The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1896-09-05

faction that two boys. having travelled
three miles in As minutes, should cover
six miles more in at least two hours.
As it was then but $3.50, he showed
me by scientific deduction" (he was al
ways great at things like that) that we
should have no difficulty whatever in
reaching the pond by 1O:30.
Strangely enough, we did not stop to
consider the possibility of our growing
tired. and not being able to keep up the
brisk pace we had cut out for the first
few miles, and in the cool of the morn
ing.
But as the sun rose higher, and COM
menced to beat down on the dry, dusty
road, we saw that we were in for
scorcher. The heat was something
awful. Our brisk walk had long since
changed to a logged shamble, and
rests became frequent and of longer
duration. We were also falling far
short of the schedule time, as computed
| by Walters scientific deduction" and
we saw very plainly that we were in a
| scrape.
Neither would turn back, however,
although think if either had proposed
giving it up, the other would only too
gladly have acceded to the proposition.
1t was a case of zones afraid, and the
other dassent," both of us hesitating TO
be the first one to cry baby, SO we went
on. Mypoor brother was limping pain
fully. unaccustomed to such exertion,
| and exhausted by the heat of the July
day. I would have been in fairly good
condition, had l not chosen this par
ticular day to "break in" pair of base
ball shoes.
You all remember how the boys used
| to wear those delusions of canvas and
leather, and also a habit they had Of
slipping up and down at the heel, owing
to popularity of construction. This
| pair of mine was no exception to the
general run and had slipped and rubbed
| until two beautiful blisters rewarded
their efforts. making it simply torture
for me to walk.
At last l took them of, and walked in
feet left to walk in, then it became my
own feet. How / wished and longed
for the calloused pedal extremities of
the bare-footed urchins / had often
ridiculed. will not dwell on the pain
full subject. 1t brings q too vivid recol-
lection of the suffering. even at this
distant date.
Everything must come to an end,
however, and when finally we could
see the clear water of the pond glisten-
ing through the trees ahead, think
could have reconciled myself to my at
Fiction, had it not been for apremonition
of distracted parents searching for lost
boys. The gentleman who kept the
hotel at the pond acted the part of a
ministering angel when we presented
our case to him. 1t being past three
o'clock. you can imagine that we had
developed quite healthy appetite, but
an account of stock, quickly taken,
showed our joint assets to be just seven
cents, not very encouraging surely for
two half starved boys, but our sympn-
thetic landlord stood by us nobly, when
we informed him who we were, for he
knew our father, and what a dinner he
set out for us!
If my bare and swollen feet caused
some little amusement among the
guests, it did not detract from my ap-
petite, and Walter was certainly not too
tired to eat. We felt much better after
our dinner, and would have started i'm
mediately on the return tramp, but our
landlord would not hear of it until we
had rested. He let us take one of his
rowboats, and, pulling around to little
cove, we had refreshing swim. We
were both feeling pretty nervous over
the sequel, however, and decided post
ponement could not lessen the evil, anil
would only make matters worse. So
returning the boat, and thanking our
kind-hearted host again, and promising
to send him the money for our dinners,
we struck out on that weary homeward
march.
My blistered feet were evidently in
state of temporary insensibility, rs
they gave me very little pain. but felt
there must be sweet hereafter in store
for them on the morrow. Walter was
pretty nearly gone, and stops were
necessarily called every few minutes.
1t was now dark, and our state OF
mind was far from enviable.
The old town clock was just striking
ten when our front gate opened and two
dust and travel-stained pedestrians
dragged themselves YEARLY up over the
front steps and walked in upon a circle
of woe-begone mourners.
In a second we were Rugged and
kissed by about ten different women,
who had come in to comfort our nearly
crazed mother, who, as mothers will,
imagined every conceivable manner of
misfortune, and she fully expected to
see our lifeless bodies brought in at any
moment.
Father had secured two teams, and.