Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1883-02-10
THAT BAD BOY AGAIN.
HIS PA KILLS HIM.


ssFor heavens sake dry up that whist
ling" said the grocery man to the bad
boy, as he sat on bag of peanuts whist
ling and filling his pockets. 'Say, what
was your pa running after the doctor III
his shirt sleeves for last Sunday morn
ing? He looked scared. Was your ma
sick again?"
ooh, no, ma is healthy enough, now
she has got new fur-lined cloak. She
played consumption on pa, and coughed
so she liked to raise her lights and liver,
and made pa believe she couldn't live,
and got the doctor to prescribe fur
lined circular, and pa went and got one,
and ma has improved awfully. was the
one that was sick. You see, wanted to
get pa into the church again, and get him
to stop drinking, SO got a boy to write
letter to him, in Il female hand, and sign
the name OF Il choir singer pa was smit
on. and tell him that the church seemed
a blank without his smiling face and be-
L.,
for her sake. Pa got the letter Saturday
night, and he seemed tickled, but guess
he dreamed about it all night, and Sun
day morning he was mad, and lie took me
by the ear and said couldn't come no
Daisy business on him. He said he
knew wrote the letter, and for me to go
up in the store-room and prepare for the
almightiest licking Il boy ever had; and he
went down stairs and broke up an apple
barrel, and got stave to whip Inc with.
Well, had TO think mighty quick, but
WAS enough for him. | got dried blad-
der i'm my room-one that me and my
chum got TO the slotter-house-and blow
ed it partly up, so it would be sort Of flat
like, and put i: down inside the back Of
my pants, right about where pa hits when
he Furnishes me. Well, pa he came up
and found me crying. | can cry just us
easy as you can turn on the water at
faucet and pa took off his coat and look
ed sorry. | was afraid he would give up
whipping me when he see me cry, aud l
wanted to go on with the bladder expert
ment, so looked kind OF hard, as if WAS
defying him to do his worst, and then he
took me by the neck and laid me across
trunk. didn't dare struggle much for
fear the bladder would lose itself, and pa
said, Now, Henuery, am going to break
you of this damfoolishness or will break
your back, and he spit OH his hands and
brought the barrel stave down on my best
pants. Well, you'd dide if you had
heard the explosion. 1t almost Knocked
Inc OFT the trunk. 1t sounded like firing
fire-cracker away down a cellar in bar
rel, and pa looked scared. rolled off the
trunk on the floor, and put some flour on
my face to make me look pale, and then
kind of kicked my legs like fellow who
is dying on the stage after being stabbed
with a piece of lath, and groaned, and
said, Pa, you have killed me, but / for
give you,' and then | rolled around and
frothed at the mouth, cause had a piece
of soap in my mouth to make foam.
Well, pa was all broke up. He said,
Great God, what have j doue? L have
broke his spinal column. o, my poor
boy, do not die. / kept chewing the soap
and foaming at the mouth, and drew my
legs up and kicked them out, and clutched
my hair, and rolled my eyes, then kicked
pa in the stummick rs he bent over me
and knocked his bseath out of him, and
then my limbs began to get rigid, and
said, Too late, pa, die at the hands of All
assassin. Go for a DOCTOR Pa throwed
his coat over me and started down stairs
on run, saying, Il have murdered my
brave boy aud he told ma to go up stairs
aud stay with me, cause had fallen of n
trunk and ruptured blood vessel, and he
went after the doctor. When he went out
the front door sat up and lit cigarette,
and ma came up, and told her all about
how fooled pa, and If she would take on
and cry when pa got back, I'd get him to
20 to church again and swear of drinking,
and she laffed and said she would. So
when pa and the doc came back, ma was
sitting on velocipede 1 used to ride,
which was in the store-room, and she had
her apron over her face, and she just more
than beloved. Pa he was pale, and he
told the doc that he was just playing
with me with little piece Of board, and
he beard something crack, and he guessed
my spine was got broke falling OF the
trdnk. The doctor wanted 10 feel where
my spine Was broke, but opened my eyes
ald had 4 vacant sort Of stare, like a
woman who leads dog by string, and
looked as though my mind was wander
Ing anu tol1I the doctor there was no use
setting my spine, as il was broke IN sever
al places, and / wouldn't let him. told
pa that was going to die, and wanted
him TO promise me two things on my dy-
ing bed. BE cried aid said he would,
aid told him TO promise me he would
quit drinking and attend church regular,
and he said he would never drink another
drop and he would go to church every
Sunday. made him get down on his
knees beside me and swear it, and the doc
witnessed il, and ma said she was 50 glad,
and ma called the doctor out in the hall
and told him the joke, and the doc came
in the room and told pa be was afraid pas
presence would exci:e the patient, and