The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-25

teacher, the pupils, the droning stiffness,
the cracks in the floor, the toad squirming
in his pocket-all drew his attention by
turns. Gradually the monotony of school
life completely possessed him and the sum-
mer day grew long and drowsy. Little
twinges of inconsistencies contorted his fea-
lures toward evening. but he was brave of
heart and would have held out firmly but
for an untoward circumstance The toad,
which he had cherished in his pocket all
day, died, and at recess an older boy in
formed him gravely that this disaster
would cause his fathers cows to give
bloody milk Such distressful calamity
was too much for Johnnie's already trem-
ulous emotions, and he broke down. Kind
words on the part of the big girls were un-
availing; even the gentle teacher could not
comfort him. L want to go-O-o home, ,"
he walled, and home he went. The journey
home was long and sorrowful. The very
dust seemed heavy and cherries, and he
would have cried all the way but that he
was alone. The most lavish boy will not
waste many tears on the desert air. Once
he thought he saw snake, and after that
he imagined it was trailing close at his
heels, thus adding new terror to his bur-
den. AS he passed by the pasture he saw
mindful of the dire spell upon them, and
the tears started afresh as he thought of
their innocence and his own guilt. He said
nothing about the true cause of his dis
tress at home, but, after milking time,
scrutinized the crooks carefully in the cell
lar. No blood could be detected, yet his
faith in the potency of murdered toads re-
manned mistaken. 1t is a boys character
SIT tn hal cfVar1 inc x6yha ha
cannot prove, and even where he can dis
prove The bona fide appearance of sew
eral warts upon his hands within week
demonstrated the power of the living crea-
ture beyond peradventure.
The melancholy and somewhat unheroic
ending of his first day at school made
Johnnie resolve never to go again. But he
was forcefully persuaded to reconsider the
matter next morning, and set out with
bold heart once more. Thereafter he quick
ly became a genuine schoolboy-a species
of urchin dstinctivey and eVerlastngly
different from the home boy. That he ac-
quired knowledge cannot be denied, but
that he made any conscious effort to do so
is extremely doubtful. The average boy in
school spends One-fifth of his time looking
out Of the window, one-fourth in misceI-
laneOus mischief, and one-half in dream
ing. The remainder is devoted to his
studies.
Johnnie made remarkable progress in the
art of reading. In a few weeks he could
read quite we'll off the book as on. After
noting the pictorial part of the lesson for
an instant, he would look towards the cell
ing and chant, ''The-cat is-on thermal" or,
liking his eyes upon the teacher, eXclaim
emphatically, Il see a fat hen" Spelling
was particularly delightful vocal eXer-
else to him, and he would wriggle and
squirm and twist his fingers ecstatically as
he sang, "Ca-ty cat, er-aty rat, ta-ty tat"
and he could have gone on ad inhnitum
If the alphabet had held out. Penmanship
he found more difficult. The arbitrary way
in which pothooks had to be made per
picked him, and in following the copy he
found it necessary to call into play every
muscle in his body, twisting his toes and
his tongue cOnvulsively with every right or
left curve. School life was running smooth
ly enough for Johnnie, but, alas. he had
yet to experience his first fight, his first
logging and his earliest embryonic love at
fair. E. O. l.AJJGHLIN