The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1905-04-01

sS s4~ saV @ N " 80 -
THE OFFICE SOY WANTS TO KNOW
"Ain't you willin to die fur your
eountry?''
Not by jugful, but If I was thar
wouldn't be any Jericho Guards to
die with. You've all bin wastin your
breath
'Iow.s that7,'
"Thar's jest 96 men In this town. "
continues Lish, and when the war
was goin on and thar was talk that 1t
might come to a draft the huh crowd
of us Went to the doctors to be examin-
ed. We had busts and ruptures and
short legs and sprung knees. We had
consumption and rheumatism and
heart trouble. We was deaf and nigh
sighted and toothIess. Thar wasn't
one blessed critter in the hull 9e who
was fit to jump over a tow string or
chaW peanuts, and kinder reckon
we'd better git sunthin soft to eat fur
breakfast and carry each other home. -
Folks get it into their heads the
Inspector continued, that a man who
will quit work in d certain part OF a
mine because he sees the rats desert
ing that section is superstitious when,
as matter of fact, he simply displays
sound judgment. Very soon after the
rats quit sounds will be heard, and
later on a slide follows. What would
have happened to the man had he
credited his fears to superstition by
d1sregarding the exodus Of the rats
and the subsequent noises2
Rats are the first of a mines inhab-
ifants to realize danger, and then
comes the mule. Man is the last. So
It is only natural that he should take
as positive indications of trouble the
actions of the others, and he should
not be regarded as superstitioas
creature on that account.
After rats desert an entry it is next
to impossible to get a mule into it, not
because the rats left, but because the
mule realizes the danger. Left to
themselves rats or mules would never
be caught in slides In mines. but It liz.
different with men. who will not foi-
Liberty or deathg As captain OF the
Jericho Guards you'll find me at the
front, and If | don't kill at least seven
invaders a week you kin bounce me
out
The seven uneles and seven invad.
ers Is pint, Moses says the deacon,
and I'm proud that we both live in the
same town. Bill Lapham seems to be
oneasy, and I'll ask him if he has any
thing more to say.
In the fust place." says Bill, "rdI
Ike to know If everybody is in favor
of organizin the Jericho Guards
"Well, that isn't superstition; It's
reality" and the coal mine inspector
didn't seem q bit pleased with the
suggestion that superstition might
sometimes be responsible for Ihe ae-
tions of miners.
Coal miners. he went On to say,
.tare not superstitious. Hear noises
OF course they do. but do people sup
pose those noises are imaginary? It
beats all how little is known generally
A Yaie Summit girl recently played
cruel joke on her mother, and this lis
how it happened: She accidentally
written to her mother in the haIyeon
days of their courtship She read the
letter to her mother. substituting her
own name and that Of her lover. The
mother raved with anger and stamped
her foot in disgust. forbfdding her
daughter to have anything to do with
q man who would write such nonsen-
sical stuff to girl. The girl then gave
the letter to her mother to read. and
the house became so suddenly quiet
that she could hear the cat winking In
the back yard. = Salisbury Press.
victory or death ! felt that was the
man to do It. don't want to crowd
Bill Lapham out OF place, but
Neither do Wer' yell 40 men.
But he must see''
f.Of course he nustr'
Then thar was yelIfn and shoutin and
q great aproar, and Bill Lapham said
It was doggoned crowd. and he could
AiSss@HLAY lsY0 VI AO11S0 LDSsCtaE1.z
Deacon Spooner hammered on the
stovepipe with his cane till he could be
heard, and then he said:
It appears as If we all want to lead
the Jericho Guards and die fur our
country. and it further appears as If
this meetin was gfttin mad about sun
thin. | notice Lish Billings over by
the 'lasses bar'Is. Lish, what d'you
think about things2 D'you want to be
captain. same as the rest!'
'Noap, replies LIsh in bis keerIess
A crue1 Joke.
False friendship decays. is ike the
ivy and ruins the wall it embraces, bur
true friendship gives new life and AMI |
nation to the object it supports.
Hello, Mike, do you find much to do
now2 %
eYls. I'm jest after cuttin down a
krae, and tomorrow I'll have to cut It +
ap. Albany Journal
If you know this IS the first Of a Aprila I
# Ehis amt such foolishaess'' I