Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1909-11-24

i 1. THANKscIvlNG THAT sTsUcl IN ). !.

(By Harriet Lummis Smith,

Thanksgiving was coming, but, as
far as Johnny Norcross was concern
ed, 1t was Thanksgi, ing on the
outside. johnny himself was in any
thing but Thanksgiving mood. You
could have guessed that from the
way the corners of his mouth turned
down, If the little, discontented wrin-
kle between his eyebrows had not
told you first.
There was to be no Thanksgiving
turkey that year, for the first time
since Johnny could remember.
Sometimes the question had been in
doubt up to a day or two before
Thanksgiving, but it had alive vs. been
settled as Johnny wanted ito be.
But this time there was no uncer-
tainty. The mills had shut down in
the summer, and Johnny's father had
earned only what he could make by
doing odd jobs here and there. There
was bill at the grocer's and ano-
ther at the butchers, and Johnny's
mother had only just finished paying
the milkman.
The turkey was the startling point
for Johnny's grievances. From that
he went on to discover that he was a
very tll-used boy. His everyday trou-
sers had patches on the knees, and
his Sunday suit was getting too small
for him. When one day he saw Ches-
ter Leighton driving past behind his
span of black ponies, that seemed
another good ground for dissatisfac-
ton. Johnny Norcross didn't own
pair of ponies. Somebody had once
offered to give him a dog, but the
license would cost two dollars
year and Johnny had been obliged to
say no. Johnny felt more than ever
that Thanksgiving was something
that belonged to other people, some
thing in which he had no share.
When boy has the measles, they
shut him up to prevent other boys
and girls from taking the disease.
But though discomfort is as catching
as the measles, there was nothing to
keep Johnny Norcross from scatter
ing 1t broadcast. One of his gloomy
speeches set his sister Henrietta to
thinking that she was not as lucky
as some other girls. There was Dora
Hudson, for instance, who had a
piano and took music lessons. Hen
rietta loved music dearly, but she
had never gone farther in acquiring
the art than to pick out the air of
'Home, Sweet Home" with one fin
SSi VII boia Pldho. IlChllSIld uC-
gan to think that she, too, had moth
ing to be thankful for. The outlook
for Thanksgiving in the Norcross
household was not a cheerful one.
1t was two days before Thanks
giving when the doctors wife sent
over to say that she had more apples
than she could use, and would Mrs.
Norcross please let some Of the chill
dren bring over basket? Johnny
and Henrietta went on the errand,
and the doctors wife gave. each of
them a triangle of hot gingerbread,
besides filling the basket with rosiest
anples that ever tempted the appe-
tite But even that was not enough
to put the Thanksgiving spirit into
the heart of either.
Lew Hubbard's uncle sent 'em a
box of oranges from Florida" John
ny said to Henrietta. "a real big
box, you know. And oranges are so
much nicer than apples"
"Yes, they are," sighed Henrietta,
the cloud on her spirits, temporarily
lifted by the gingerbread, settling
down again.
Johnny and Henrietta took the
short cut across the pasture on the
way home. When they came to the
low stone wall which separated the
pasture from the road, Johnny climb
ed it first and held out his hand for
the heavy basket. Neither Of them
knew just how it happened; but all
at once the basket was empty and the
apples were in heap by the side Of
the road. except for few which had
improved the opportunity to roll off
into the underbrush.
20 dear" cried Henrietta in dis
tressed tones, scrambling over the
wall.
THAT'S just the kind of thing that
happens to u.s." said Johnny Grossly,
as If he had expected 1t all along
And then a voice said rather tim
idly: Cant l help you pick them
up?" 1t was Chester Leighton, and
his eyes were wistful. as If he were
asking favor.
Johnny stared. "You don't need
to, 1t won't take us long"
But I'D like to- said Chester.
He went after the apple that had
rolled the farthest, and then all three
fell to work.