Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1884-03-21
TOMMY'S WHIPPING.

ONeT NC was gOiIiU 10 SCHOOL IOT Jn6 llTSt
time in his life. Out here little people
are not allowed to attend school when
they are five or six, for the law says:
''Children under seven must not 60 to
school"
But now Tommy was seven and had
been to school two weeks, and such de-
lightful weeks! Every day mamma lis
tened to long accounts of how-.me and
Dick Ray played marbles" and ''us fell
lers cracked the whip" There was an
other thing that he used to tell mamma
about, something that in those first days
he always spoke of in the most subdued
tones, and that am sorry to record it
of any school-was the numerous whip
pings that were administered to various
little boys and girls. There was some
thing painfully fascinating about those
whippines to restless, mischievous little
Tommy who had never learned the art
of sitting still. He knew his turn might
come at any moment and one night he
cried out in his sleep: ''Oh, dear. what
will become of me if get whipped :"
But as the days passed on and this pos
slble retribution overlook him not, his
fears gradually forsook him, and instead
! of speaking pitifully of ''those poor chill
dren who were whipped" he mentioned
them in casual, offhand manner as
''those cry-babies, you know?" One
afternoon mamma saw him sitting on
the porch, slapping his little fat hand
with a strap. Tommy, child. what in
the world are you doingp" she asked
Into his pocket he thrust the strap.
and the pink cheeks grew pinker still as
] thpir nyrpor onSwayad.
"I-I-was just seeing-how hard |
could hit my hand-without crying;'
and he disappeared around the side OF
the house before mamma could ask any
more questions.
The next day Tommy's seatmate,
Dicky Ray, was naughty in school, and
Miss Linnet called him up, opened her
desk, took out little riding whip-it
was bright blue one-and then and
there administered punishment And
because he cried, when recess came.
Tommy said: isn't Dick Ray just a
regular cry-baby?" Gle had learned
that word from some of the big boys,
but, mind you! he never dared to say
it before his mother.)
Dicks face flushed with anger.
''Never you mind, Tommy Brown, a"
said he, ''just wait till you get whipped
and Wen see truly girl cry-baby then,
won't we, Daisyp'
And blue-eyed Daisy, who was the
idol of their hearts, nodded her curly
little head in the most emphatic man.
ner, and said she "wouldn't be one bit
s'prised if he'd boiler so loud that they
would hear him way down in Colo
RADIO"
Tommy stood aghast! for really and
truly, he wasn't quite so stony-heartcd
little mortal as he appears to be; he
had been secretly rather sorry for Dick,
but-he wanted Daisy to think that he
himself was big and manly, and he had
the opinion that this was just the way
to win her admiration. But all this
time he didn't knotO aohGt DAISY did
that Dicks pockets were full of sugar
plums; tip-top ones, too, for Daisy had
tasted them, and knew that little pack
cts of them would from time to time
find their way into her chubby hand
All the rest of the morning Tommy
kept thinking, thinking, thinking. One
thing was certain: the present situa-
ton was not to be endured one mo-
ment longer than was absolutely neces-
sary. But what could he do? Should
he fight Dickyp This plan was reject
ed at once on high, moral grounds.
Well, then, supposing some dark night
he should see Daisy on the street, just
grab her, hold on tight, and say:
''Now, Daisy Rivers, i won't let you
60 till you promise you'll like me a
great deal betterer than you do Dick
Ray" There seemed something nice
about this plan, very nice; the more
Tommy thought of it, the better he
liked it; only there were two objections
to it. Firstly: Daisy never ventured
out doors alter dark. Secondly: Meth
er did Tom.
Both objections being insurmounta-
BILE, this delightful scheme was reluct-
antly abandoned, and the thinking pro-
cess went on harder than ever, till at
last oh, oh! if he only dared What a
triumph it would be! But then he
couldn't-yes, he could too. Didn't
she say that she wouldn't be one bit
s'prised if he hollered so loud that they
would hear him way down in Color
ado?" Colorado, indeed! He'd show
her there was one boy in the school who
was not girl-cry-baby!
Yes, actually, foolish Tommy had de-
cided to prove his manhood by being
whipped, and that that interesting little
event should take place that very after
noon!
What did he dop He whispered six
times!
Had it been any other child, he would
surely have been punished; but Miss
Linnet knew both Tommy and his
mamma quite well, and therefore she
knew also, quite well, that only few
days ago the one horror of Tommy's
life had been the thought that he might
possibly be whipped. Then too, it was
his first term at school, and hitherto he
had been very good. So she decided to
keep him after school and talk to him
of the sinfulness of bad conduct in gen.
sral, and of whispering in particular.
This plan she faithfully carried out, and
the little culprit's heart so melted with
n him that he climbed up on his teach
er's lap, put his arms around her neck
and kissed her, crying he would
never be so naughty again. He
was just going to tell her all about
Daisy, when in walked a friend of
Miss Linnet's, so he went home instead.
uC uOAb HC SOsAiLcQ lOT SCIOOl
with the firm determination to be a
good child, and really believe he
would have been had not that provok-
ing little witch of Daisy marched past
him in a very independent manner, her
saucy nose away up in the air, and q
scornful look in her pretty blue eyes.
1t was more than flesh and blood could
stand. All Toms good resolutions flew
sky-high.
When twelve o'clock came Miss Lin
nets list of delinquents began in this
wise:
WHISPER MARKS
Thomas Brown IL
Melinda Jones N
There was great excitement among
the little people. How dared any one
be so dreadfully bad! Tommy's heart
sank, sank, sank, when Miss Linnet
said: when school begins this after
noon ! shall punish Tommy and Me-
linda"