Waterbury evening Democrat., 1893-03-21
BOY AND RATTLE.
A Picture of Home Life with Half an
 Hours Exposure.

Hours Exposure. They were all sitting in the library, the mother, her two grown-up daugh- ters, her son-in-law and her boy. Ches- | ter, who was "going on twelve" One of the girls was sewing, the other was playing chess with the son-in-law. The old lady herself was reading the Bible. Chester, as usual, was making a null sance of himself. He had a toy watch mans rattle, and every now and then would set it a-going just to torment his sisters and brother-in-law.
 "Chester, dear" pleaded the unmar- ried sister, "won't you please stop that noisc?'
 1T ain't maxim no noise," answered. the young reprobate, and he was not just then.
 A minute later he gave the rattle an- other whirl, and then it was that his married sister remonstrated. | "Chester," she said. 'I should think you would be ashamed of yourself to make such racket when you know 1 how its disturbs us."
 q ain't mallin' no racket" answered the boy, and he was not.
 But the sound of his words had bare ly died out when he made noise with the rattle that seemed almost as loud as a bunch of cannon crackers could make.
 Then the son-in-law spoke up. Look here, Chester" said he, "what are you making such an internal hubbub for?"
 'I ain't maxim no internal hubbub, :" replied Chester, as he folded his hands across his breast and took on an in jured look.
 Thirty seconds later that old rattle went ''Craclx, crack, crackety-cr i" again making noise louder than ever.
 The the old lady said something She had been sitting there apparently absorbed in her Bible, and one would have said that she hadn't heard any noise at all. But it seemed that she had heard at least some of it. for, turn ing to Chester, she said: Don't crack that rattle any more"
 "I ain't crackin' no rattle," said the boy.
 A shade passed over the old lady's face and she made q motion as though she would put her Bible down, but she didn't do it, but went on with her read ing.
 Presently Chester let of another round.
 The old lady closed her Bible, taking pains to put mark in it, took off her spectacles and slowed them away in the leather case, got up on her feet and shook out her apron, and gave little pull to her waist to straighten out the wrinkles in it. Then she walked over and took MT. Chester by his right ear and said in the sweetest and gentlest way possible: Come 1 Chester"
 Chester followed his ear, and ir course of time reached his mother: apartment just over the parlor. It wasn't long before the two sister. and the son-in-law heard boys voice yelling. "Ow! ow! she's killin' me. and the cry, with some variations, wa:
 kept up for about five minutes. Soon after it stopped the library doo1 opened again and ip came the old lady looking as placid as a cup of tea. Sh' ' said nothing and nobody spoke to her though all Ctherc watched her. Sh, , proceeded at once to her scat by tn, | table, put her spcctacles on, took III her Bible, and began to read. The daughters and the son-in-lav ' exchanged glanccs and smiled. Tn,
 Son-in-law was very near laughin!
 aloud, but his wife restrained him.
 But she didn't restrain him nor her self when ten minutes later the olt lady. having finished her chapter, pu ,, her Bible down again. went over to tn corner whence she had dragged Ches Q ter by the ear, picked up the youni ! 1 watchman's rattle off the floor, am n tossed the thing into the grate fre.-N I. Times.