The Republican journal., 1898-04-28
Nav, when you get in you won't mind

/ .
pretty cold"
"Wet your legs and you won't get the
cramp," advised Jimmy Sears.
Mealy stopped over to scoop up some
water in his hands He heard the boys
laugh, and the next instant he felt a
/ shower of water on his back. 1t made the
| tears come.
"Uhm- NJ no fair splashin',' he whin-
ed.
Mealy put one foot into the water and
drew it out quickly, gasping, 100. ain t
goin' in. It's too cold for me. IT Il bring
my measles OUT He started trembling
up the bank; then he heard a splashing
behind him.
Come back here cried Piggy, whose
| hands were uplifted; ''come back here
and git in this water or I'll muddy YOU"
| Piggy's hands were full of mud. He was
about to throw it when the Jones boy pre-
tended to laugh and giggled, "Oh, was
| just a-foolin'.i
| But he paused again at the waters
edge, and Piggy, who had come up close
enough to touch the rickety lad, reached
out muddy hand and dabbed the quak-
ing boys breast. The other boys roared
with glee Mealy extended deprecatory
hand, and took Piggy's wet, glistening
arm and stumbled nervously into the
stream, with an 500 oo.' at every uncer-
tain step. When the water came to Mea-
ly's waist Abe cried, duck, duck, or L IL
splash you The boy sank down, with
his teeth biting his tongue as he said,
| DOL wouldn't do you that way
When the shock of tepid water had spent
cred happily. "Oo-it's good amt it?''
/ Ten LOT he, hoes alvin
| from the roots of the elm tree into the
deep water on the other side of the creek
Ten minutes after that they were sliding
down muddy tOboggan which they had
revived by splashing water upon the in
cline made and provided by town boys
for scudding. Ten minutes afterward
they We're covering themselves with coats
OF mud. frescoed-one with stripes made
with the point of a stick, another with
polka dots, another with checks, and
Mealy with snake like, curvng stripes.
Then the whole crew dashed down the
path to the railroad bridge to greet the
afternoon passenger train. When it came
they jumped up and down and waved
their striped and spotted arms like the
barbarian warriors which they fancied
they were. They swan up the stream
leisurely, and, as they rounded the bend
that brought their landing place into
view, the quick eye of Piggy Pennington
saw that some one had been meddling
with their clothes. He gave the alarm.
The boys quickened their strokes. When
they came to the shadows of the ford
they saw the blue and white starched
shirt of Mealy Jones lying in pool tied
into half dozen knots, with the water
soaking them tighter and tighter. The
| ut har houS' o1o hos
''Mealy's got to chaw beef cried
Piggy Pennington. The other boys, ex
cept the Jones boy, echoed Piggys mer-
riment. Great sorrows come to grown-up
people, but there is never a moment in
after-lfe more poignant with grief than
that which stabs boy when he learns
that he must wrestle with series of wa
ter-soaked knots in a shirt. AS Mealy
sat IN the broiling sun, gripping the knots
with his teeth and fingers, he asked HIM
self again and again how he could eX
plain his soiled shirt to mother. Lump
after rose in his throat, and dissolved in
to tears that trickled down his nose. The
other boys did not heed him. They were
following Piggy's dare, dropping into the
water from the overhangiug limb of the
elm tree.
They did not see the figure OF another
boy, in ragged clothes, with a gingham
shirt, cotton suspenders, and a torn straw
hat, sitting on a stone back of Mealy
smiling complacently. Not until the
stranger walked down to the water edge
where Mealy sat did the other boys spy
him.
''Who is it?'' asked Abe.
u never saw him before, replied jim
my Sears.
'Oh, I'll tell You who it isl returned
Abe, after looking the stranger over.
Its the new boy. Him an his old man
came to town yesterday. They say he's
a fighter. He licked every boy in the
mountain jumpers this mornin'. "
BY this time the new boy was standing
over Mealy, saying, GLOW you gittin'
along?"
Mealy looked up, and said with the pet
ulance of spoiled child, "Hush youl
mouth, you old smartie! What good d t
do you to go an tie my clo'es?'
Piggy and Jimmy and Abe came hurry
ing to the landing They heard the new
boy retort, ''Who said tied your clio es?''
Mealy made no reply. The new boy re-
peated the query. Mealy was in the prim-
airy department of life, and had not yet
learned that one must fight alone. He
ans ered, 81 did, with an emphasis or
the ''I,' as he tugged at the last knot.
The new boy had been looking Mealy
over, and he replied quickly, you're a
liarr'
There was pause during which Mealy
looked helplessly for some one to defend
him. He was sure that his companions
would not stand there and see him whip
ped One of the boys in the water said
automatically, saw, Mealy, wouldn'
take thatn'
''Yon re another faltered Mealy, who
looked supplication and surprise at his
friends, and wondered if they were really
going to desert him. The new boy wad &c
! around Mealy, and leaned over him, and
said, shaking his fist in the freckled face,
''You' re coward, and you don't dast
take it up and fight it OUT
Mealy's face flushed. He felt anger
mantling his frame. He was one of those
most pitiable of mortals whose ange,
bring tears with it. The last knot in the
shirt was all but conquered, when Mealy
bawled in scream of passionate sobs:
When l git this shirt fixed I'll show
J you who's a coward"
The new boy sought level place OF
the bank for fight, and sneered, ''Oh
cry baby cry baby Say, boys, where's its
) bottle?''
Mealy rose with stone in each hand