The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1890-06-28

, persuaded to retire early in Wow of tn
next days festivities, but he was ia
I too excited to sleep; all sorts of vision
fitted before his eyes, and dance
, through his brain.
AT last it occurred to him that he ha
not locked the door of the sugar-house
What If tramps should get in and stea
his precious treasures!
The thought was intolerable, and tn
more he dwelt upon it the more certain
he became that unless that door wa
locked not a fre-cracker would remain
to cheer his eyes in the morning. So
slipping out of bed, he put on his stock
ings, trousers and jacket, and, taking
his shoes in his hand, crept softly dowr
the back stairs and out of the kitcher
door. Norah was out, and no one saw
or heard him. The crescent moon was
setting in the west, and the stars shont
calmly down, giving every promise of q
bright tomorrow
To reach the sugar-house, which was
not far beyond the barn, and lock the
door was the work of but few mo.
ments; then Jack turned to go back,
when his foot slipped on rolling stone
and over he fell. When he tried to get
up cry of pain escaped him, and he
found that he could not take step.
'Here's a pretty state of things!" he
said aloud, lapsing unconsciously into
the language of Koko. Whats a fell
low to do?"
| He knew that the barn had been
locked long ago and that William, the
/ ma +bar ho
no help from that quarter. There was
nothing to do but get himself home as
| best he could-a slow and very painful
| process which il took some time to ac-
| complish.
He reached the house just as the
lights were about to be put out and the
doors locked for the night. His moth
er's surprise and terror when Jack
crawled upon the piazza and she saw
his white face can better be imagined
than described.
Mr.. Harrington carried Jack upstairs
while Uncle Ned hurried off for the doc
tor; and while his mother was cutting
the stocking from the badly swollen
ankle and getting the foot into hot wa
ter he told her how it happened.
sit will be all right in the morning,
won't it, mother?' he asked so anxious
ly that Mrs. Harrington hadn't the
heart to tell him that she feared it
would be ;nary Mornings before he
could use it.
"a pretty bad sprain," DR.. Rogers
said, half an hour later, and he ordered
the ankle kept in hot water for an hour
and then bandaged with hot COM
presses.
Jack finally fell asleep with his
mothers hand smoothing his hair. and |
all night dreamed OF ire-crackers and |
big red letters, which seemed to be |
alive and possessed of legs, dancing the |
widest kind of jigs in the orchard,
while he himself was going up like
rocket, only to be pulled down by Dick
Torrey's seizing hold of his ankle with
such grip that he awoke, calling out:
"Stop that. old fellowr'
The sunlight was streaming into his |
room, and he heard soft whistle under
his window; he started up, remember
ing what day it was, and thinking that
he was late for the 'Serenade," but
twinge in his ankle reminded him Of
last nights experience, and he sank
back on his pillow, buried his face un-
der the sheet, and-will you think any
the less of him if / tell you of it?--yes
actually cried. But no one knows of it
to this day but you and me, for Jack
Scorned tears, and had been heard to
say only the day before, when Emily
had had some slight disappointment,
that ''only girls and babies cried"
So he dried his eyes very quickly
when he heard his mothers step. and
swallowed the big lump in his throat,
and said, in an off-hand way, when she
zane into the room: 81 guess I'm in for
It. You'd better tell the fellows"-for
.he soft whistles had grown by this
lime into loud calls of wake up,
,leepy-head" Hurry up, lazy -bonesw
You're a nice one to sleep over on
Fourth o. JULY" and various other COM
salutations.
Mrs. Harrington went down and told
.he boys of Jacks accident, and they
walked sorrowfully away.
The doctor came soon after breakfast,
md said that Jack could be carried to
he piazza and lie in the steamer chair,
1ut that on no account must he take a
step that day.
1t was hard, wasn't it, boys? I won-
Ter how many of you would have borne
t as bravely as Jack did!
Every one was kindness itself, and |
an not describe the attentions and ten
lerness shown him by his family.
Birthday presents were showered
Ipon him, the tender-hearted and for ,
living Emily emptying her bank of its ,,
ontents in order to buy five-biaded d,
,nife to give him in addition to her
ther present.
"The gang" came around and tried,
n their boyish ways, to show sympathy:
hey offered to bring all their fire. ,
rackers and fire them off in Jacks ,
ard; but this was little more than
uman nature lat least Jacks human =
ature) could bear, and he said, =
'olitely:
"No, thank you; the noise might dis
lr5 the family" .
But do you think no victories were :,
'on that day? Let me tell you. Toward 4
oon the thought of those dozens of
ackages of frecraclsers lying un-
ouched in the sugar-house appealed to ;.
ack, and he said to Emily: =
"You might as we'll get some of those :
re-crackers, and if we see Tim Reilly !
r any of those kids Il am sorry to say G
hat my hero did talk slang) who didn't q
xpect to have any, why, just toss out /