News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1915-08-25

I'd fix her. though, all right. She'd
see!"
You wouldn't call her names, would
your
mo. wouldn't! What hurt is it to
call anybody names"
rs that so!' exclaimed the barber.
"Then you was intending what | heard
you hollering at Fishers grocery de-
livery wagon driver fer favor the
other day when was goin' by your
house, was you? reckon better tell
him. because he says to me Afterwards
IF he ever lays eyes on you when you
amt in your own yard he's goin' to do
whole lot O. things you amt goin'
to like! Yessir, that's what he says
to met
He better catch me first, guess,
before he talks SO much"
WELL" resumed the barber, that
amt sayin' what you'd do If young
lady ever walked up and called you
little gentleman. l want to hear what
you'd do to her. | guess l know.
though, come to think Of it."
''WhatT demanded Penrod.
You'd sick that pore ole dog Of
yours on her cat If she had one, ex-
pect," guessed the barber derisively.
mo, would notv'
well, what would you do?'
I'D do enough. Don't worry about
thatv
well. suppose it was boy, then.
Whatd you do if boy come up to
you and says. Hello. little gentle
MANI"
He'd be lucky said Penrod, with
a sinister frown IF he got home alive"
Suppose 1t was boy twice your
size?"
Just let him try" said Penrod omi-
nously. You just let him try. He'd
never see daylight again; that's air.
The barber dug ten active fingers
into the helpless scalp before him and
did his best to displace it, while the
anguished Penrod, becoming instantly
seething crucible of emotion, msdi-
rected his natural resentment into mad
dened brooding upon what he would
do to boy twice his size" who should
dare to call him little gentleman"
The barber shook him as his father
had never shaken him; the barber buff
feted him, rocked him frantically to
and fro: the barber seemed to be try
ing to wiring his neck, and Penrod saw
himself in staggering Zigzag pictures,
destroying large, screaming, fragmen-
tary boys who had insulted him.
The torture stopped suddenly, and
clinched, weeping eyes began to see
again, while the barber applied cooling
lotions which made PenrOd smell like
! coSored housemaid's IDEAL
"Now what" asked the barber, comb
ing the reeking locks gently, "what
would it make you so mad fer to have
somebody call you little gentleman?
It's kind of compliment, as 1t were.
you might say. What would you want
to hit anybody fer that fer?'
To the mind of Penrod this question
was without meaning or reasonable
ness. 1t was within neither his power
nor his desire to analyze the process
by which the phrase had become Of
fensive to him and was now rapidly
assuming the proportions of an out
rage. He knew only that his gorge
rose at the thought of it.
"You just let 'em try it, he said
threateningly as he slid down from
the chair. And as he went out of the
door, after further conversation on the
same subject, he called back those
wasning words once more: "Just let |
EN- try ft-just once! That's all 1 ask i
'em to! They'll find out what they |
getr
The barber chuckled. Then a fly lit
on the BARRIERS nose. and he slapped |
Mt it, and the slap missed the fly, but
did not miss the nose. The barber
was irritated. At this moment his
birdlike eye cleaned a CLEAN as it fell
upon customers approaching-the pref.
test little girl in the world, leading
by the hand her baby brother, Mitchy-
Mitch, coming to have Mitchy- Mitch's
hair clipped against the heat
1t was hot day and idle, with little
to feed the mind, and the barber was
n nHschievous man with an irritated
nose He did his worst.