The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1885-06-11
A Story for Boys.
The Composition for Washington's
Birthday, and How It was
Written.

Country" adding that the Ameri-
can boys would surely find plenty
to say on such topic, especially
with the national holiday coming to
reinforce their patriotic fervor. But
the truth is that American boys
have very little to say on paper up
on any subject whatever, and
though they were all ready to cele-
brate the holiday after their own
fashion, there were but few of them
prepared to express their patriot
ism In the judicious and grammati-
cal phrases appropriate to the occa-
sion.
OF those few Ted certainly was
not one. A composition of any
kind was sufficient to reduce his
mind to a state of blank idiocy, and
the more familiar the topic the more
unable he always found himself to
say a word about it. On the pres
ent occasion as he sat by the libra
ry table with bis writing paper
spread out before him, he was fast
beginning to wish either that Wash
ington had never had a birthday or
that he himself had been born in
some less favored country. Three
separate starts had been made,
without being any nearer success,
and when, in default of other ideas,
he read them over for the thirteenth
time, not one of them seemed capa-
BILE of being continued. At the head
of the sheet he had started out
bravely, thus: "Washington is by
far the greatest man that the soil of
America has ever produced"
Then came the painful thought
that this sounded more like vege
table than a soldier, and he had
scratched out the lines Indignantly
and begun anew
"Where is the American boy to-
day whose heart does not beat at
the sacred name of WashingtonY
That was better, he felt assured,
but the absolute impossibility of
continuing in this exalted strain
was made manifest by his cudgel-
ing his brains in vain for a sentence
worthy to succeed. He could think
ef nothing but the single word,
Nowhere" and that made his
composition read so like an answer
ed conundrum that he was sure all
the boys would laugh. According,
after much consideration and test
ing of new pens, he abandoned his
second effort and tried once more
The name of Washington has
now been held in reverence by his
grateful countrymen for over one
hundred years"-and this was as
far as he had succeeded in getting
when the bell rang for supper.
With a sigh of relief he ran down
stairs, and his sister Dora, passing
through the room two minutes later,
picked up the paper and read the
three headings, smiling at the la
borious nothing they contained, yet
with a strict sense of gratitude in
her heart that her own days for
such miseries were over.
But in the evening, when Ted,
cross and discouraged, was prepar-
ing to renew his labors, he found
Dora on the hearthrug by the open
fire toasting her slippered feet, and
Fabian, his older brother, educat-
ing the terrier to walk around the
table on his hind-legs, and, in view
of their happy idleness, Washington
and his birthday seemed a more
dreary necessity than ever.
dts just hard linesr' he sighed
despondently, as he gathered up
his papers. "Every week l have
one of the hateful things to write,
and as soon as one is over there is
another coming on"
"And the subject to day is whatr'
asked Fabian, holding up a warn
ing finger to the dog, who was only
waiting his chance to resume more
comfortable position.
Washington, of course,n answer
ed Ted. At which Dora gave a
seornful laugh and ventured to kick
a half-burnt log with the tip of one
small foot.
"Of course, Washington" she
echoed, mockingly, ''as being the
one man of all others about whom
there is nothing to be said. He
cut down the cherry tree, he could
not lie, he crossed the Delaware on
ice, he was the first president, and
he died. There, you have his life
in a nut she'll"
"There, you have nothing of the
Sort" said Ted, Indignantly, all his
boyish enthusiasm reused at once.
''Pd like to know where you would
be to-day without WashingtonP'
warming my feet by this very
fire, Ted, dear" was the composed
reply. "Surely, you don't make
your hero responsible for our chin
ney placer
"Well, 1 guess he held himself re-
sponsible for all the hearths about
him, and precious little warmth
they would have in them without
his help. l defy you to find me
anywhere a greater or a better man"
Dora laughed again, but very
softly and fixed her bright eyes Gu
riously on his face. "a good man,
1 grant you, Ted, and a fair soldier,
but nothing more.
GA fair scldierT cried Ted, firing
up at once before such qualified
praise. "Who was it, pray, that
beseiged Boston and kept heart and
courage in his troops, when every
body was despairing all around
him? And who, with a handful of
men and no money, kept CORVALLIS
and his hosts at bay? And who
suffered cold and hunger and all
sorts of misery at Valley Forge for
a whole winter? He didn't stop at
trihes, then, I'll tell you"
at must have been uncomforta-
bic" admitted Dora, dreamingly,
and drawing little closer to the
fire; while Fabian leaning on one
elbow, scribbled something on q
piece of paper with an elaborate all
of abstraction.
''And who got the better O.
Greene, 1 want to know?" persisted