The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1883-01-18
Cats and ThfhVs.

,
EVERY time pa says anything" remark.
ed the bad boy, addressing the grocery
man, '1t gives me new idea, tell you
pa has got q great brain, but sometimes he
don't have 1t with him. When he said,
the other day, was terror 10 cats, I
thought what fun there is in cats, and me
aud my chum went to stealing cats right
oil, and before night we had / cats Gagged
We had one In a canary bird cage, three
in pas old hat boxes, three In mas band
boxes, four IN vallses, two in trunk, and
the rest In a clio ct up stairs. That night
pa said he wanted MO to stay at home, be-
cause the committee that Is going to get up
an oyster supper III the church was going
to meet at our house, and they might want
to send me on errands. Iasked him II my
chum couldn't stay too, cause he 10 tho
healthlest infant to run after errands that
ever was, and pa said he could stay, but
we must remember that there mustn't be
no monkey business gong on. told hun
there shouldn't be no monkey business, hut
dldn't promise nothing about CATS Well,
SIR, you'd died. The committee was In
the library, by tho back stairs, and me
and my chum gos the cat boxes all together
at the top of the stairs. and we took them
all out and put them III a clothes basket,
and Just as the minister was speaking, and
telling what a great good was done by
these oyster sociablcs in bringing the young
people together, aud taking their minds
from tho wlckedness of tho world. and
turning their thoughts into different chan
ncls. one Of the old tom cats in the basket
gave 'purmeaow, that sounded like the
wall OF lost soul, or challenge to battle.
J. told my chum that we couldn't hold the
bread board over the clothes basket much
longer. when two or three cats began to
yoWl: and 1.-The minister stopped talking
and pa told ma to open the stair door and
tell tue hired girl to see what was the mat
ter up there. She thought our cat had
got smut up IN the store-room door and she
opened tho stair door to yell to the girl,
and then pushed the clothes basket cats
and oil down tho back stairs. We'll sir. /
s'pose no committee for an oyster supper
was ever more astonlshed. l heard ma fall
over willow rocking chair and say scat, )
and heard pa say well, Pm damd.' and
the girl that sings IN the choir say, 'Heav
ems, I'm stabbed, then my chum and me
run to the front Of the house and come
down the front stairs, looking as innocent
as could be, and we went to tho library,
and was just going to tell pa If there was
any errands he wanted me to run, me and
my chum was just aching to run them.
When yellow cat without any tail was
walking over the minister, and pa was
throwing hassock at two cats that were
clawlng each other under tho piano. and,
ma was trying to get her frizzes back On
her head, and the ChJlr girl was standing
on the lounge with her dress pulled ND
trying to scare oats with her striped stock
NIT M Wi
to tell The honest trutb pa knew had
something to do with the muss. and basted
me and y0nked me around until hau to
have my arm III a sling; but what's ihe
use of making such fuss about few cats
Ma SAID she never wanted to have auy
company again, cause spoiled cveryth
But got ercu with pa for bastlug me.
this morning, and dassent go home. You
sec ma has got q big bath sponge, as big
as chair cushion, and this morning took
the sponge and flied it with warm water,
atd took the feather cushion out of the
chair pa sits IN at the table, and put the
sponge in its place, and covered 1t over
with the cushion cover, and when we al,
got set down TO the table pa como III and
sat down on it 10 ask blessing. lie
started In by closing his eyes and placing
his hands up in front Of him like the letter
V, and then he began to ask that the food
we were about to partakc Of be blessed, and
then he was going on to ask that all of us
be made to sec the error of our WAYS
when he began to hitch around, and he
opened one eye and looked at me, and
looked as plous as boy can look when
he knows the pancakes are getting cold.
and pa lie kind of sighed and said 'Amen'
SOFT of snapplsh, and got up and told ma
he didn't feel well, and she would have 10
take his place and pass arouud the sassige
aud potatoes, and he looked kind of soart
scaIt and went out with his hand on his
pistol pocket, as though he would like to
hold more than a half a pail fall of water,
and didn't want to play no joke on ma,
cause the cats nearly broke her up, but
she sat down, aud was just going to h ,lp
me, when she rang the bell aud called the
hired ylrl, and Said she felt rs though her
neuralgia was coming on, and she would
go to her room, and told the girl to SIT
down and help Hcnnery. The girl sat
down aud pourcd me out some coffee, and
then she said: 'Howly st. Patrick, but I
blavc these pancakes are burning and she
went out in tho kitchen. | drank my c0f.
fee, and then took the big sponge out OF
the char and put the sponge in tho bath
room. and asked them II should 20 after
the doctor, and pa had changed his clothes
and got on Ills Sunday pants, and no said:
never mind the d"ctor, l guess we will
pull through, ard for me to 20 out and go
to the devil; and | came over here. Say,
there is no harm III little warm water, IS
thcr22 Well, Ia like to know what pa
and ma and :hc hired girl thought. l am
the only real healthy one there Is III our
family"
IhA 0atriIIi II icI