The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1885-01-10
NoBoDY's PLAN.

Inc BOyS' Adventure IN u gar "A I1p-IOp
Fellow, but One THAT IAings Happen
To, and He Can't Help It,"
No, it wasn't Tom Sheldon's plan. 1t
wasn't anybody's plan; it just went and
happened. Things do that way some
times to boys, just as much as to peo-
pie, and don't you go taking sides
against us, Cousin Helen, because it's
bad enough to have grandpa and Aunt
Minty saying: "Just what they expect
ed if Tom Sheldon was invited" Tom
is tlp-top, but he is a fellow that
things happen to, and he can t help it.
Aunt Minty don't like him ever since
he plugged up some hornets in the
beehive, to see if you couldn't tame
'em. Now, I'd like to know if that
isn't the way that old scientific codger
found out about things, by trying ex-
periments; and the man that invented
dishes that'll break-yOu read me your
self how he burnt up the furniture and
everything. But Aunt AIinty was Just
as mad because Dick and spoiled our
new suits putting on some stuff that
Tom invented. He guessed it would
keep away mosquitoes; and it would,
only it smcltpretty bad, and made yell
low spots all over your clothes; but Tom
was going to fix that some way, if he
had time to think it up, and Aunt
Minty would lend him her cologne.
Wen, I said I'd tell you about that
time we got carried off on a freight
trai g I'd will; but it was moren a
year ago, and l say a year is long
enough to talk about one thing.
You see, it was Dicks birthday, and
we wanted to do something to celebrate.
A birthday isn't very much unless you
have your own folks. We liked to be
at grandpa's but boys have to be some
bother to people, and Aunt Mintv used
to say no wonder mamma was sick, and
had to 90 to Europe, till we most be-
teved we'd killed her. So we thought
we wouldn't say anything about birth
days; but grandpa knew it, and he said
Dick should choose just what he would
Gather do, and invite two other boys to
come out and stay over night. We
chose together, and both of US wanted
Tom Sheldon and Larry Eastman, and
they came. We went with grandpa to
the depot to meet them, and afterward
we all drove round by the mill to get the
grist, and over to Deacon Bascom's to
see about the shingles for the barn, so it
was most dark when we got home, and
Aunt Minty made Us 90 right TO bed
after supper. Dick and | couldn't tell
whether we wanted to 90 a-fishing at
Long Lake, or have a picnic and get
blueberries on the mountain, or 90 to
HopkinStown and see the circus, and we
didn't know for sure there was circus,
only a boy that saw the posters told us
it was either the 18th or the 23d, or
else it was an old one for last
summer But we let Larry and
Tom choose; and they said 90 fish
ing and have a picnic, and if there
was time enough we could get blue
berries. That was every single thing
in the plan, only Larry said if Hannibal
wasn't such u slow trotter we could
drive round by Hopkinstown and see
whether it was an old circus We
started pretty early. Aunt Mintv and
the hired girl put up our lunch in the
biggest market-baskct, and Jonas had
the horse hitched up before breakfast,
and a bag of oats under the seat.
Hannibal is the slowest kind of trot-
ter, and Aunt Minty wanted to not let
us have any whip, but grandpa said he
was getting to be an old man, and he
wanted to see us again before he died,
so he put in the whip. First along,
Hannibal s'posed he was going to mill,
and he went pretty good till we got past
the crossroads, and then he s'posed we
were going to Uncle Abner's; but when
we turned down over the new bridge he
was clear discouraged, and went slower
and slower, with his nose down, and his
eyes about half shut. 1t was pretty
near noon when we got to the lake, and
the old black man that takes you out in
a boat had gone off, and his wife, too
The boat was locked with paddock,
and you can't fish worth a cent from
the shore. We tried it awhile, and then
went under the reservoir bridge to eat
our dinner. We felt pretty sure about
the circus, because Clump and his wife
always go to one ii they hear of it,
The HopknStown road is only a little
ways through the woods, but it's
pretty hSrd to find Larry had some
money; and he said if we'd only chosen
the circus he would treat; so Tom said
we-well we sort of talked it up, and
concluded to leave Hannibal there and
strike through the woods till we came
to the Hopkinstown road and follow it
to town. 1t you'd bought me that
compass, Cousin Helen, it wouldn't
have happened; but some way we got
mixed up and turned around, and when
we got to the road we went the wrong
way, and kept going and going till, all
of a sudden we came to the railroad
down by the switchboard. We were
awfully tired and disappointed, and we
never could find the way back through
the woods to Long Lake. You see, we
hadn't thought about that. If you