The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1912-01-16


duced by the Bulletin as an interest
ing story of the younger days of c..
G.. Miller of 2904 Elm street and his
brothers, during the time they were
playmates OF Robertsus Love, the
writer of the story. The scene is laid
in Irondale, Mo, where Rev, Thomas
S. Love, father CT the writer, was
minister at that place and where
Mr. Miller's father, Dr. D.K.Miller,
for many years practiced medicine
When | was a boy--and that was
sometime ago, kind and considerable
reader never popped frecrackers
On the Fourth of July, | popped
them on Christmas day. That was
because | was a boy in southern
state only few years after the close
of the civil war. Still you don't I'M
ierstand? Well. let me do little
explaining.
| shall not venture to speak for
other communities in the south, but
in my neighborhood most of the peo-
pie still were somewhat bitter
against Uncle Sam for having come
down there with armies for a faur
years fight. The folks in and around
my serene and sequestered little vii
lage, lying on the cedar clad hill
sides OF southeast Missouri had
known mach OF the war from actual
observation and experience, Armies,
Federal and Confederate, had march
ed through the village A remark
able battle, that of Pilot Knob, was
fought less tnan twenty miles away.
Missouri. let II be remembered. was
loyal to the Union. but in the south
ern part particularly the sentiment
was mostly in favor Of the "lost
cause
We small boys did rot know that
the reason for the firecrackerless
Fourth and the frecrackery Christ
mas lay in the prejudices engaged by
the war. All we knew or cared to
know was that when Christmas came
around it meant few punches Of
frecrackersand q lot of fun popping
them out in the snow, for in those
DAYS we always had a white Christ
mas.
After the lapse of thirty years
CHH recall with vivid distinctness
certain Christmas in my town which
began with high anticipation of fun
and came very near ending in a
tragedy. Our family doctor had
three boys who were favorite chums
Of my brother and myself Somehow
we always managed to get together
on Christmas day and pop the fire.
crackers which Santa Claus brought
or which we bought with the paper
quarter of dollar allowed each of
us out Of the family exchequer for
that purpose A quarter bought
three punches of little red fire
crackers There were FIVE boys, and
you can compute the number Of
punches we had.
We got up carly this Christmas
morning, took the. candies and or
anges and other things from aur
stockings, inspected the "U. S. Mail"
wagon left at the Preside, pulled the
trigger of the new toy pistol--and
then went down to old man Rean's
oest advantage
Brother and | went over to the
doctors house and Join his boys in
the front yard The snow was about
ankle deep, crinkly under the foot,
and the air was crisp and clear The
eldest of the doctors boys had been
presented with new derby hat for
Christmas first derby that ever
came to Irondale THERE Just
had to let the name of the town slip
out
Clainie--that was what we called
the biggest boy--was intensely
proud of that new hat. He wore 1t
at breakfast that morning, his broth
er said When we all gathered in the
yard to pop the crackers his derby
was an the back Of his head. We
pooled our property by putting the
fifteen punches of frecrackers in
heap on the snow Near at hand
lay a piece OF punk, burning slowly.
Just to see II we had hatful of
frecrackers Clainie put his priced
derby over the heap. Some of the
crackers stuck out at one side. The
littlest boy--dead many years now
picked off one Of the crackers. touch
ed it to the punk, and when 1t splut-
teredfire he dropped it. The cracker
went under one side Of the hat. That
was the point where the frolic be-
came tragedy
All of lis were discussing the prob
lem OF firing whole bunch OF crack
ers at once when suddenly there was