The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1900-04-10
A DOLL AND A MORAL.
BY BERNARD CAPEs.

I BY BERNARD CAPEs.
go sleep, darling go sleep" said
Mary in the smallest Of voices so that
the botanist, of whom she had wor-
shipful dread, might not hear.
But he did hear.
'Now, child" he said, put down
that thing and come"
Mary laid her doll on the worn leath-
er elbow chair, gave it a little sympa-
thetic pat on the back and reluctantly
crept to the side of the botanist as he
sat at his table.
do you see this drawing of a speci-
menu"
'Yes, SIR
Don't call me, sir. I've told you be-
fore"
Eyes, uncle"
"Now, nowl Am I your uncle-re-
lated to you in any way? am your
guardian. You should have learned
that in a week."
Mary looked at her black frock for
inspiration, failed to find it and whim-
pered.
81 won't have that, missw cried the
botanist angrily, but he should have
said ward to be consistent.
Mary's sprinkle of tears dried in her
eyes like wind blown drops of rain on
a easement. The botanist's tone soften
ed. He felt almost as if he had knock
ed over a delicate specimen.
"You must learn self reliance" he
said, with a stiff, kind smile. "You
are now an orphan, face to face with
the hard facts of existence, and you
must learn to SOW early that your har-
vest may be full for the reaping."
II can sew a hem," said Mary.
HEMP echoed the botanist. well,
WE'LL Look at this specimen and tell
me what it Is"
81 think
81 wish you to know"
cts bit of laburnum, then"
ITO what family does it belong|
Mary rubbed her left calf with her
right shoe buckle, felt an inclination to
giggle weakly, blushed, looked toward
the high, dusty window and into the
little sordid patch of Brompton garden
beyond and frightened anxiously.
''It belongs to yours" she said; "at
least that one there does. Only" she
added, perplexed, you haven't got no
family"
"Tut tutl This is shocking. De-
scribe the flower"
'Tt's-it's like rows Of little yellow
bees hanging on"
at is papilionaceous, certainly. We
can do without the fanciful descrip-
ton. notice a tendency in you-are
you listening?-a tendency to cheap
picturesqueness, which is opposed to
that brevity Of language which is at
once the richness and economy Of
knowledge. Poets (who are on the
whole contemplate race find their
effeminate inspiration in what they
choose to consider the accidents Of life.
There are no accidents in life. The
red or yellow of flower, its scent, its
formation, are merely subscriptions to
a condition and the natural incidents in
a system Give me your attention,
please shall ring and have that doll
removed, otherwise. To compare a
flower with a bee, an inanimate with
an animate object, is wanton and I'M
necessary. Now, hear me read this:
The laburnum (of the genus cytisus)
has it's leaves on long stalks; leaflets
rather glaucous, ternate, nearly SeSsile,
oval, mucronulate. The petioles and
SIMULATE stipules downy. The seeds
are highly poisonous, containing the
principle known as cytisine and pos
sessing narcotic acrid properties This
description, which l have written
down, / wish you to now take to the
little black table, with your dictionary.
In the latter you will search for each
word whose significance is unknown to
you, and when you are perfect in your
task you will come and construe to
me-"
The botanist turned his head as he
finished ant at once bounced to his feet
with a positive yelp Of rage. Mary
was hushing her doll, who was awake
and crying.
"This is outrageous he shouted.
"You are bad, ungrateful childw
His fury came with a clap. 1t was
part of system no doubt. But to ex-
pect him to be philosopher as well as
a botanist Was to be ridlculously ex-
acting. So he snapped the doll out of
its astonished mothers hands and in
an excess of Indignation tore head and
body apart at the neck and threw the
mangled remnants on the floor
"How dare you" he cried, stamping
and vibrating his clinched fists. you
have been petted and spoiled. shall
take you In hand with extreme Sc
verify"
One moment Mary gazed dumfound-
ed on her murdered innocent; the next
she flew at the botanist tooth and claw.
She pommeled him, and he tried TO
ward off the blows, too astounded for
words. But at length he got his arms
firmly about Ter, dragged her to the
door, thrust her violently without and
turned the key The child screamed
and thumped on the panels few min
utes, desisted suddenly and was heard
going sobbing up stairs.
"She is a wildcat" said the botan-
list, moving back to the table, with his
heart palpitating a little. II must
break and form her. Thank God, l
have never been married! A child is
irreconcilable with any principle Of
economics. 1 must mold her inexora-
bly,. l am bound to her dead parents,
but not to their degenerative system.
She has been spoiled, especially by her
mother"
His thoughts swerved with a jerk.
They ran to-and embraced shall we
say?-a rag Of yellow ribbon under
lock and key in his desk over there.
''She is wonderfully like Lucy" he
murmured and went on with his work,
which he found a little savorless.
Presently came tap at the door, q
timid one, and after TN interval an
other. The botanist came to himself
through an algebraic formula and went
and. opened it,. Outside stood Mary,