The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1889-12-18
LITTLE JOINTS cHn1sxuA
Br sANrs waIrooxs RILEY.

Bv sAMEs wHIrcoMB RILEY.
We got q up purpose ios' fer it'll. Joints.
Hismother was SO pore and ALL and had to man.
Jes' bein war-widder. aud her pension mighty
Shed take in weavn' err work out. err anything
fer him.
And little Joints was puny -iike-but lawi tho
nerve he had -
You'd wan. 70 kind o pity him, but couldn't,
His pants o army blanket aud his coat o. faded
blue
Keep hintin' of his father lik G. and nifty wouldn't
80 we collogued together. onct. one winter
Jes' me aud mother and the girls, and Wise,
John, Jack and Free
Would line and git up little Joints, by time at
Some sorto' doins, don't you know, at would
surprise him somel
And so, all on the quiet. mother she turns in
gifts
Some blue-janes-cuts and makes a suit and
then sits down and knits
A pair o. little galluses TO go long with the
rest
And puts in n red-Hannen back, and buckle on
the vest
The little feller'd ben SO much around our
house. you see,
And ben SIGH hep TO her and all and handy as
could be,
AT mother couldn't do too much fer little Joints
She use TO jess declare at "he was meat-and-
drink 10 herl"
And Piney, Lide. and Madaline they watched
their chance and rid
To Fountaintown With Lijey's folks and bought
n book they did,
o. fairy-tales, with picturs in and got n little
pair
O. red-top boots at John-Jack said he a ben
a-pricen there.
And Iide got him little sword, and Madaline
drum;
And shootin -crackers-lawzy-day and they're
so dangersome!
And Piney, ever time the rest would buy some
other TOW.
Shed take and turn in them and buy more cam
dy for the boy!
Well, things- says-I when they got back your
pocketbooks is dry
But little Joints was there hissef that after
noon, so I
Well, al Of us KEEP mighty mum, tel we got
BY tellin' him be shore snd come tomory-
Ohrismus day
And fetch his mother Song with him And
how he scud acrost
The helds-his tow-head, i'm the dusk, ies' like n
His oOmfert fluttern as no run-and old Tige,
don't you know,
A lumpin high fer rabbite and a-plowin' upthe
snow
1t must a-ben most ten Stat night afore got
TO bed
With Wise and John-5ack he'ppin us; and
Freeman in the she'd
And Lide out with the iSntern while he trimmed
a Chrismus tree
Out of IA little scrub-oakHop AT suited 10 L!
Albright dreamp' o be1rin things a-skulkin'
round the place
And odd krss,' witk this whskers eff ana
freckles on his fact
And reindeers, shaped like Shawn bosses at the
A-stickin down the ctirlbly with their hed S
out at the topi
by time at mother gotHle up twas Fcum dG y
light aud more
The front yard full OF noighbors all s-orowdid
rom the door.
With Joints mother seadin yes-and little
Joints hisse T.
SGT up on Freemans shoulder, like jug up on
the shelf
of course 1 can't describe il when they all got
in TO where
Wed conferred up the Hnri smu 3 treasn' al the
fxins there
Fer all the shouts q dzughter-clarpin h1n s
and era ,kin' jokes,
Was heap OF kissin 9Ska on among the women
folks
For lo-behold-yc! tbGse they had That young
un-And his chan
.A-wabblin like; and, shore enough, iat Ia 50 tho
And-sich another bels-in. in all nry mortal
days
never heerd, er sps-t ter hear, in woe'esp-
pinted waysl
Ard mother grabs him q p and says tits more n
Hts all too student fr the child, and too.sr
prism !-1herei"
.-Oh, no, it ain t7-sobbed little Johnts--"I ain
'prised-but I'm
A4ryin' cause / 4@aed you all sad knowed
ii all the timeH