The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-11-19

turned to hail in twinkling. The boys
gazed at each other. in silence for a min
ute. and then looked ait the fields ON eth
er side of the lame On on. side had
stood tassled corn, ON the other pole
beams. while at the extreme foor of the
hill was an apple archard. They would
have waited to watch the leaves and the
corn and fruit blasted in the httpr cold.
but they were afraid Of getting blasted
themselves. They We're freezing and were
almost too benumbed to get up the slip
perry hill and into Billy Masons house.
Mrs. Mason, Billy's mother, was put
ting up tomato ketchup and the perspira
tion was rolling from her forehead as
She hustled about the hot Kitchen. with
all the windows open and the torrid
sound of THE locust filing the air with
its shrilling
70 be confronted by three blue Tipped
boys, who with ch0ttering te,tl told her
that they We're Freezing to aalth, aas 70
make her bpliese tha@ She had gone
crazy And when She felt their ;,oor
numb hands. and the cellness of .hcr
summer shirts, she was sure of lit.
For tine land sakes. Are you bewitch-
ed? Where have you been and what
has haoDened!'
Billy explained that the bottle of liquid
air had been broken, ami then She was
us much in the dark as before, for she
mad never even heard of such a thing as
liquid air. Bat she knew what TO do in
cases of frost lite and She soon had the
boys hands in basins of cold waiter and
had heated milk for them to drink.
Then She went to the door to see what
had happened. The pump was thick with
ice and hong iG.cles hung from it's lips
The hired man stepped UP to it at that
minute and the next moment NJ was
Coasting on his trousers down the lame
and when he picked himself up he began
to rub his ea1s, and put for the house
as fast as he could.
I'm violent contrast to this she could see
people ON the piazza of the boarding
house, tanning themselves vigorously.
while in the hen yard Cf the I4e0unrdIs',
the hens We're walking about with open
beaks, a sure sign of unusual heat
While SHE stood gazing, there came a
sound of an amazed voice from the cow
lane, and then Billy's father, his blacll
beard coated with frost, ram in out of the
hail, followed by Snip, the collie, covered
from head to foot with ice
This beats ALL" said Mr.. Mason, slap-
ping his halltls. "A blizzaad lin August.
Where's my Pontiac mittensY'
1t was a fu53 horr before the LIQUID air
ceased to act and by that time The fields
in the vicinity of the place where the
bottle had broken, were covered with a
foct of hail
1t didn't take the boys long to recover
from their chill ahd then they mut on
l,Nf
ice ball fight. And they yelled ito some
Of the city children to corne ont am. play
with them, but they shook their heads
aIld said mammal wouldn't let them. Ana
they probably would have frozen to
death.
or course all the boarders were, inter
ested and several got their toes and ears
frosted and before the ice was melted
people begam to come from all over the
county, for the news had been felephoned
everywhere and toward night a reporter
canine out from the city and Tarkas was
pointed cut to him as the ONE who had
caused the disturbance. Trees coated
with ice in August are an lunw0nted
sight and MANY a snap Shot was taken
Of lit all.
Tarllls found that the reporter was
cHtuliily sort Oh IeHOW anu Uney Decdlhe
fii.end3 at once. I'm sorry j didn'!
inlye a gallon of the stuff, for I could
have frosted the whole State just as
easy and given you lots of pleasant work
writing it UP. It's IA peachy sight, isn't
it, said the boy.
Yes" said the reporter. ''tut the joke
OF it is THAT it was imitation liquid air.
We'll. had just as cnuch fun rs if it
WAS real. There wasn't amy limitations
about the cold, anyhow"
And there wasn't any imitation about
the sum that Mr.. Greenwich had to pay
for several barrels of frozen apples and
corn and beans, and he now feels that
there are some things That he ought to
refuse the boy hereafter. And liquid air,
imitation or otherwise, heads the list
that he has made out