The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-03-18

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fronted tliis particular household last FRI
day night when small forest OF arms,
varying in color from the delicatest baby
pink to the rich chocolate brown OF the
cook, was laid bare for tho stnlpel and
tho virus. George Washington and Queen
Mary cut no figure among that crowd.
With us, tho business WIS strictly q
home affair, with doctors eliminated, for
physicians como high and sometimes arc
unnecessary Injuries.
The very young cortlngent-tlic tod
dlers who are still 30 innocent that they
Will chcerfully allow q tooth to be ex-
tractetl for the modest cotnpensatio of
one penny--were all expectancy They
didn't know what wns coming and hnd
been encouraged and cajolcd into leoninc
bravery. 5ss
These poor little babes were only too
eager to show their fortitude especially
as the word hurt, had been eliminated
from ai1 conversations in their presence.
rho stepping stones" who are Just .
little older, and whose limbs bear scars
OF former vaccinations were also full OF
expectancy. but decidedly suspicious and
by no means anxious to make n record
for their bravery. This contingent re-
5qulred careful handling.
Then came other children OF varying
sizes and vnrying temperaments-som IN
nervous as May colts and others abso-
lutely fearless. Ono or two, though eager
to see the 'killing,' were decidedly
qualmisll and inclined to be terrified.
The only ground on which all united
was In an Irresistible curiosity to see
everybody but himself vaccinated. Yet
when the proposition waJ brought home
10 .npu rfv nv al
half 30 amusing or interesting.
The Queen Bee, OF course, was here,
there and everywhere at the blood
spilling. This ubiquitous, omniscient, om-
nipotent and all-seeing boss naturally had
a million things tosdo.
On her, 1t devolved to soothc the
wounded, bolster UP the frightened, en-
courage the suspicious and threaten the
frivolous. In addition to this. 1t was her
duty to prepare the victims for the
| slaughter, uphold them In their hour OF
dergoing the drying-out process and
menace them with a bed-slat when they
sought to scratch their wounds.
Nobody short of. the COMMUNICATIVE
Chief or Napoleon Bonaparte could have
commanded on such battlefield or main
tanned such perfect order among the SER
ried legions as did this intrepid spirit in
the curl papers.
When the call for first volunteers was
made, everybody advised everybody else
to plunge ahead and get rid OF the pesky
business. The elder brats were particu-
larly solIcitous in their desire to see their
younger brothers and sisters have done
with the ordeal.
And so 1t came to pass that the twins.
In fts tVfa ffrn fv,tn yS.nr n
| snatched from a downy crib and dragged
In their nighties to the executioner. It
was pie to then1--the excitement, the
eclat. the mysteriousness and the self
Importance OF the occasion, while the
plaudits of the dilatory contingent were
sufficient in themselves to turn the heads
of older and wiser folk.
Twin No 1, clad In an cmbarrass-
Iingiy simple costume and with ppc.stem
right arm barred for the fray, proudly
struts forward to show his nerve. Twin
No. :; just a bit skittish by now. peeps
| through the half opened nursery door
with eyes as big as saucers. He Bkcenly
watches the yaccinator and the little
vaccinatee At first. re sees his brother
solemnly looking sidewise over his shout
der at the knife. which is gently picking
lat his arm. Then he sees the sacrificial
| victims face undergo sudden change
| ! OF sIleNt 3h1-toAiiS
| contorted and then follows a yell which
| is ever in the icrescendo.
At this juncture Twin No. ! is over
| with the worst, hut doesn't know 1t and
therefore liowls as q precautionary meas s.
ure.
The head OF Twin No. Q by this time
| has lodged back into the nursery. but he
| Is dragged forth and yanked before the
virus manipulation. Meanwhile. the first
volunteer 1t tearfully pacing the room.
Like a thy Roman senator wearing
| toga, for he must now spend fifteen min
1 ntes drying his honorable wounds and re-
sisting the awful temptation to scratch.
Twin No. 2. long ere he gets the first
4 prick. has repented of his former bravery
| and nothing now buoys him up but curl
i sosity He survives the ordeal, however
with nothing more than a few howls fand
! many tears. Great consolation he finds
! in the beautiful bloody spot above his
elbow, which fascinates his gaze.
The fun has now reached a point whcr
volunteering IS altogether out OF tho
i question:. Everybody has said that tho
twins We're cute in the way they "stooe
i it, but nobody else cares to win glors
4 by being cute.
4 The Queen Bee therefore, casts her
eye around with the of doing
1 a little coercing. She selects a small
boy who on being partially denuded, a p
pears to wear a glove on his right hand
/ But it is not n glove-only a coating OF
4 dirt which extends to the wrist and de-
i fies all the scrubbing brushes in Chris.
4 tendom.s NJ ST ys
This 4urchin undertakes to resist at the
last moment and thereby shocks the fam
u lily. but on getting within the iron grasl