The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1904-06-25

too, but it wasn't SO, as Uncle 81
discovered when Joshua came sail
ing back by and by, having in tow a
frog almost as big as himself with
the fannel-baited hook in its jawl
Joshua had made up his mind
that he'd had about enough of the
sass of those frogs out in the swamp,
and had rugged himself up with
hook and line, swum out and flashed
the flannel under the noses of some
of 'em, hooked one and lugged it
home. He brought in twenty-nine
that afternoon.
There were pickerel in that pond,
l think I told you. | should say
there was!
Gone day Joshua was returning
from frogging excursion to the
swamp, fetching in a prize, and
when it was half way home Uncle
ST saw big splash in the water
in his wake, and saw Joshua give
himself tremendous hump to him
self. He came right on, though, and
landed his catch, but his left leg was
off at the knee.
Zone of those pickerel had fasten-
ed on to as much of Joshua as it
could get into its mouth and took it
along. 1t was sad blow to Joshua,
but sadder for the pickerel dead at
the edge of the pond next day.
''It weighed eight pounds, but it
had bit off more of Joshua than it
could chaw. That was only half of
Joshua's leg, but it had choked the
pickerel to death.
'Uncle ST was handy man, and
as soon as he saw what allied Joshua
he cut a stick off of tree and fas-
tened it on the frog as wooden
leg. The wound healed up, the skin
grew down over the wooden leg, and
in few days Joshua was stumping
around the place first rate.
"His swimming days were over,
though, and with them his useful
ness as a frog catcher was gone, al
though, unfortunately, Joshua did not
think SO himself, and one day Uncle
ST almost fell in faint when he
saw that frog seated on a big slab
and padding over toward the
swamp, his frog tackle with him,
and his wooden leg sticking out in
front of him like a veteran of the
wars"
'Somethin' will happen to that
uncompronising frog yit, sure as
settin' hens!' said Uncle ST, soon as
he could catch his breath.
"Ie was right. Day after day
for week Uncle ST gazed out over
the pond toward the swamp, watch
ing for Joshua, but Joshua never
came back.
"'I knowed them aggrevatin'
thunk they'd'a' took advantage of a
cripPle?'
time when it was to the advantage
of that part of old Steuben that I'm
Gle Sis pond should be drained, and
it was.
"The swampy bogs became dry
land, and were covered with nice
growth of timber. One day Uncle
ST was tramping through it, and he
saw a tree with a funny looking OBJ
ject near the top.
Curious to know what it could
be he chopped the tree down.
Words can't express the astonish-
ment of Uncle ST when he discov-
cred that the strange object was
the skin of tremendous big frog,
one leg of which was fast to and
part of the top of the top of branch
of the tree.
"Uncle ST was puzzled, but the
minute it come to him that the tree
was a willow and that it had been
a willow tree from which he cut the
wooden leg for Joshua years before,
all was plain.
It's lost joshua said he, and
his wooden legp
"And SO it was. The poor frog
had got stuck by his wooden leg in
the mire of the swamp that day he
padded over to resume his frogging
He couldn't extricate himself, and
there he died.
"The willow cutting had taker
root there, of course and had grown
with the years, lifting Joshua along
| with it, and preserving his skin with
the tannin in its sap. Uncle ST hae
thought the world of Joshua while
alive, and so l always thought i
was queer the use he put the skin tc
after he took it home. He sewed uT
the mouth and used the skin for
feed bag for years.
"Wonderful, wonderful, how will
low will take root and thrive! Sim
ply wonderful!
The Hon. Lafe Gleason couldn'
DENY it, and Col. Ed. Gilmore, see
ing there was a frog in Col. Jones
throat, sent Sharkey, the proud wait
er, with a wireless message to Jim
my Gray at the high ball refec
tory.-N. Y. Sun.
Grace-Cheer up, George, none.
won't buy everything.
George-But if we had lots o
money we could buy things tha
would console us for the thing
money won't buy.
THE MAN to pick out to appre
ciate the joke you want to tell hin
is the fellow who is waiting to Dor
row S. from you when you ge