The Lincoln County leader. [volume] (White Oaks, Lincoln County, N.M.) 1882-189?, 1883-09-15
THE BAD BOY.
Trsui PICK svN.

1-Aa 49,
rs he stopped at the door Of The
grocery, dressed in a blue wamus,
his breeches tucked into his boots,
and an old hat on his head, with a
hole that lot out his hair through
the top. He had got out of the
democrat wagon, and was holding
the lines hitched to a horse abont
forty years old, that leaned against
the hitching post to rest. "Only
shilling apiece"
10, 20 way" said the grocery
man. II only pay three cents
apiece And then he looked at
the boy and said, Hello Hennery,
10 that you'll l have missed you all
the week, and now you come on to
rre sudden, disguised as sgranger.
What does this all mean 2"
at means that l have been the
victim of as vile a conspiracy as
ever was known since Caesar was
stabbed and Mark Antony Grated
over his PROSTATE corpse in the Ro-
man forum, to an audience of supes
and scene shifters," and the boy
dropped the lines on the sidewalk,
said, whoa, gol darn you," to
the horse that was asleep, wiped
his boots on the grass in front of
the store and came in, and seated
himself Oh the old half bushel.
There, this seems like home
again"
"What'sthe rowl Who has been
playing it on youq" said the gro
Gerry man smelling a sharp trade in
cabbages, as well as other smells
peculiar to the farm.
Nv ell, I'll tell you. Lately u
folks have been talking of the indie
pendant life of a farmer, and how
sasy it is, and how they would like
it if | would learn to be a farmer.
They said there was nothing like it
and several ofthe neighbors joined
in and said l had the natural abil-
ity to be one of the most successful
farmers in the state. They all
drew pictures of the fun it was to
work on q farm, where you could
get your work done and take your
fsh-pole and 60 off and catch fish,
or q gun and 60 out and kill game,
and how you could ride horses, and
pitch hay, and smell sweet perfume
and go to husking bees and dances,
and everything, and got me all
worked up so | wanted to go to
work on a farm. Then an old dea-
con that belongs to the same church
who runs a farm about eight miles
out of town, he came on the scene
and said he wanted a boy, and if |
would 90 out and work Tor him he
would be easy on me because he
know my folks, and we belonged
to the same church. l can sec it
now. 1t was all a put up job on
me, just like they play three card
monte on a fresh stranger. | wss
took in. BY gosh, l have beenout
there a week, and here's what there
is left Of me. The only way l got
. chance to come to town, was to
tell the farmer l could sell cab
bages to you foI a shilling apiece.
l knew you sold them for fifteen
cents and | thought you would give
n shilling. So the farmer said he
would pay me my wages in cab
bsgeS at a shilling apiece and only
charge mo a dollar tor the horse
and wagon TO bring them in. So
you only pay three cents. Here
are Thirty cabbages, which will
como to ninety cents. pay a dol
lar for the horse, and when | get
back to the farm I owe the farmer
Ten cents, besides working a week
TO" nothing. o, it is all right. |
don't kick, but this ends farming
for Hennery. l know when / have
got enough OF an easy life on a
farm. | prefer a hard life, break
ing stones on the streets, to an easy
dreamy lite on q farm"
They did play it on you, didn't
they 2" said the grocery man.
''But wasn't the old deacon a good
man to work for |"
"Good man, nothin," said the
boy, as he took up a piece of horse
and began to crate it on the
inside of his rough hand. 81 tell
You there's a heap of difference in
a deacon in Sunday school, telling
about sowing wheat and tares, and
\ deacon on a farm in a h~urrying
season, when there is hard to get in
and wheat to harvestall at the same
time. | went out to the farm Sun
day evening with the deacon and
his wife, and they couldn't talk too
much about the nice time we would
have. and the finn but the deacon