The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1885-05-21
TOTS EXPLOIT.
She Goes a-Beg ging and Meets with Won
derful Success-Her Triumphant Return


She Goes a-Beg ging and Meets with Won
derful Success-Her Triumphant Return
| Home.
Crash! bang! ting-a-ling-a-ting! went
the piano. Mrs. Bevere lifted her aching
bead from the lounge with a groan.
''Oh, Tot! Don't you please be quiet
for five minutesP"
Eyes, mamma replied Tot, shrilly,
scrambling noisily from the piano-stool,
and coming up to where mamma was
lying l was trying to play jewet
with kitty, but she's just horwid to-day,
Mamma Bevere. She made all that
noise"
"Put the kitten out of the room,
Tot" said Mrs. Bevere.
"Shall fan you, mammal" asked
Tot, when the reluctant kitty had been
dragged out of the room by the tail .
And two or three gusty breaths from
a palm-leaf fan swept coldly around
Mrs. Bever's throbbing head.
THANK you, no, Tot, - said mamma.
'sWon't you go into the dining-room
and shut the door behind you? If 1
could only go to sleep, perhaps I'd
wake up with my headache gone. You
may tell Mary Ann to give you some
bread and milk. ~
''Shall ] sing you to sleep, mammal
/ can sing Little drops of water love-
ly. Shall I?''
/ mo, Tot" said mamma, in despera-
ton. 81 know you must be hungry, SO
I won't keep you here. Mary Ann may
give you an orange, too"
/ So Tot went, blaming herself re-
morsefully for neglecting Mamma
Bevere," but an orange was something
not to be resisted.
/ And now the bread and milk and
orange were gone, and Tot was making
lively, if rather discordant, music on
her silver mug with the spoon. It had
been raining, but now the shower had
ceased, and beautiful rainbow APP
peared in the east. Tot had watched it,
delighted, till it had slowly vanished;
but Tot was quite sure that one end had
been sticking in the ground in their
garden.
81 am going to dig some gold" she
announced to kitty, who was purring
contentedly in the warm sunshine which
had suddenly burst into the room.
Don't you want to go 'longp Why,
you naughty, lazy thing! Don't you
know we'll get rich if we gopn
''Now we amt rich, kitty, for once
heard Mrs. French say it was, queer that
mamma had only one servant, when
papa was making so much money. She
didn't know helped do the washing, ]
guess. When l told Papa Bevere he
| just laughed aud said:l. 8d .
g Mrs. French is liable to be mis-
taken - s'ts
'rll bring you chain for your neck,
kitty, made of twenty gold cents
But digging gold was certainly dis
couraging work, and Tots arms soon
began to ache. She knew exactly
where the end of the rainbow had been,
n but she could find nothing there except
rusty nail. Mamma S silver spoon had
broken right in the middle. Tot be-
came disheartened. Then a happy
thought struck her.. she would go a
begging. si
She had seen a little girl once who
sang and danced, and who got, oh, ever
SO many pennies!
81 can sing Little drops of water, = =
thought Tot, ''and Papa BeVere says
can dance lovely.'' ~
Mr.. Smith, the next-door gardener,
was tying up some vines that had been
beaten down by the rain. His dlapi-
dated straw hat was hanging on the
fence Tot put it on. 1t was ever Sc
much too large, and tapped dismally
over her face when she walked. But
beggars must not be choosers, you
know. ~ ST.
, In a twinkling Tot was out on thu
} sidewalk, with the silver mug which
was to hold thepennies clasped tightly
in her hand, Oh. naughty little Tot!
} There was an old gentleman reading
} a newspaper out on the yeranda Of th,
J first house Tot decided to enter. III
looked just like her grandpapa, so sh
wasn't bit afraid of him.
How he stared when Tot began t.
J sing Little drops of water" and HOY
| he laughed and applauded when sh
danced!
II Really, begging was great fun, To
; decided, when, breathless with her eS
ercions, she held out her mug, and th
] old gentleman put shining silver piec
| into it. l ~
J How people laughed on the departur
} of the funny little figure, which ran
, their door-bells SO furiously and san
and tripped polka SO irresistibly
| Most of them knew who she was; but
I somehow, no one thought of sendin
: her home.
Tot felt very rich, indeed, as she loof
I ed at the shining heap of pennies an
silver pieces in her mug.
. Two ladies and two gentlemen wer
| playing croquet out on Mrs. French
. smooth-shaven lawn They looked {
r fresh and happy after the rain as th
{ birds and flowers did.
! Mrs. French herself was reclining i
a hammock. reading book She ws
= a slender, elegant lady, who talked in
: soft voice, which fascinated Tot, in spit
8 of the vague idea she had conceive
$ that she ought to dislike hervery mucl
I I've come a-begginp" announce