Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1891-04-23
BETTINA'S STORY.

My little neighbor, Bettina, came il
one evening and said imperiously: "Tel
me story"
"Certainly," said; ''sit down and
will begin: Once upon time, long
long time ago."
81 don't like "a long, long time ago
that's the way grandma's stories always
begin, and you're not as old as grandma
and can't know anything about "a long
long time ago. Tell me something
else'
'Very well" | said, submisSively, 81
know very pretty story about little
girl who was one day out in the fields
gathering flowers, and as she was saun-
tering along"
''She met little old woman, who said
to her, little girl know all that, the
little girl and the little old woman al
ways say the same things, and the little
old woman always turns out to be fairy
and the little girl always marries the
prince. l don't want to marry prince;
my papa says there isn't prince liv-
ing he couldn't buy up three times
over"
"Bettina!" 1 gasped.
-"And as for fairies, I've been in the
fields often, and I've never met any
fairies big or little"
"And what's more, Bettina," l said,
shaking my head at her sadly, "you
never will"
mo, and l don't want to; they always
say such foolish things like the stupid
old giants. I'm sick of giantsl | saw
one once in dime museum, and he
didn't eat anybody or say fee fo, fl fum'
way down in his shoes like the books
say; he just stood up there and let peo-
pie look at him and feel him like piece
of wood. He wasn't worth paying
dime to see. Tell me story, please"
"But it is so hard to tell you story;
there are so many things you don't like.
Let me see-shall L tell you about the
man in the moonr'
"There isn't any man in the moon;
there's nothing but dried up lakes and
rocks there, and all sorts of dead things"
'Ohr'
''And l don't want to hear about San
ia Claus, because 1 know who Santa
Claus is, and anyhow he couldn't get
down the chimney through the CRATE,
because the CRATES too little"
swell, then, there is the rabbit that
comes on Easter"
Bettina's lip curled scornfully. "Why,
1 order the dye for the eggs myself"
"Red RidinOhOOd-"
"Poohl Who ever heard wolf talk!
Did you?"
'"No," 1 said feebiy; "but they some
times bite
"'Course they do, if anybody's crazy
'nough to go close to them. guess Red
Ridinghood was silly"
"Then," 1 said, desperately suppose
you tell me story"
This idea seemed to please her. She
leaned back complacently in her chair
and folded her hands in her lap. Her
hair fell on her shoulders like yellow
silk; her skin was sweet and pink; her
eyes blue, and her little form clad in
costly clothes, made in the picturesquely
simple fashion of long ago. An ideal
ooking child, aureoled by the setting
sun.
"Well," she began, IN quick, monot-
,nous tone, pitching her voice a key
higher than usual, "there's man lives
lext door to us named Smith-you've
een him?"
"Yes."
"He has wife, and she's named i
seen herr"
'Yes"
"And they've got five children-Anna
'mith, Fannie Smith, Tommy Smith, !
feorgie Smith-you'ves seen them?" l
"Yes." {
"And baby-you'ves seen it?"
"But the baby hasn't been christened
ct, it's got four teeth-two lower teeth !
nd two upper teeth, and when it cries /,
t goes 'wha-ah, wha-ah, wha-ah,' and !
is got blue eyes and no hair; and they've 9
.ot dog-you've seen it?" 1
"No." '
NAMED Bruno, and every time the S
aby goes out the dog goes with it, and |
hey always know when the baby's
oming home, because the dog comes in
rst; and they've got cow, and eat .,
hats too old to catch rats, and mamma 8
avs she don't know why they keep it 4
ecause it costs somthing to feed it, but !
he children are awful fond of it; and
hey've got a cook and house girl, but
hey haven't got nurse and they
aven't got a carriage cause they're too C
oor to keep one, and mamma says t
hey're not the kind of people she wants o
o loan ours to. l don't know why $
cause their shoes are clean and their
lothes are nice, though they don't cost u
S much as mine-and they've got nice g
hats got pink flowers on V
t, and Fannie's hats got blue flowers.
nd Georgies hats got red flowers, and
he baby's got lace cap all full of frills,
nd every one of them, 'cepting the ba- q
", have had the measles, and Group, a
nd mumps, and whooping cough, and a
arache, and toothache, and scarlet fe-
-er: and Tommy's cut his finger often
nd Fannie once ran needle in hers,
nd George fell down and broke a tooth,
nd Anna hurt her toot so she couldn't =
walk for week, and Mrs. Smith has :
headache sometimes, and so does Mr..
smith, and this morning the house girl !
,roke dish that they had just bought, l