Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-08-08
THE ACADEMY BOAT RACE.

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and tossed up the water of the Kennebec
river till each little wave had put on white
cap 10 protect its head. 1t was all very good
fun for the breeze, but no joke to the forty
Academy boys who had looked forward for
months to this very day as the time for the
races. If ever smooth water was In demand,
now was the time. But with a whoop and
whistle round danced the merry wind, and
the boys actually stamped with Impotence.
Do you suppose that college men are to
have all the glory as far as boating is con-
cerneds Orantsoak Academy shook its head
and said, mol" Miss Belinda Crockett shook
her pretty head and said mo" also.
Who was Miss Belinda Crockett
Why, she was the very loveliest young lady
in Maine-some say In all the world. There
was not man or woman from eighty years
old and downward who did not say, "Bless
herl" when Miss Belinda appeared. 1t was
Miss Belinda who got up all the picnics; who
sat up at night with sick people; who wore
the prettiest gowns in the village; who sang
in the choir; who took two babies home and
kept them a month till their mother could
get well of a fever; who made her father
flood the pond SO tho boys could have steady
skating, and then gave half of them skates,
''rockers" at that; and who always came to
the baseball matches with a dozen lemons
for the players.
No wonder the lads all adored Miss Belinda
Crockett Tom Ty1rell, aged Il, in a frenzy
of gratitude and affection, had even ''made
up" poem in her honor, and had presented
it to her on gilt edged paper:
On, lovely Miss Crockett
Your eye in its socket
Is bright as a rocket
Just taking start
When shyly you cock it,
All, me! what shock it
Right through my vest pocket
Sends into my hearth
Perhaps it was because she was pleased by
this tribute, that, one evening in March, Miss
Belinda took the youthful Thomas into her
confidence.
''Do you ever row, Toms" asked she.
Observe, Miss Crockett never called Tom
TyrreIl Tommy" as so many thoughtless
persons did. Sometimes she even addressed
him as ''Tyrrell, " upon which Tom seemed 10
grow inch
because / have plan, Tom, in which ]
need your help. Would you please give me
your arma This hill is hard to climb. You
row, did you says"
YES" painted Tom, quite breathless with
sometimes in my fathers punt"
''Do you suppose there are enough acad-
envy boys to form three crews of, say, four
oars each, if my brother would train them
when he comes from Europe in MayF
Miss Beindar' gasped Tom, chow good
you arei Why, there are twenty who'd GO
crazy at the thought, and there are one, two,
three boats, 1 know of TO hire. Do you sup
hr.of uGg
Miss Belinda nodded.
II think So What's more, you shall have
a supper after the race. And there shall be
three prizes, too, Tom, so no one need feel he
has rowed for nothing. You arrange mat
ters, will you, and make out a list Of the
crewSF'
Every boy in town ln.w of Miss Crockett's
offer the very next morning; and long before
noon three picked crews" had been organ
lied.
Tom TyrI,ell WAS captain of one; Solomon
Gibbs, the celebrated woodchuck trapper, OF
the second while the third was under the con-
troll of Theodore Elder more commonly known
as "Iwig' Elder.
The river being at that time frozen, as we'll
as under several feet of snow, the crews,
boiling with enthusiasm, resorted to Mr..
Gibbs barn to exercise on severalsets of hori-
2ontal bars Here they turned and twisted
daily, 90 raise their muscles, against the ad-
vent Of Mr.. II. AlSernon Crockett
There was some doubt as TO whether so au.
gust person as II. Algernon, ESQ, would
copdescend TO train a dozen country lads.
But when Mr. Crockett at last appeared all
fear vanished. He fairly took the crews by
storm.
To be sure his mustache, with its waxed
ends was wonderful TO behold, and a ring on
his little finger was a vision beyond any that
OrautSoak had hitherto imagined It was
well known, moreover, that Mr.. II. Algernon
had actually taken off his bat to Queen Vic
toria; that he had played billiards with full
blooded Italian count; that he had been
''hand and glove" with all the old masters
Cwhoever those worthless might be-, and that
he had even taken a trip TO Egypt to patron
sze the sphinx.
But in spite of all his superiority and
clothes, Mr.. II. Algernon Crockett was
cordial, good Datured young man, with a
great hearty voice, and laugh as conta-
gious rs the measles.
he feii in with his sisters plans, and I'M
dertook TO coach her boys with much good
Will
Train them he did, and that with no sham
He made them run, and he made them pull.
lie insisted on their eating meat, and he for
babe their even looking at a pie or dough
nut Indeed, he turned one boy right out OF
Twig Elders crew because he partook of e
rnaoe turnover He would not allow Tom
Tyrreu TO row stroke, " but put him in SIS
mo. s." which would certainly have broken
Toms heart had not Mr.. Crockett consulted
him at such rate that Thomas actually be-
heved he had proposed the change himself
Two OF solomon Gibbs crew and one OF
TNwig Elders gave out at the end Of the week.
They declared they were not galley slaves
and would not be treated as such But there
were ten other boys on fire 70 jump into their
places, and when the sun rose on the day OF
the race he had the pleasure Of shining on
twelve as spare, brown, tough little fellows
in Orantsoak as he could have found by hunt
ing from China to Peru.
They were 10 row a mile for the pri-eS the
FIRST of which was 10 be-here was richness,-
g new cedar boat; the seccud. some bats aad