The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-03-19
9or Me Ghilher.
How Johnnie Earned His Skates.

grandfather, laughing. -.
swell, you see, will want pair of
skates this winter. Papa bought me
pair last fall, and I've outgrown 'em, and
he says that grow SO outrageously that
I'll have to pay for my own skates it is
as much as he can do to keep me in
Clothes" replied Johnnie, soberly.
"Wel, isn't five dollars big price for
skates pursued his grandfather.
"Oh, want good skates, besides it is
as easy to say | want five dollars as four,
and if try for five may get over three
while if / only tried for the price of my
skates, l mighn't get quite enough" said
Johnnie.
Johnnie Price was a New York boy,
spending the summer and fall on his
grandfather's farm down on the east end
of Long Island. He was aquiet, thought
full boy, and though only twelve, he had
an old-fashioned manner Of expressing
himself that sometimes was very comical.
In contrast to his good qualities, he had
the reputation of being one of the LATEST
boys that ever breathed-partly because he
much preferred to lie at full length under
the shade of tree and watch the birds
and bees as they huttered and hummed
in the sunshine, to goirg off on tramps
with the boys, and partly on account of
his slow and deliberate manner of speech.
The idea of his earning five dollars, by
his own exertions, consequently amused
his grandfather and he answered his last
remark by repeating:
"Want to earn five dollars, eh =? Aim
at the moon and you hit the stars. Well,
III see, I'll see," and to tell the truth the
old gentleman regarded it simply as a
passing fancy of Johnnie's, and thought
no more about it, Not 30, however, with
Johnnie. He revolved the matter in his
mind as he lay day.dreaming under the
big oak tree in front of the house, and
end of a week the five dollars seemed as
far off as ever.
A favorite habit of the boys was to
take the newspapers out under the tree
with him and read them carefully, "ad
vertisements and ALL" his mother used
sometimes to exclaim impatiently, and
one day an idea came to him, as ideas
will come to every one who reads the
papers intelligently. A paragraph which
read as follows caught his attention, and
set him to thinking:
"Bay-berry," Sweetgale," "Candle-
berry" (Myrica ceryera), derives its
name candle-berry from the fact that the
early settlers of Long Island manufactured
candles from the berries, which contain a
large amount of vegetable wax. Very
good soap is also made by the addition of
fat to this wax.
He asked his grandfather one day, as
they were riding toward the Sound, along
road lined with bay-berry bushes,
els bay.berry wax any good, grandpa "
eyes, it makes the best shaving soap
in the world, and mixed with tallow, it
hardens candles so that they are like wax
If it was not so much trouble I'd pick
some berries for your grandmother to
make up-it is worth twenty five cents q
pound, but there is only six pounds to a
bushel, and they have to be melted and
fused with so it don't pay
GLOW do you get the wax off ?" pur
sued Johnnie.
"Boil 'em, bushel of berries to a hall
dozen pailfuls of water, then skim off the
wax. Whoa, colts" this last remark
being addressed to the team.
Johnnie was unusually quiet that day
at dinner; in fact his only question was
"Twenty times twenty-five is five hun
dred, isn't it ?"
And upon being answered in the affirm
alive, he again became so deeply absorbed
in calculation that when he was asked if
he wanted second piece of pumpkin pie
he answered, absently:
"About four bushels" and then stared
in amazement when the family laughed
That afternoon he went to his grand
father and asked for bag, and with j
over his shoulder aud pail on his arm
he trudged soberly up the lane and die
tired, and went directly to bed withou
vouchsafng any explanation as to wher
he had been during the afternoon, ant
soon after breakfast the next morning h
started in the same direction, whence b
did not return until noon, looking fushe,
and smelling suspiciously of bay berries
None of the family noticed it, however
or if they did, they simply though
Johnnie has found some new place t
dream away his time," and said nothin
about it.
After dinner he got another bag an
started off up the lane again, returnin
only for supper. The next morning b
asked his grandmother if he might hav
a big kettle which hung out under tret
and which she was accustomed to max
soap in. She was busy cooking, an
hardly paid attention to his question, bu
gave her consent, with the proviso that b
should not spoil the kettle. Johnni
shouldered it and marched off in the
rection of the Sound again.
This time we will follow him and waite
his operations. He staggered along undo
the weight of the kettle, occasionally Sc
ting it down to rest, until he reached til
Sound shore. Here he hung it on a 80
of gypsy tripod, and after filling it abol
half full of water from a spring near b.
he proceeded to build fire under it.
Soon the water began to boil, and
went to two large bags, which were leanir
against rock, and took out from one
them a quantity of small, bluish-whi
berries. When he had about filled Il
kettle he sat down, and taking newsp
per from his pocket he began to read.
was not long, however, before thit
scum began to rise on the surface of Il
boiling water, and this Johnnie careful
SKINNED off with large piece of tin, al
put in an old pan which he had for Il
purpose. In about half an hour he hi
exhausted the wax on the first kettle fl
OF berries, and placing the pan in 81
spring to cool, he, after some difficult
poured out the water and berries, whiC