St. Landry democrat., 1883-04-21
Our Young Readers.
4 WONDERFUL BICYCLE.

-$ " IA n " 1AA - A9SaUeASA ~
A WONDERFUL BICYCLE.
Bob Burns was boy with wonderful mi, mind
For cog7s. cranks and levers, and every kind
Of machine from a. dollar toy-engine to those
That rush through the depot and shrek
through the nose. &
And, indeed, lit was plain ~.
TO person that's sane ~ ~ si.
That the boy was a genius, and bound to attain
To something uncommon, said Aunt BETSY
And for one don't blame her, for Bob surely
Quite clever with jack knives, and gimlets, and
saws,
And constructed isIch.marvels,s the neighpors
all said.
Enough to turn any ambitious boys head.
So Bob came at last to consider that he t.sseti
Was about as ingenious as mortal could De-
One day there arose tremendous sensation
In his little town, o'er queer combination
OF wheels. rods and bolts, which the school.
Informed all who asked him was called a
Perched high in the seat,
s5i az Just by working his feet,
A man gayly rode up and down through the
And the boys said: "How jolly!'' The girls
said: How sWeet!''
Bob studied that bicycle day after day,
Played hockey from school, and caught
dare say II tif$a3. ast e
You k1lo,u what he caught-something warm,
At last, this deluded f5,c
fsE Young fellow concluded 2''f
This new-fangled notion he knew all about, Y
And could make one himself that would peaI
Fl it all out. = RiE*tt4 II &i5'f' =
Quite stiff in the joints perhaps twas rheu-
matic), -
And SO rusty it wheezed in manner asth-
matte. ,zE5.g {s1ftJ .{Eiisijt!alf. txy ~,
This furnished the wheels. big and little; the
The bolts, bars and serews-with commend rlle ID
He begged and he borrowed, north. south, east
and west.
And then what a elatterl
Sf+ fs Clink, clank, hammer, batter, ~.
Till the neighbors all thought what on earth
is the matter?
But Bob worked away with grin and
He barked his poor shins, and he bruised
81 every knuckle, II
And rubbed
{t5t# S&8 s53ENt His nose, asa7 s&sg 4
3sz1f#f3s5 And studded ~
His toes,
And how many other things, goodness knows,
Till at last, with final hammer and c eli,
"There now" he muttered, "she'u do,
Think
And it was assure you, no common affair.
But was bound, as he said to make most peo-
pie stare.
For it ran, not by treadles, as those you may
But by a huge spring that was wound with q
So that ali you need do, if you wished for a
ride,
Was to OF, Pull on the throttle and OF you would
Then he called, to observe the result Of his
His parents. his brothers, and sisters, and
neighbors,
And wisely expounded how much 1t surpassed
All others created, from first unto last.
The news and the wonder spread fast, and his
fame
Grew wider and wider. The people all came
BY scores and by hundreds to witness him try
And one wealthy gentleman offered to buy il
At whatever price; but he proudly refused,
And mounted the seat to show how 1T was
used
The spring had been wound up as close as
bottle, s4s&fs ~,
Whiz! whir!
What stir!
How excited they were,
| AS he dashed through the crowd like SHAFT
Ran over two dogs, hit a fat man a blow
/
know.
Still faster and faster, II
Like news of disaster, al
| He sped through the town and was soon oui
| of sight, s9s.Exs q "a
| Unable to stop, and in terrible fright.
| The trees skipped behind at a dizzying pace, Z
| The fences on each side seemed running {
| Up hill and down dale,y d
1 With the speed of gale,
He whizzed Ger the road with a flap OF coat
Streaming out from behind, and his fact
| scared and pale. tf
/ The dogs tried to catch him, the womeI
| The men followed. after him with many {
{s8 shout.
Farmer Jones two horses ran madly away,
! Though every one says they get nothing bu
hay.
I Thus, mile after mile, at the same rapid gait
/ He dashed and he splashed, with his hal
standing straight, s.G5-.t
4 And his eyes as big as fists, and the mud fly
H. ing fast, al .4sSS455e3 ~ sBt t4gf 81
And the tears falling thick as the rain, till
With a terrible shock ~ ;a..
He struck a big rock.
Was thrown from his seat, sir, and straight a
i Was shot through the window right into tn
!. school. y
The poor little scholars all started wit
fright,
4 For never before had they seen such a sight
i But the master, with wonderful presence o
mind
i Remarked as he quietly mended a pen:
Master Bob, when you enter the school-roor
i again,
waste n S
Your delicate breath, enter not in sue
4 haste. ii e..
j q The blcycIe7 Obi
1 IT split into hundreds of pieces, you know,
i And each Of the pieces is Whirling away
| In the parks, on the roads, and the meadow
II to-day,
4 AS this or that BICYCLE patent applied for,
Though can't imagine what boys like to rid
--E. j. Wheeler, in st. Nicholas.
| sS55
l z5s
i FOOD.