Evening journal., 1908-07-21
Bows EIeotlons Ysars Ano.

6tJo GNCCUo0o ears AgOs
Editor THE EVENING JOURNAL
One OF the most remarkable incidents
Of my boyhood history is the way my
father worked his stratagem on me to
induce me to take a grist of corn to mill
on horseback In the campaign of 1874
the political feeling ran high and he
had taken me with him around to the
Democratic meeting for we were all
Democrats In those days, till 1 was about
as enthusiastic as anybody could be
though only eight years old and the thing
got so high that the boys were organized
all over the country nearly. They held
their little elections as was the custom
then, all the boys voting between y and
q years. They held their campaign meet
ings and had their boy political speakers
to address the meetings. Among those
speakers were Chief Justice Charles B
Lore, a Democrat, and is yet; James A.
Moore, a son of the late James ". Moore,
OF Appoquinimink and an older brother
OF Elias N. Moore, now one of the county
school commissioners. also a Democrat;
William S. Vandyke, late Of Odessa, but
now Of Sea View, N j., a Whig. 1t was
common talk among the men as to how
well the speakers acquitted themselves.
Now 10 get back to the going to mill
on horseback. My father told me that if
/ would take a bag to mill which was
near the old Blackbird school house
which was a one story house about a
half mile west Of Blackblrd that I might
go to the boys election, and he caught me
with that bait for 1 wanted to 90 so
much that 1 could not withstand the
temptation My father had made some
linen bags and the linen was not wide
enough to make them as fun as they
should be. Consequently the bags were
a little too small to hold two bushels
Of corn and my father wanted all he was
entitled TO for his money in any deal
He knew that the miller would take
toll for two bushels and two bushels must
go into that bag and after he had shaken
the corn down in the bag and put that
grip Of a big muscular man six feet high
In Has stocking feet on the mouth of it to
Tie 1t, II was more like log Of wood than
a bag Of corn. You could hardly make an
indentation with your fist. Yet that was
the kind Of grist had to worry with.
The bag was thrown across the horse be.
three and a half miles. The horse had
to walk every step of the way. 1 man.
aged to keep It intact till I got within
about 100 yards of the mill and off il
went and 1 had to go after the miller to
put it on again for me. When the miller
remarked your father ought to be asham-
ed Of himself to send a boy like YOU to
mill with bag like that. I thought the
miller was exactly right. and 1 got to the
boys election all right But 1 had set The
pace for going to mill on horseback for
had that to do until was big enough
to drive horse to the cart wheel.
l always thought that it was a very
unreasonable thing to expect of an eight.
year-old hoy, and I think so yet Thai
boy election was contested with as much
zeal as any mans election ever was. The
family Bible was trotted out no-e thar
once that afternoon and there was soirc
telling OF white lies by the big boys ant
some Of the parents. I know there wa
a contest over e. N. Moore and a coupl,
OF twin beys by the name of Beaiam'r
and JAS Lattomus. They looked so mucl
alike that scarcely any one could tel
them apart 1t was said that the onl,
way to tell them apart was that one o.
them shu. enc eye when he looSed a
you and the other shut both. One ve }
peculiar thing that occurred in connec
tisn with tfst election was that ther,
was one Narng man under age who ha,
married n widow with two children a few
days he'sre the election and he was suel
an enthusiastic Whig that he could no
restrain hlnse'f from voting at the boy
elecuon.
William Andrew HukiI.
Wilmington, Del, July p.