St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1885-12-12
POLICEMAN JOHN. JR.
How He wandered OFF His Beat and Got
Lost

1t was nurse Mary's afternoon ou1'
and John Mabin, junior, aged three
years and six months, was lett IN MS
mothers care. When mother was well
and bright, this was a very nice time
for small John, for mother had heap
of fun and romp in her, and knew lots
of nice WAYS Of play to suggest, even
when she was too busy to play herseH:
But this evening mean old ''bllnd
headache struck mother soon after
dinner, and even little John could see
there was no play in her then. she
had some medicine that the doctor mao
given her, ''to take and go to bed,
but she didn't see why she mightn'
take it and stay out of bed, and so she
did Her head felt a little better then,
but she could not possibly keep herself
awake, and in spite of having to nurse
John, she felt herself sinking away to
the land of Nod
s'Tell me something to play, mamma,
fore you go s'eep," coaxed the little
boy.
| Not thing could mamma think Of;
she didn't seem to have any ''thlnk
left. But she heard steady, heavy
tread beneath her window. It was Po-
liceman Brady, and happy thought
occurred to her.
| LETS play it is night she said,
in drowsy tone. I'm be the people
asleep in the house, and you'll be the,
Waterman. y
John junior was delighted; he went
off down stairs and got an old hat OF
papa's, which was. to be sure, very
hard to keep on his head, and tennis
racquet for club, and went to ask
mother where he must march. Now
mother had intended to fix her little
! policeman's beat very carefully, con-
1 lining him to the halls and back porch
and back yard, but when he opened
her door, to ask her about it, behold
| she was sound asleep-S0uRd!
John looked at her minute in per-
plexity, but he had been taught never
| TO waken mamma when she was
asleep, so he marched off to find his
own beat. He couldn't get out of the
front door because it was locked; he
couldn't get out of the back door be-
cause the knob was too high for him to
reach; so the little monkey went down
into the cellar and out through the
area-way, and found himself, to his de-
light, on the pavement.
II know the way P'eeceman Brady
| goes, said John to himself. He
goes right round the corner and comes
| back up the other side,' and off he
tramped.
Many passer on the sidewalk
stopped to laugh at the odd little figure
in the big hat, with the racquet undef
his arm, as John marched on round the
corner. But, dear me, he turned every
/ corner he came to! Three, four, five,
six; sometimes to his right and some
times to his left, and each time he kept
looking for his papa's house, and each
time he couldn't find it. The hat was
very troublesome, always tumblinge
over his eyes or fitting back behinkt
him on the pavement; even the racquet
felt heavy, and when the tired little
feet turned the eighth corner and
found themselves in front of shops and
stores baby nature could stand it no
longer, and dropping his racquet and
knocking off his hat, John Junior be-
gan to bawl in as handsome style as
you ever listened to-
He cried to some purpose. Three
ladies and two gentlemen, and crowd
of boys and girls that seemed to have
sprung up out of the ground, came to
his help Also big, good-natured
policeman; not his friend Brady.
But John was q hard fellow to help.
.'What was his nameP' they asked
him.
sJohn JUNIOR
'.John what?''
John junior. =
''What was papa's nameP"
Papa"
'.Papa what?''
.Why, just papa. Mamma calleu
him old man sometimes. -
'.What was mammals manner"
Mamma. y
..What else?''
why, Lovely and doyey and pigeon
and darling, and lots more. y
"Where did he live?' !,
lin the nursery and mammals room.
and after tea down in the parlor."
tWhat was the number of the
houseP'
Dead silence, and strong notion Of
crying again. What was TO be done
with him?
"I'n take him to the Central Ste
ton, said the good-natured police
man His folks viii go there first to
look for him =
They thought he would be afraid of
the policeman. Not bit of it; he felt
at home on that blue-coated shoulder.
: where's nay p'eeceman?" he asked
!: his carrier.
nHeyPn said the man, stopping
short. Who is your policeman?''
! 3 s.Mhv P,aecanlan RrallHr was the