The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1890-07-17
A MODERN cASABlANcA.


Black Nurse.
l suppose you all know the verses
which commemorate the heroism Of q
boy named .Casabianca." who ''stood
on the burning deck, whence all but he
had fed" because he had promised his
father to remain there until the latter's
return. | have always thought he was
very foolish boy, for he might have
known that had his father had any idea
that he never would return no such
promise would have been exacted. And
now ! will tell you about small boy
who resembles Casabianca in his habit OF
always doing just what he is told to do.
lie has, or | should say he had. little
colored nurse named Dinah. One after
noon Willie's mamma called Dinah and
told her to take Willie into the back
yard and keep him very quiet Willie,
who, by the way, is sturdy three-year-
old, followed Dinah willingly, for
though she was very unreliable as q
nurse. her frolicsome ways made a
splendid playmate. Meanwhile. man.
ma went to her own room to sleep of q
headache. Unfortunately, q few min
ntes later, funeral passed by. Now
funeral is Dinah's especial delight, and
she goes to that of friend or foe with
equal pleasure. The cemetery is only
few blocks away from where Willie
lives and it was but moments work
for Dinah's fertile brain TO plan for the
child's entertainment, while she ran
across lots and jumped over fences to
overtake the procession.
Taking a long cotton string from her
pocket, she hastnned into the fruit gar
den, grabbed big June bug off the
luscious fig he was eating. tied the
string to one of his legs and brought
him back to Willie.
Hole i'm, Willie, an let i'm june"
she said.
This Is one of her own favorite amuse.
ments, and she knew by many experi-
ments that strong bug could june
long time before his leg came of.
Willie took the extreme end of the
string between his finger and thumb
and looked with solemn eyes at the
bugs frantic effort to escape.
Dinah departed into the house, slipped
into the pantry, stole big slice Of cake
for Willie mot forgetting in her hurry
to take another for herself), tore back
to the yard, and putting the cake in Will
lies unoccnpied hand. said:
''Sit rite hyah, honey, on de steps,
an eat yer cake, an lot i'm june tw.l
Dinah cum back. Dinah jes' gwine run
ronn' dc house er minnit, and away she
flew.
The funeral was that Of colored per-
son and the services were long. and
Dinah in her intense enjoyment forgot
about the little prisoner she had left at
home.
Half an hour later Willie's mamma
was aroused by loud screams from the
yard. She rushed out to find her little
boy seated on the kitchen steps, with a
fragment Of cake in one hand, at which
q great Shanghai rooster was pecking,
and the string to which the June bug
was tied held tightly in the other, while
the poor insect buzzed wildly and flew
madly back and forth. The child's
cheeks were wet with tears. and yell
after yell issued from his wide-opened
mouth.
"Why, Willie, what in the world is
the matter?' cried his mamma.
''I's SO tiah'd holm the string for that
ole bug to june, mamma"
Isoor little fellow. He thought he
was helping the bug to enjoy himself.
and remained brayely at his post al
though expecting the rooster to eat him
as we'll as the cake. When Dinah came
home she was told that she need not
stay to take care of ca Willie any
longer. So she babe the little boy good
bye with sorrowful countenance, say
ing as she shook his tiny hand: ''Dinah's
going to leave you honey, deed she is.
She's done ebb'ry thing she could to be
good nuss to you, but your mas done
druv her of. Detroit Free Press.