The bee., 1908-02-27
THE STORY OF
a RUG
pa Selected u with hIs Usual
Good Taeto

'I-er--bought rug to-day" he
said.
"A rug2" cried ma.
"A rugC cried Bee.
"A rug?' cried the rest Of the fam
lily, and Shep. the family cog, looking
as handsome as q picture. took advan-
tRgs OF the excitement by barking
loudly and tossing one OF pas ship
pera in the aft. pretending It was
naughty sheep. Shsp had q new rib
bon and he had been giving himself
airs all day.
INA, l ought to say, is an authority
on old china. Bee Is studying sculp-
ture, and the rsst OF the family hopes
to be . poet some day. Pa IL very
stout and he has any number Of
chins).
"Yes." said pa; "a friend OF mine
who is in the trade gets them very
cheap. and / arranged that he should
buy one for me and ship It by express.
A six by three. my love-"
Just the size for the parlop, my
dsars." said ma. I'VE need a new
rug for the hearth, and unless am
mistaken here is the eKpressman
now"
she went into the parlor and made
place for the rug, while pa carried
It In and united It. 1t had a green
fringe and border which shaded into a
tan. Inside this was blue and inside
the blue was an olive streaked with
orange. Large heads Of cabbage dot
ted the design wherever there was
room for them, these vegetables being
portrayed in pink and yellow, while a
flash of green with red spots breaking
out all over it composed the center.
Now, the beauty of these rugs is
this" said pa, 1eaniing at us. when
one side is worn out you can turn
them over and the other side is just
the same!"
81 think, my dears," said ma, that
the dining-room would be the better
place for 1t, after all"
We found a dark corner for it be-
hind door and pa sat and admired
it while ma and Bee shuddered to
themselves. Pa is very touchy in
anything rejecting upon his taste. and
he seemed to think that his choice of
this rug assured his reputation for all
time.
And the beauty of these rugs" said
he, is that they last practically for
ever"
The next day we put it up in the
| spare room and pacifled pa (who
missed 1t the moment he got home)
| by telling him that it was too good
for any diningroom. This Modified
him, but the next morning he got a
letter from Aunt Jane saying she was
coming to spend a few days. Ma ran
upstairs, and when she came down she
avoided Bees eye. Bee ran upstairs,
! and when she came down she avoided
my eye. l wasn't going to have it, so
l ran upstairs and put it in mas room.
When | came down ma looked at me
and sighed and fetched it down into
the kitchen. Shep looked at it very
thoughtfully. The groceryman knocked
on the back door, and ma hastily
threw the rug down into the cellar.
Shep ran after it, thinking it might
be a sheep to mind, but as soon as he
saw what it was he cried to be let uD
again and scratched the cellar door
until the whole house ratified.
Perhaps" said Bee, IF you hung 1t
out on the line some one might steal
it,"
Hang thatrout on the liner" cried
ma. Il would die frst"
And added:
"Besides-no one would steal it"
She looked reHectively at Shep.
Leave 1t to me, my dears." she
said at last; Il think ! have a plan"
And as soon as pa had eaten his
dinner that night, an extra special
feast, she unfolded her plan.
PA" she said, that dog of ours
gets to know so much that sometimes
am almost afraid of him. When you
picked him out as puppy l must con-
fess that had my doubts about your
choice, but, as a matter Of fact, he is
a most wonderful dog! Most wonder
full Now, what I've been thinking is
this; Here's winter coming on with its
cold, blizzardy weather, and that old
pet hasn't thing on the floor of his
coop. We've never made him pres
ent yet but he's such an extraor-
binary dog that don't you think we
might, as a family. let him have our
new rug? He would appreciate 1t 50
much! The pet! Look at him, pa
Isn't he picture3"
DO you think 1t would fit?" asked
pa, doubtfully.
Bee snatched the rug and ma ran
out at once, with Shep in glad pur-
suit. They staid out so long that pa
began to wonder.
What's the matter? he called.
He won't go I'M" cried ma.
'He swears and growls!" cried Bee.
Make him go I'M" commanded pa.
A vague form fitted through the
gloom, paused for moment but reso-
lutely turned and disappeared down
the street.