boy as he looked around in aston
ishment and with some Indignation.
"Well, it's girl, if you must know, and that's
enough and he looked down at the cat PLAYING
on the floor with a potato, his face picture of
detection.
20, don't feel bad about it." said the grocery
man. as he opened the door for the old lady.
q 70
take my word for it, that young one is going to
have hard life, unless you mend your ways.
lou Will be using it for cork to jug or to
Wad gun with the first thing your ma knows.
81 wouldn't touch the darn thing with the
tongs," said the boy, as he rallied enough TO eat
some crackers and cheese. Gosh. this cheese
tastes good. | haint had nothing to eat Since
morning. | have been all over this town troll
ling for nurses. They think boy hasn't got
any feelings. But J wouldn't care gol darn
If ma hadn't been sending me for neuralgia
medicine, and hay fever snuff all winter. when
she wanted to get rid of me. | have come in
the room lots of times when ma and the sewing
girl were at work on some flannel things, and
ma would hide them in a basket and send me
Oft after medicine. | was deceived up to about
4 O'Clock this morning, when pa come to my
room and pulled me out of bed to 90 over on
the West Side after some old women that knew
ma, and they have Kept me "hoopimg ever
since. W hat does boy want of sister that !
have got to hold, and rock, and hold bottle
for. This affair breaks me all up,' and the boy
picked the cheese out of his teeth with a silver
he cut Oft the counter
"WeI, how does your pa take it," said the
grocery man, as he charged the boys pa with
cheese, and saffron, and a number Of such
things.
80, pa will pull through. He wanted to
boss the whole concern until mas chum AN old
woman that takes snuff, fired him out into the
hall. Pa sat there on my hand sled Il perfect
picture of despair, and | thought it would be
kindness to play it on him. found the cat
asleep in the bath room, and rolled the cat
up III shawl and brought it out to pa and told
him the nurse wanted him to hold the baby.
1t seemed to do pa good TO feel that he was
indispensable around the house. and he took
the eat on his lap as tcnderv as YOU ever
saw mother hold an infant. Well, got in
the back hall. where he couldn't see me, and
pretty soon the cat began to wake I'D and
stretch himself, and pa said ''S-h-h-tootsy, 90
to sleep now, and let its pa hold it," and pa he
rocked back and forth on the hand Sled and
began to sing ''by, low. baby" That set
tied it with the cat Well, some cats can't
stand music, anyway, and the more the cat
wanted to get out of the shawl, the louder pa
sung, and bimeby heard something rip. and
pa yelled, ''scat you BRUTE" and when | looked
around the corner of the hall the cat was brac-
ing hlssef against pas vest with his toe nails,
and yoWing, and pa fell over the sled and began
70 lalk ABOUT tht hereafter like the minister
does when he gets excited in church and then
pa picked up the sled and seemed to be looking
for me or the cat. but both of us was Otfl
scarce Don't you think there are times when
boys and cats are kind of few around their ac-
customed haunts: Pa don't look Us though he
was very smart, but he can hold cat about as
well as the next man. But am sorry for ma
She was Just getting ready to 90 to Florida for
her neuralgia, and this will put Il stop to it
cause she has 10 stay and take care of that
young one. Pa says | will have Il nice time
this summer pushing the baby wagon. BY the
great horn spoons, there has got TO be Il dlyid
ing line somewhere, between business and
pleasure, and strike the line at wheeling Il
baby. had rather catch string of perch than
to wheel all the babies ever was. They needn't
procure any baby on my account if it is to
amusc me. | don't see why babies can't be
sawed off onto people that need them in their
business. Our folks don't need baby any
more than you need a safe, and there are peO-
pie Just suffering for babies. Say. how would
it be to take the baby some night and leave it
on some old bachelors door step. If it had
been q bicycle, or a breech loading shot gun,
wouldn't have cared, but Il baby! Bah. It
makes me tired. Ed druther have prize pack
age, Well, I'm sorry pa allowed me to come
home, after he drove me away last week.
guess all he wanted me to come back for was
to humiliate me, and send me on errands. Well,
| must 60 and see if he and the cat have made
up
And the boy went out and put up a paper
sign in front Of the store, ''Leace yoay neaSure
tfilD tan 1pnrEtS