The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1895-01-02
The Cork in the Bottle.

Rob-. called his mother from the
bedroom, where she was finishing her
dressing for church, "have you
studied your Sunday-sch0ol lesson
this morning?'
"Bother no." Rob answered in an
impatient tone. scarcely glancing up
from the book i'm which he was very
much interested.
why, Robn' said his mother, with
some astonishment. ~ thought you
told me you didn't know anything
about it, and 1 expected you would
spend the hour trying to learn some
thing"
IL have tried mother, as hard as ever
I.could, but I can't get a bit of it into
my head. Some way or other, it Is
so dry and stufy that can't get in
terested in it,"
His mother at that moment came
out Of the bedroom and took glance
at the situation. In an instant she
saw what was the matter. Going to
her room, she came back holding in
her hand an empty bottle with the
cork driven tightly into its mouth.
She walked over to Rob, and handed
it to him, saying:
II wish you would please take this
to the kitchen sink, and fill it for
me-"
Rob arose and left his book quite
reluctantly. He went to the kitchen.
slamming the door behind him in q
way which indicated either that ne
was very careless or in a very bad
humor. After little while he came
l~1 81 nl,s
ing, in tone which showed that he
was out of sorts
Mother, how do you suppose am
going to get water into this bottle
with the neck corked up tightly"
~ didn't suppose you could, Rob-"
was the quiet reply. =
"Then why in the world did you tell
me to do it ?" he demanded, half in
dignantly and half in wonder.
"Just to show you," said she show
impossible it was, and that you might
understand anothe. matter about
which I heard you complaining a mo-
ment ago."
"What was that ?" asked Rob, drop
ping his eyes as though he half sus-
pected.
"Why," said his mother, "don't
you remember about the Sunday
School lesson? You said you couldn't
get 1t into your head, and you threw
the blame for 1t on the lesson, declar-
ing that it was so dry and stuffy. But
don't you see it was simply another
case of trying to pour something into
a bottle while the mouth was
corked ?"
"Corked? What do you mean,
mama" asked Rob, now very much
inferred. "What corked me up ?",
For answer his mother simply point
ed her finger to the book which he
had been reading.
III don't care" half whimpered Rob.
"Uncle Jack said 1t was a good book
for boy to read" -, .
Possibly there is nothing wrong in
it," said his mother, ''if you would
read it at the right time but when
you use it on Sunday morning as
cork to stop up your mind. so that the
Sunday-school lesson, which ia Gods
message to you, can't get in, I think
1t it clear case of a book out Of
place.
Rob thought the matter over, and
evidently came TO the same conclusion
as his mother; for presently he walk
ed deliberately to the bookcase, and
put the book in its place upon the
shelf. Then, picki'g his Sunday
school quarterly out .fom under the
pile of papers and magazines on the
library table, he sat himself down in
his chair with resolute look upon his
face, saying to himself; "There, now
the cork's out. See if you can't
60 in"
And the bright, interested face with
which he came home from Sunday
school a couple of hours later, repeat
ing to his mother some of the things
he had learned. and some of the ex-
plantations the teacher had given,
proved that attempting to fill the bottle
with the cork out was an entirely diff
ferent thing from attempting to fill it
with the cork in.