Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-07-06
The Declaration of independence,

You nave all read the Declaration OIL
Independence, I suppose. 1t is print
ed on fine type In the back of sae
Child's History, and at the top Of the
names signed at the end to show how
they wrote them is John Hancocks big
and bold, the way a person would
write If he We're doing it with a burnt
match. Papa used to gather us to-
gether in the parlor after breakfast ev-
cry Fourth of July and read us parts
Of 1T and explain the long words SO
that we would understand what the
Fourth of July was really for--that 1t
wasn't just to burn holes in your
clothes, and brighten horses, and leave
stubs Of flrecrackers on the sidewalk
that don't get swept off for days. When
we children came to have our own
revolution against the governess that
time mama and papa went away to
be gone two days, we knew Just how
to go about it; and we wrote Dec
laration of Independence. copying it
after the real true one, and then we
all signed our names at the bottom
with big fiourishes the way John Han
cock and the others did.
We thought with all our prepara-
ton success was sure, just as the pat
riots of '76 were successful as the re-
ward Of their darling, but alas!
| Our governess' name was Georgiana
l-Georgiana Saunders-which made 1t
all the more appropriate, because the
name Of the king about whom the
original Declaration was written was
George. as you probably know.
| When we got the Declaration done,
| 1t was something like this--some Of
the language we took from the book
and some we made up ourselves:
When in the course of human events
1t becomes necessary for something to
| be done about 1t, and we can't stand
1t any longer. The history Of our pres
ent governess is a history of repeated
injuries and usurpations. To prove
this let facts be submitted to a can
did world.
/. She makes us brush our teeth
| twice a day. which Is unnecessary as
well as wasteful.
Q. She won't let us lay books face
downwards, and so you lose the place
and are a long time finding 1t wter
you come back
i 8. She objects If you make fork
in your mash potatoes.
! q. She won't let us breathe on the
window and write with our fingers
days when 1t rains.
4 We can't have butter and sugar or
cur rice, only milk and sugar.
| 6. She notices, and makes us &c
\ back to look where we've made finger
marks on the white paint.
Z. We have to make our own beds
and then, If there Is q wrinkle, or II
isn't done right, we have to do 1t al
over again.
\ 8. She's just awful, every way yor
can think of.
and declare that we are and by righ
| ougt to be free and independent, ant
that our mothers and our fathers wen
away this morning and will not bt
back until tomorrow evening and tina
she is not our mother and our father
i never has been and never will be, ant
that we mean to do as we please, anc
that we have full right to levy war ant
also to do all other acts and things
, And to this. we pledge our lives, ou
fortunes and our sacred honor.
j (signed)
/ Arthur L. cambridge CHATS me-
\ Majorie Bainbridge,
Hester B. cambridge,
I Charles W. Bainbridge.
) Gregory Bainbridge, his mark.
And we brought in Rex-he's mix
ture Of an English mastiff and a siber
ian Newfoundland we linked his paw
and made him step on the paper JUS
below Gregory's name. And then w
drew circle around 1t and wrote RE
his mark" Then Mazda, the collie dog
, had to come in too, and pretty 500
+ there was mark about the size of
!, hot house violet, just below where Re
had printed a big black carnation
!. shaped thing with his lordly paw
Spotty, the cat, was the best of all
she upset the ink bottle on the nurser
carpet, and got all her four paws |
the Ink. and then ran right across tn
paper, SO her name was in severe
places. Charley (who wrote it, wa
sort Of mad at f1rst-said 1t spoiled tn