The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-08-08
UNCLE JERRY's LITTLE JOKE.
The Demoralizfng Results It had on
the Small Boys OF Barnsteble.


From the Neto York Tribune.
The superintendent of the Barnstable
(Mass-) Union Sunday school is a consarva-
tive man, but he estimates that the work
among the Barnstable youth has been put
back at least four years The Barn
stable small boy has always been
about as bad as anything in
the state, aggressive as a buzzsaw
and pugnacious as game-cock, but of late
great Improvement has been made in him,
when suddenly what should happen to undo
1t all but that "Grandpa" Wilkins aud
"Uncle Jerry Sutton, the two patriarchs of
the town, should get into fight right in the
latter's yard and fight all around the house
and halfway across the strickland every
small boy in Barnstable looking on and yell
ing at the top of his voice. The superin-
tendent's estimate that the Sunday school
work is back where it was four years ago is
probably well within bounds
Il all came about on account of the recent
spell of hot weather. Grandpa Wilkins is
conservative and good deal of a pessimist
while Uncle Jerry Sutton is bit of q
radical, and invariably optimistic in his
views. Grandpa Wilkins holds that we
don't have any such hot weather as we did
when he was young-when hot spell comes
along he always pooh-poohs it, and threatens
to go up In the attic and get his red yarn
mlttens out of the cedar chest. He is fond
OF telling how, in 1928, they had to sheer
the sheep every month all summer, because
1t was too warm for them. Sometimes he
puts this in 1922, at other times in 1915, and
when excited has been known to place it
away back somewhere before what he
invariably speaks of as ''the war; meaning
the war of 1912, always referring to the
late rebellion as that scrimmage down
south there somewhere" Uncle Jerry, on
the other hand, holds that the weather is
getting warmer all the time. On hot day
he takes Off his shoes and stockings puts on
pair of carpet slippers and sits in the
shade and fans himself with a copy OF The
BdrnstGbLe Post6Oy and Planters Gazette
When Grandpa Wilkins tells his sheep story
Uncle Jerry recalls the summer of 1919,
when they couldn't shear their sheep at all
for fear they would take cold. Even as late
as 1888 he remembers seeing sheep blauketed
IN July, and then they baaed with the cold
wednesday of last week was warm day
IN Barnstable. About noon Grandpa Will
kins came along with q wooden comforter"
around his neck and remarked to Uncle
Jerry, who sat under a tree plying 1.-THE
Postboy," that it appeared to be getting
cooler. Uncle Jerry looked at him scorn-
fully and asked him if 920 in the shade
looked as IL it was getting cooler. Grandpa
wilkins buttoned up his coat and said he
went more by his feelings than by
these new-fangled thermometers, but.
thermometer or no Thermometer, he hadn't
heard of anybody having TO reshear his
sheep like they did in the summer of '25
Uncle Jerry replied sarcastically by asking
him If he had seen anybody building bon
fires In the sheep pastures as they had to do
in the summer Of '5S. He followed this up
by offering to bet his jack-knife against
Grandpa wilkins that the thermometer
would beup to l10o in the shade at o'clock
Grandpa Wilkins instantly answered that
he would take the wager, though it wouldn't
be much if it was, as it was up to 1852 in
Boston in IL. Then he sneezed and said he
must get into the house before he took cold
and started off home.
Uncle Jerry's thermometer hung on the
north sido of woodshed, directly over a
knot hole. About 2 30 o'clock the guileless
old fellow put brick into the kitchen fire.
few minutes before o'clock the brick
was about as hot as it is possible for brick
to get In kitchen fire. Uncle Jerry took
it out with the tongs, and with the aid of
pair of buckskin gloves fastened wire
around it and hung it up inside the wood
shed so that IL covered the knot hole on the
inside as the Thermometer did on the
outside; then he went back under the
tree and again began tanning himself with
the Planters Gazette. Promptly at 8
o'clock Grandpa Wilkins came down the
street, wearing q fur cap. Uncle Jerry
arose and led the way to the thermometer,
glanced at it, and stepped aside. Grandpa
wilkins looked, rubbed his eyes, looked
again, adjusted his spectacles and looked
again. The thermometer stood at 116. He
looked twice more, then he silently handed
Uncle Jerry his jack-knife, remarking that
he'd better whet it a little on the grindstun
before he tried any fine within" Then
he turned to take parting look at the
Thermometer, remarking as he did so that
though ll6' was tolerably warm, the weather
didn't seem to affect sheep anything like it
did in the summer of Y after all. Unfor-
tunately, his glance this time took in one
edge of the knot-hole. He pushed the Their
mometer to one side, blistered two of his
fingers on the hot brick, and then picked up
an old broom handle and bit Uncle Jerry a
resoundlng whack. Uncle Jerry lost his
temper and replied with barrel stave
AS we said in the start. they fought all
over the yard, and out the front gate and
half way across tAe street; while the Barn
their voices and bet their Sunday school
cards on the result. They finally both sat
down exhausted, and were carried to their
respective homes. But their example was
fatal to the Barnstable small boy. He has
been fighting ever since. A meeting of
Sunday school workers was called for yes
terday at O'Clock in the First Congrega-
tlonal church, to consider the best way Of
attempting to reclaim him. Whatever may
have been the condition of the sheep in the
year a, the small boy is certainly greatly
demoralized in the year 49,