The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1893-07-03
A NANKEEN JACKET.

ing that / have good reason to detest it.
Truly, human nature is a bundle of con-
tradictions!
Hove yellow because of a certain cpl
sode in my life which occurred when /
was but 8 years Of age. / love nankeen
above all on account of a jacket of that
material which played in that episode
an important part.
Our school, which had been placed un-
der the patronage of st. Elizabeth, was
a mixed one-that is to say, up to the
age of 10 years boys and girls worked
and played together. In spite of occa-
sional quarrels the system, on the whole,
worked very well.
had not been eight days at ST. Eliza
beth's before / fell in love. Do not laugh.
Iloved with all the strength of my child
nature, with a love disinterested, simple,
sincere.
1t was Georgette whom | loved, but,
alas, Georgette did not love me. ,
How much suffered in consequence.
/ used to hide myself in corners, shedding
many tears and racking my brains to find
some mean of pleasing the obdurate fair
M Labor in vain, a thankless task, at
syears of age or at 80.
To distinguish myself in my studies,
to win by my exemplary conduct the en-
comiums of the sisters Dulorre--all this
made no impression upon cruel Georg-
cite. She made no secret of her prefer
ence for a dull, idle, clustering fellow, 8
years old, who won all the races. who
could fling q ball farther than any one
else, carry two huge dictionaries under
his arm and administer terrible thumps.
This hero was rightly nicknaued Met
arMort.
knew what his blows were like, hav-
ing been the involuntary recipient of
some of them. Some do, I say7 / had
received more than a dilatory donkey ON
the road to the fair!
And Georgette had only laughed!
Obviously it was absurd to think of
employing physical force against my re-
doubtable rival, and intellectual superb
ority in this case availed me nothing. T
determined therefore to annihilate Meta
Mort by my overpowering magn.icence.
u Naturally parents did not send us
to school attired in our best clothes. On
the contrary, most of us wore there our
Oldest and shabbiest garments. Conse-
quently / opined that it would he no diff
ficult achievement to outshine all my
schoolfellows.
should have to coax my parents into
loosening their purse strings and get
them to buy me a beautiful new jacket.
1t took me a very long time to decide
what color this jacket should be. / men,
tally reviewed all the colors of the rain
bow. Red tempted me, but I doubted
whether a jacket of that color would be
attainable. Should it be blue, green,
indigo, violet? No! Not one of those
colors was sufficiently striking.
I paused at yellow. That might do.
It is a rich color; there is something
sumptuous and royal about it. Summer
was approaching. decided finally upon
yellow jacket of nankeen.
Without delay ! set to work on my
school garments. 1t was a work Of de-
struction, for / wanted to make them
appear as disreputable as possible. I
slyly enlarged the holes, wrenched off
the buttons and decorated my person
4lavishly with spots and stains of all
kinds.
In what / judged to be an %opportune
moment timidly expressed my desire.
] had IL do more, much more than
that, before | could obtain my will. /
begged, stormed. grumbled, sulked. I
became almost i'll with hope deferred.
At length, for the sake of peace, my
parents granted my eccentric wish.
1t was a proud moment for me when
for the first time I arrayed myself in
that respondent nankeen jacket won at
the cost of SO many struggles. Standing
before the mirror ] surveyed myself adj
miringly for a full hour. was grandl
superb,
Al my Lord Met-a-Mort, you will
End yourself ousted at lastl My shining
jacket viii soon snatch from you the
prestige acquired by your stupid, brute
force. Georgette, astonished. fascinated
dazzled and delighted, viii run toward
me, for i shall now be the handsomes,
boy in the school. Met-a-Mort viii weeI
for chagrin, as ! have 80 often wept fol-
jealousy and modification"
Alas, for my rose colored anticipa
fionsi was greeted with a broadsid,
oflaughter. Even our gentle mistress
Enhance Dulorre, could not repress
smile, and above all other voices I heart
that Of Georgette, who cried mirthfully
+.Oh, look at him! Look at him! H
isa canary birdi"
The word was caught MP instantly
All the scholars shouted in chorus: "H
isl canaryi A canary
Words fail to describe my bitter dis
appointment, my burning, shame an,
chagrin. saw my folly row. But |
was too late-the awful deed was done
Worse than all, in order to obtain thi
now odious jacket ! had spoiled all M
other jackets and had nothing else {
waar! When ON the evening of tina
most miserable day ! told my trouble