Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1898-07-07

carried q small starch box under his
arm; aside from the layers of soil with
which his face and hands were incrusted
the trousers and fragment OF calico
shirt were his only attire.
"say, mister" he began, in the nasal
whine of the professional besgar,
Mothers sick an the baby's a-dyin',
and we amt got no money to buy no
medicine, an fathers dead an"
"oh, go away" exclaimed; for l
could see, not only by the boys man
ner, but by the grins of the station
loungers that he was juvenile conf
dence operator.
"Strew, honest, s'trew, mister"
pursued the young rascal, unabashed;
IAN I've got ter sell my two pet
OWLS" and here he began to SWIVEL and
held out the box.
"Have you got two owls in that
boxT I asked.
ayes, sir" he answered, brighten
ing up, for he saw his victim was bit
ing. Don't open it now or they will
git away" he added. 'They's two fine
owls, an SIGH pets!"
"How much do you want for them""
I asked.
twenty-five cents" was the unex-
pected and hasty answer.
It seemed that his elaborate tale OF
woe should have been worth at least
dollar, and on the impulse of the mo-
ment l produced q quarter. He
clutched at it and dashed of across the
prairie amidst the outlaws of the sta
ton loungers.
$50 he's took you in" remarked
the Pullman conductor who had come
up at the moment. Hes a young
imp, he is; his father is one of the sec
ton hands, but his mother died q
couple of years ago, and he's run wild
sence. What did he say was in the
box? Last trip he sold one of my pas
sengers a prairie dog in a box, same
way. Oh, it was thar all right, only /
reckon it must have been dead week
or so by its smell"
HE said that there are g pair OF
prairie owls in the box" Ireplied rather
stifiy, for was nettled at having made
fool of myself.
"Mebbe thar is" said the conductor
bout week ago he sold a passenger
Rocky mountain bat; and when he
opened the box he found half brick
brick-bat, y know?" and the conductor
walked off chuckling.
debated in MY own mind whether
or not to fling the box out on the prai'
RE; but my curiosity was too strong
besides could feel something moving
inside; so I took it into the car, ana,
closing the door of my stateroom, !
prepared to investigate my purchase. !
cautiously slid the cover and almost
dropped the box, for was greeted by
q whirring sound that, to my excited
fancy, seemed like the warning OF
rattlesnake; o glance treasured me the
boy had told the truth, he had sold me
two owls, but such looking objects!
They were not more than three days
old, and there was not one feather to
the pair; they were covered with scapty
down, powdered white by the starch
which still remained in the box. They
stood erect, close together, as Il
ashamed of their nakedness, yet glarin
at me Indignantly and defantly with
their big, round eyes. ] began to pom
- 40
could not turn them loose, 1 did not
know how to keep them, they were so
young they would probably die, and
they hadn't feathers enough to stuff,
My me litations were brought to close
by my mother, who entered the state
room and asked what had there.
ga pair of OWLS" I replied, sheep
isAly. Then told her the story of how
I had been victimized. There were q
few motherly words of advice about the
desirability of not buying "a pig in Q
poke" or an owl in box, and then
mother like, she rose to the occasion
and solved my doubts.
"You were very foolish to buy them
but now you have them you must take
care of them. Go and get them some
thing to eat"
"What do owls eat9" quer!ed
doubtfully.
sMice and small birds"
1 suggested that the opportunities
for catching mice and small birds in
Pullman car, were, to say the least
limited.
"a little piece of raw meat, cut very
fine, would do" she replied, ignoring
any fippant remark and busying herself
in brushing the starch from the young
sters' fur.
I hunted up the cook of the dining
car aud secured from him bit OF raw
beefsteak, for which was obliged Il
"tip" him quarter! and may re
mark that it cost me quarter every
time those birds ate until we reached
New York; and their apPetites were
something enormous. When I re
turned my mother had the two snugl1
cuddled on her lap, under her hands
and she fed them on the raw meat unit
they stood up with crops distended like
couple Of pouter pigeons. Theiras
pect OF omL accent, self-conscious dig
nifty was so irresistibly funny that W.
named them Doctor and Judge at once
The remainder of the railway trip wal
uneventful, except that Doctor ant
Judge grew amazingly and sproutet
feathers. so that by the time we arrived