The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-12-08

ears were laid back close to his head
and held there, and now and the his
teeth grated on the bit.
She also saw that Mr.. Bowser held
the reinS with a careless hand and
seemed anxious to use the whip. She
refrained from saying anything, how
ever, until the buggy had been drawn
over a sand pile on one side of the
street and a heap of brickbats on the
other, and then she gently remarked:
IF you intend to bump into any Of
the shade trees along the street, please
give me a few seconds notice"
What do you man by that?' de-
manded Mr.. Bowser. 81 thought it was
mark. The horse is going all right,
and I'm doing all right, and
And the horse suddenly steered out
OF his course to Craze the hind wheel
of a peddler's wagon and almost cause
q smashup.
Mr.. Bowser wasn't going to make
any excuse at all at first, but on second
thought he concluded to say that it was
all the peddler's fault and that there
ought to be a law to prevent a cross
eyed man from driving anything but a
rhinoceros on the public highway.
Mrs. Bowser would have consented
to go without hats or shoes for the
next year if she could have been safely
transported back home, but her only
esource was to hang on and depend
upon Providence.
Mr.. Bowser had driven two blocks
farther when the horse bore to the
right and took the wheel off a banana
push cart and then sauntered across
the street and rubbed the nose of a
grOcer's horse and got the grOcer's boy
SO excited that he INDUCED in yells and
shouts.
Are you going to get us both killed?"
exclaimed Mrs. Bowser as she got her
hat Strengthened again.
"There you CO." replied Mr.. Bowser
as he narrowly missed running down
an old N do you want the
horse to walk? Shall 1 tie him to a
post? l never held the ribbons over a
better goer, and yet you are finding
fault about everything"
He's either unsafe or else you don't
know how to drive"
That's it; that's it! By John, but
why was l fool enough to bring you
along? That horse vicious? He's like
a lamb, and as far as my driving is
coDcerned'-
He was holding the reins loosely in
his left hand and fourishing the whip
in his right, and all of 2 sudden the
horse swerved and crossed the street
and ran up on the sidewalk and stop
ped with his head almost at the doors
of q drug store.
Did you think of having a pre-
scription filled?' asked Mrs. Bowser
as she got her breath back and found
herself still in the buggy.
Mr.. Bowser didn't reply. He had
walked up to the fact that he was no
driver and that the old horse had ways
Of his own which must eventually
lead to a Smashup. He was looking
pale and was all a-tremble as he leaped
out and grabbed the beast by the head,
and just then a policeman came up and
said:
You'll get fined S. for driving on
the sidewalk in this way"
"But 1 didn't drive him up here"
"Then how did he get here?"
"The Internal old beast took a shy"
"Well, you'd better take a shy your
self. 1 was watching you as you came
down the street, and I saw that you
knew nothing about driving. It's a
-ro,Io, @o,, 1{Iry% IT. o-zkIo. -oI:.1- |
or run over somebody. How did you
happen to come out with the horse?"
"You talk as if I was a boy three
years old" exclaimed MI. Bowser as
his anger began to boil and a crowd
began to gather. "My driving was all
right, but my wife was nervous and
afraid and kept speaking to me-"
"I1l bet she can drive better than
you can when it comes to that. How
are you going to get this old brute
home? He's aching to run and kick,
and you are not the man to handle
Cant 1 hire some one to drive him
back? The man warranted him to be
as gentle as a lamb, and l can't see
WHdl gu lulO I'LL. NlOd. you Olu
villain."
Half a dozen men stepped forward
with offers to drive the vehicle back
to the Bowser residence for 81, and
Bowser was about to close the
deal when the policeman backed the
rig clear of the walk and handed the
lines to Mrs. Bowser and said: 5
you'd better walk home, old man, !
your wife drives. AS a guardian :
IF the peace it is my duty to save
life if 1 can do it." |.
A feeling Of recklessness seized Mrs.
Bowser, and, although she realized
hat years and centuries and epochs
would pass away before Mr.. Bowser
forgive or forget, she picked up ,
the reins and drove off, and, though .
he three cheers and a tiger" given
Ter by the crowd of men and boys