Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1894-01-17
A DROPPED LETTER.

David Elliott was what is called
good boy. He thought it was wrong to
crib and would not for anything have
opened his Homer during Rep,
though if the fellow next him hap
pened to have loose leaf on his knee
that was another matter, of course, and
he saw no harm in taking glance at
that just before getting on his legs. He
had a hatred of bullying-especially
when he first went to school--and was
always most kind to the small boys.
Everybody knows that certain amount
of discipline is good for them, and that
if they become arrogant the truest kind
ness is to show them their real position
in society, and this David always did
by moderate and judicious use of the
middle stump. He was never cruel to
dumb animals.
Cats, by the way, are not dumb an
imals, as everybody who has ever bro
ken cats leg with stone well knows;
indeed they are really beasts of prey,
so that chivying them is nothing but
tiger hunting on a small scale. Above
all, he never told lies. He was always
strictly accurate in his statements, and
if people sometimes carried away a
wrong impression after asking him
question it was always because they
had not put it properly.
In the midsummer vacation, when
noxyi1 I Ia ff, Sr,nr,1 yvpnl,
or two at Ingleby manor, where his un-
Gle, Sir Walter Elliott, lived. He was
much better off than David's father,
who was the youngest Sun and clergy
man, and from whom David had learn
ed his love of truth
Now lngleby m;npr was a very nice
place for d boy TO spend his summer
holidays in 1t stood i'll d large park
with lake in it, in which there were
quite "a number CT fish. A punt was
mo0red in one corner Of the lake, and
stream ran cut Of 1t i'll which there were
delightful little pools for bathing and
| plenty of water rats that were always
ready for a romp with the terriers. In
the house were a billiard table, with a
whole set of pool balls, and room full
of guns In the stables there were six
or seven horses, and a number of dogs
lived in different parts of the place.
There were also a skittle alley and a
large kitchen garden. In fact, it was
a perfect paradise, and like every other
paradise it contained an Eve-and a
serpent-both cousins Of David. The
/ Eve was named Lucia She was year
Younger than David, but she always
showed promise of growing into-what
/ she now is-the handsomest woman in
the county She was an orphan and
spent good deal of her time with her
uncle, who was very fond of her, as in
deed was everybody else.
David fell in love with her at once,
and the more he loved her the more he
! disliked his other cousin Hughie. He
also despised him and considered him a
scug, which is rudo word and one not
to be used to anybody who is big enough
to punch the head of the boy using it..
Indeed, though Hugh was not altogeth-
er a gentleman; still less was he alto
gether a cad He was very handsome
boy and gentlemanlike enough in some
things, but he was not dressed quite
like the boys at David's school, and he
did not know how TO treat servants.
Worse than all, he dropped his h's-not
always, but only if he got excited about
anything.
David will never forget the look that
came on his uncle's face when, as they
were watching county match one aft
ernoon, Hugh cried out, well it, sir
well it indeed!" He turned quite
pale and said, very quietly, Come,
boys, | think we've seen enough OF
this, +" and they had to leave the ground,
although the second inning was only
just beginning. But, in spite of this,
Lucia liked Hughie much better thar
she did David When she climbed 6
tree, it was always to him that she
called to help her down. and when they
played cricket she never cared how fal
she had to run after the ball if Hughit
had hit it. Once-it was very hot
afternoon, and David couldn't gel
Hughie out-he called out for fun,
"Well it, sir, indeel" Hughie only
laughed, but she turned as red as &
turkey cock and walked off into the
house, leaving David to field as well as
bowl. She and Hughie used to go of
for long walks together, leaving Davi(
to lounge about by himself and wisl
that his uncle would send Hughie bacl
to his mother, little knowing that the
time was close at hand when he would
be very near to being sent home in dis
grace himself.
Now, the uncle of these boys was ;
man who thought great deal abou
eating and drinking. Indeed h'
thought of little else, for he was to-
lazy to walk and too fat to care abou
riding and never opened a book by an.
chance. One reason that he liked Davit
better than Hugh-which at that tim
he certainly did-was that Hughie hat
an immense, healthy appetite, whicl
led him 20 deyour anything he coul'
get, without much caring what it We
SO long as there was plenty of il
whereas David was much more partic
ular, and generally took only what h
had seen his uncle take, knowing tha
that was pretty certain to be the best
1t happened about this time that
friend Of Sir Walter who was in til
embassy at St. Petersburg sent him
jar of some very special Russian deli
cacy which cannot be got il England
even if an Englishman could be foun
clever enough to pronounce its name
| If waC q cC,7,f IF f.o17iorn n lr,S1-n1 Il l.
black Jam and tasted like mixtur