The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-09-20

says, "wedder you makes frens or enemies; wedder you is good or bad in odder ways; wedder you looses or keeps your spend ing money; wedder you makes frens wit de matron, as 1 has told you to; wedder you sometimes forgets, or always remembers your th's; wedder it is clear or cloudy, Sunday or week day; if you is well or ill; l asks but dis one ting" Duchess says, de weeps coming into her voice. "only dis one solemn duty before all odders, and above all odder tings," she says, 'and dat is, dat you never is witout a clean, fresh hanky in your pockets. If you forgets your self and tells a lie, or is impudent to odder boys, or don't have your French perfect, you can be for given by heaven; but mon enfant, heaven would not, and your mod der could not, forgive you if you was found dead or wounded wit out clean, fresh hanky in your pocket"
 Sure, mama" says de kid, who sometimes talks straight English like his daddy; sure, I'll sink clean wipe in me jeans every day"
 Dat is right" cheri," says Duchess. 'Dere is many signs of being a gentleman, and dat's what we're going to make you; but all signs fail on a man who has not a fresh, clean hanky on him. Od- derwise a man may be in rags and stained wit travel and covered wit-wit-covered wit"
 "Wit hay seed" says l, willing to oblige, but Duchess gives me de troubled eye, and goes on. He may be covered wit de soil of in- nocent games and play. But when it comes to his hanky-well, remember de woids of your mod der!"
 Duchess always packs two kinds of wipes herself-one for show and one for blow. Now she takes out de one for show, and dabs her eyes, like she was over come wit commotion, and I know from dat she had passed de deal to me. So I says, "Kiddie," says I, what your ma says to you Is on de dead level, and if ever hears of you wit a wipe dat isn't up to de standard I'll show you a new use for hitching strap be- sides to hitch"
 "Yes, daddy" says kiddie, who was sitting up and paying all kinds of attention now.
 q has only a few woids of ad- vice for to saw off on you, me- self, and dey is woids about de end of de game dat I didn't go to no pay academy to loin about. In de foist place, me little man, don't go looking for trouble. It's a funny ting about trouble, dat dough de woild seems to be filed wit it, still dere isn't so much, dat it is found witout looking for it, mostly. You'll hear wise bazoon- uses pass it along dat dere is so much trouble in de woild de reas- on you is not to look for it is, dat you'll get all you can take care of witout looking for it. Oats de talk of a quitter. To be sure a mug gets some trouble in dis woild witout looking for it; but what I'm telling you is, dat dere is a lot of trouble dat is like a sleeping dog-it won't bodder you unless you poke it wit stick, to see what it is like. Just don't look for it, and dere is heap of it dat you won't see.
 "Cop me right. me son: I'm not telling you dat dere Is no trouble for does dat don't look for it. neider am I trying to con you wit a song dat you must dodge de trouble dat comes your way, even when you are not looking for it.
 'If you find yourself up against it. witout looking for it, just tell yourself dat a little of it is a good ting to keep you in mind dat you are not made all for show. but mart for blow. Any old kind of trouble in dis woild dat your dad dy ever had knock-down to, is like a toot dat has to be pulled de way to stop trouble dat you can't duck, is to get just as busy wit it as you know how-under de rules of de game.
 Don't dodge too much; of course you meet a trouble dat don't look so much like yours, as some odder fellows, side step, and give it a chance to pass witout collision. Dere's no harm in being polite even to trouble