The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1907-10-20

an when we git back --an' I'll leave Y
to you, Blll--lf you say we haven't had
q rood time--a rale old fashioned en-
joyable time, like we used to have
when we was boys-an' pardners-w'y
ri no to meetin' with you reg'lar sv-
ery Sunday fer six months" Uncle
Billy paused. hesitated. and the man
who hesitates--you know the rest o.
the proverb. Uncle Joe was once again
the dominant power In tho partnership
that had begun when they were boys,
years and years and years ago.
while the second bell was calling,
aCome oh, comew two bent forms
crept stealthly out through the sub.
urban orchard, climbed the fence very
carefully and stole down the inside Of
the hedgerow along a turning row.
toward the river.
aJoseph" (when Uncle Billy said
.Joseph' in the way he said It than.
It meant he was going to say some
thing not quite commonplace Joseph,
it was Jest sech day as this when
nv first wife when Mary and Twas
walkin' home from meetin-down IN
the old neighborhood when ! mus
tered up courage to- ask her II she'd
have me. The brown thrushes was
singin', an the wfld roses was In
bloom. remember. cause she asked
me to gether bolay Of 'em. ! had
no jackknife, an pullin' 'em OF !
tore my hand on big prick1y briar.
she tied up my scratched hand with
her Handkerchief, an when ! feft the
touch Of her soft fingers as she did Il.
I up an ast her to let me ta1e her
hand until death should part us. An
she did until death parted u.s."
IA strange light burned dtmly In Un-
Gle Joe's eyes as he listened-a light
that flickered for an instant and died
out even as Tiny flame win some
dimes shoot up and die out fsom q
deserted campfire smoldermg BY the
roadside In the darkness.
He, too, in the long ago, had wor-
SHIPPED at the shrine Of Mary-but
Biliy had never known.
Han an hour later they were at ths
old sycamore, whose misshapen trunk
hung far out over the pool Of wateE
where. as boys, they had fished and
bathed on many happy summer day.
sT'm glad there's no boys here To-
day." sighed Uncle Billy. 1T does
seem awful to me that boys as Is
brought up by respectable, God fear
I'm parents will be SO wicked as to fish
an swim on the Sabbath day."
ssBoy nature an hoss nature Is pur-
ty much alike the world over" sage
ly responded Uncle Joe. Il don't see
that boys Is any wuss than Ahey war
when we was boys. Bill, you know
you've been licked like sixty fer the
same identical tricks. An licked fer
what? Jest cause you was a-havin'
the only downright, rale good time
you ever got a chance to have. !
never had any boys Of my own, but
I'll tell you right here that If ] had
forty boys, an they all wanted to 90
swimmin' on Sunday, why, they could
60, an what's more, I'd 30 with EN-"
The audacious wickedness Of such a
sentiment fairly took away Uncle Bill.
ly's breath.
"Why, Joseph, you-you shorely
wouldn't think O bein' so wickedr'
wicked nothin'! That's jest the
way you used to talk when we was
boys pardners. 1t was Josephg an
Joseph An you was into as much
devilment as was tool An always
maxim folks believe 'at led you into
1t! Dog my skin! I'm goin' to have
that fish IL I have TO wade In an
chase him out on the bankw