Daily Republican., 1885-07-29
TH T. BAD BOY.

bad boy of the grocery-man, as he
pointed contemporary at a box of oran
ges in front of the store.
" Florida oranges" said the grocery.
man. 81 should think you would
know Florida oranges after being in
Florida all winter. What's the matter
with them, anyway"
"Oh, nothing, only l thought they
we're wilted base balls with tho
juice all knocked out. Pa telephoned
you to send up some Florida oranges
last night aad we had the m for break
fast this morning. had just as soon
eat a piecce Of sponge. Say, do you
know you could be arrested forobtainink
money under false pretenses when you
sell such things for Florida oranges?
You can't fool us on oranges any
more. The real Florida oranges are
-nr
"Oh, give US a rest, /" said the
grocery man. You are getting too
particular. If these oranges don't suit
you, all you have got to do is to pay
your bill and go somewhere else. Peo
Pile who have always lived here buy
these oranges, and think they are the
best, and don't want aHy customers
that kick on my oranges.
"Here, eat that ono and say 1t Is good,
or will kick nine kinds of Florida
sand cut of your pante," and the
grocery man handed the boy an orange
of the vintage of 1884. The boy took
out little silver knife and began to
remove the peelinR carefully, laying q
handkerchief across his lap, and was
working as delicately as o surgeon
would cut out a cancer, when the gro
Gerry man. after watching a few minutes,
said
"The time has been when you would
grab an orange, zip open the side, and
run your face In clear u p TO your eyes,
and dig out all the juice and pulp, like
q hog shelling an ear of corn, and then
eat the skin, but since you have been
to Florida you are too nice. Look out,
or you will get drop OF juice on your
delicate fingers. Here, let me pass the
finger BOWL" and tho grocery man
brought an old tin wash basin full of
soap.suds, and sat 1t down in front of
the boy, who wont on with his orange
peelinR, until the grocery man saw he
could not embarrass the youth, so he
said; "Well, how did your pa get
along with the rebels down South?
Did he have any chance TO pull his
revolver on any OF them? He was loaded
for bear when he went away"
Never saw = rebel, said the boy,
~ he placed piece Of the old dry
orange in his mouth. There ain't
any rebels down South, unless 1t 10 JEFF
Davis, and We didn't see JEFF. Pa
wanted to get in quarrel with some
old rebel, 1 guess, and Ret thumpsd, 90
he could have . chance to be . martyr,
and toll whom he got home what a
narrow escape he had. When he
would see man on tho cars with a
slouoh hat ON, after w got into Ten
nessee. he would scrape al acquaintance
with him and talk about the war.
The first man he struck looked hard
and pa thought the man was regular
are.eater, and ho throwed out some
remarks to lead him on but pretty soon
pa left tho man and came back II
where sot. l WAS tickled to see pa
back, because expec Nd the floor Of the
car would be covered With gore.
Pa looked disgusted and said: He
amt no rebel. He is from Massachu-
Cbattauooga.' Pa couldn't realize that
the war was over when he went South,
and expected that when the people
found he was from the North they
would elbow him, or look sassy, like
pictures he had seen during the war.
He expected to see youpgSOutherners
come through the oars drunk and
swaggering, with revolvers, like he
reads OF in the papers sometimes, but
nothing of the kind ever occurred, and
pa was disappointed. At Atlanta pa
got acquainted with nice old gentle
man, who did him several favors, and
he was so kind to pa that pa was mash
cd on him, and invited him 10 come
and 500 US up North, and before pa
left him he found thai his friend com
manded . Confederate battery during
the war. Pa was surprised to find
that those who were called rebels
twenty years ago did not have horns
on.
Well, after that pa never looked, fol
any more rebels, but lie had courtesies
extended to him by many of the best
people OF Georgia, Tennesseee, South
Carolina and Florida, and when he
found that the most of them were once
Confederate soldiers who believed they
we're doing right in defending theil
homes pa weakened.
"The last I heard pa say on the
rebel question was when he WAS q
guest Of q minister near Charleston.
"The minister was a regular nobleman,
and when he told pa he was q rebel d dur.
ing the war, and recited to pa history
of the times proceeding the war, and
how 1t was as natural for Southern PEG
pie to take the side OF the Contederacy
as it was for Northern people to take
the other side, pa slapped the minister
on the leg and said. We'll if I had
lived in the South ia been rebel, too
and demme II L wouldn't had beer
| proud of 1t, too, the same as you fellow.
are.'
az thought pa was falling from grace
and told him we had better be start
ing for home, but he said he dian'
i . 4. ID I Io,, a.,