Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1884-04-17
THAT LITTLE TOAD.
A TRUE STORY.

Mr.. Brooks is stalwart farmer with
acres, rich and clean. a kind, frugal wife
a. pleasant home, and two bright, happy
industrious children.
With a dear little friend of mine seven
years old went to "the farm" and passed
week
One evening MI. Brooks took George
on his knee and said:
Il hope you are temperance boy. Are
your
81 am Band of Hope boy, sir
81 am very glad. If they had had
Bands of Hope when was boy it would
have saved me the last fifty years of more
or less trouble with that foot"
And he pointed to his right foot, on
which was an embroidered slipper.
"That handsome slipper does not look
as if it covers a boys sin and shame,
does it ~
Georges eyes grew very large and
questioning as they looked first at the
foot and then in the face of the good man.
Moo, sir! Please tell me all about it. -
Yes, my little fellow, l will. When l
was about your age-let me see-you are
how old ?"
Seven years old, sir"
"WeL, wasn't but six years old. My
flther Was a farmer and made a great
deal of cider, and when it was new and
sweet he let me drink as much as 1 want
ed to. But after it began to work |
wasn't allowed to drink any. But every
fall he bottled up supply for summer.
One sunny autumn day thought would
make some mud pies, and went into the
kitchen for big iron spoon. They were
putting some raisins in bottles in which
cider was to be put and corked tight, so
that when they were ready to drink the
cider it would sparkle like champagne"
My papa has champagne-cider, and
one day some popped right into my face
and made me jump"
Il hope none will ever pop into your
mouth. Well, my mamma filled my little
hand with raisins and let me take a sWal
low Of the cider, and it tasted 50 good /
begged for more, and mamma said
might have one more swallow. And
took big swallow and then ran out to
play. But though the sun was shining
bright, and the mud was soft and warm,
just right for pies. those raisins and that
fine cider kept tempting me back to the
and just one more sip before it should be
all bottled up. But no one was in the
kitchen at the moment, and l knew my
kind mamma wouldn't refuse me, so l
took just one raisin and one little sip and
then l took just one raisin and just one
more little sip, and how many ones took
| don't know. But mother came in and
told me to go out and play ran back
to my pies. and in a minute | saw toad
stick up its black head right where l was
playing. l tried to scare it off, but it
would come right back and keep squirm-
ing. l could not stand that intrusion in
my bakery, and l caught up my hatchet
and brought it down with vim. and
then screamedp'
"Did the toad jump right up and bite
your foot?"
NO. by boy, worse than that. 1t was
no harmless little toad but the serpent in
the cider that bit my foot. had drunk
so much that l did not know my own
muddy toe from toad, and it was not a
toad's head but my own foot that took
the blow. And when the doctor came
nv greal toe had to be cut entirely off"
"Oh. didn't it hurt awfully?"
"Yes, and it hurts me yet whenver l
am tired But that lost tee has been
life lesson, perhaps life blessing, to me.
might have kept on, sip by sip, and
drunk up my character. my farm, my
home, my happiness, the happiness of all
who loved me, my own life, and more
than all these, heaven itself"
Georgie's intent face looked very SOL
emn a moment, then broke into the
brightest of smiles. and he exclaimed:
Pretty high price to pay for cider"
"Yes, yes" said Mr.. Brooks; "but many
a man has paid it. 1t is the first step
Youths Temperance Banner.