St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1897-04-03
A Good schoo1-srarrn. .

A Good SchoOI~Marm.
This thing which some folks call fate,
and sonic call predestina ton, is apower-
full GOOD schoo1-marn, aeeordin to my
doxology. You understand / have
been one of her scholars for 10 these
many years, and she has learnt me
some lessons which never can live
long enoughto disremember. Icouldn't
forget them if / wanted to and tried my
level blamdest. She has likewise also
give me some terrible hard knocks and
made me wear the Ounce cap many and
1nany's the time. But as yet never
have spelt up head, and i amt quit
school neither.
In my bummin and bruisin around
promiscus through this vain and feetin
world below I have already learnt that
a man can mighty soon run the savin-
up-for-a-rainy-d business into the
ground if be wants to. He can starye
and stint and rake and scrape and
worry and wear his life out before the
rEiny day comes or the first frost of old
age comes.
Some men want TO get rich too all
fired suddent like-straddle fortune
at one jump, as it were, and then live
high ard riotous in their old rednainin
days. But if you will only wateha man
like that you will notice that he most in
generally always gets old quick and
lives hard and dies before his proper
time. He. may make stacks and cords
of money and put it out Were the
dimes will turn to dollars Ell ry oncst
and occasionally, but yet at the same
time feel poor and live poor and pass
out ahead Of time. Accordin to Andy
Lucasand the Scripture money makes
the mare go. But it can't make good,
solid grub go and stay when 81 mans
genefalkmachine runs down and the bot.
tom drops out Of his bread basket.
So when You come to count up all the
costs I would a whole lot ruther let
ererything go as fast as it comes and
take my chances about the settin down
Place, than to wear myself out and have
10 take ont aud quit before! ever find
time to Stop and rest. Mortal man,
born of female woman, "breaks" and
''spuFts'' q most too much anyhow. He
runs too high up either too low down.
If he would but only strike d level, and
make good average, and let well
enough alone. he could hold his speed
better and stand the pace longer.
Jim SVeathcrferd the Qufttcr.
Little Jim Weatherford - q half
brother to old man Bunl1--waswha you
mought call a gutter. He most in
generally went in for the whole hog
or none, andgub none atlast. He scared
4, good start and got away with fine
burst Of speed, but he broke all to pieces
before he got on the home stretch and
then went home and quit.
The nlainest trouble with little Jim
was that he was too internal nervous
like and smart. He must of been born
Ia q hurry, and ] know for my own in
dividual1y self that he lived and died
atabout the same rate. He was mover
and a hustler from breakfast all the
way. He didn't have a blessed thing to
start on but so acres of land and one
mule, but his head was set on maxim
money, and he made it. He took the
lead row himself, and everything and
everybody on the place had to follow
aud keep UP. He lived athome all alone
by himself-lived as clost as the bark
on tlogwood traean d Ephensemeyer
he got Il dollar he helt on to it till tfse
eagle screamed and another oEe
turned up to keep il company
Little Jim had been borned and brung
up in the midst OF poor folks and hard
times, and when he come to be man
he give it out that he was goin to put
plenty of money in his fanks and then
take out aud quit and have a high heel !,
good time. Ike was as sood as his5gyordz
to some extent, and at 30 years old he
had three plantations and twdnty-odd
head Of mules and was payin taxes On
about $1,000 worth Of stuff. And vet
] never saw him in my lifeswheE he
want hard run and headed straight for
the poor house, to hear him tell it. He
made money on top of money. and got
rich, but he never could see it in that
way. With him the takin out time and
the settin down place never did como.
lie rakcd and he scraped, and he
stinted and saved up for d rainy day,