Vernon Parish Democrat. (Leesville, La.) 1917-193?, 1920-11-25

way on ana IL makes you sleepy. so
the children listened to the cicada and
went to sleep and had a fine lap. So
did Aristotle. Then they woke up and
yawned and stretched themselves and
went on picking berries-all except
Aristotle. It was a good thing they
had that nap. I'll tell you why later.
At ave o'clock their big pals were
full and they started for home. But
they had hardly got started before
Aristotle began to chase a rabbit. He
had been busy all day trying to catch
a w6Odchuck. He had chased a wood
chuck into it's hole in the clearing, and
then tried for hours to dig up the hole.
He had not caught the wOOdchuck,
and now he was glad to start rabbit.
Brother saw the rabbit plainly, and
1t seemed to him to be lame. The
idea occurred to him that perhaps the
rabbit could be caught alive and kept
for a pet. So he handed his pail to
Sister and started after the dog.
The rabbit and Aristotle led him a
pretty chase into the woods. Sister
was afraid of losing sight Of Brother,
and she tried to follow them. She
had no trouble in doing this, because
Aristotle kept on barking. He was
very barking dog, anyhow. He was a
Boston terrier. The children did not
name him Aristotle. Their father
named him Aristotle because the dog
looked so wise and wandered about
CD Yo,,oh uo Dopnod bFr, CO.. n Po,,,o,,s,
wise teacher in Greece who used to
wander around and talk wisely as he
went. Aristotle only looked wise. He
was not really so.
When Sister found Brother and the
dog, the rabbit was hidden in a rabbit
hole, and Aristotle was trying to dig
him out. 1t was six o'clock now, and
the shadows were dark in the woods.
Brother said that they couldn't very
well wait for the dog to catch the
rabbit, for very likely 1t would take
him all night to do that. Once Aris-
totle did stay all night in a wood
chuck hole, because he had got hold
Of the wOodchuck and the passage
behind him was too small to back out
of. The men had to dig Aristotle out
that time.
So Brother talked to the foolish dog
and dragged him away by the collar,
and all three started once more for
home. They walked and walked, but
they did not come out into the open.
You see, they had got turned round.
You know what it means to get turned
round. 1t means to think the wrong
direction is the right direction.
1t seemed to the children that north
was south. So they kept on going
north when they should have gone
south. The foolish young things went
deeper and deeper into the Great
Woods.
1t was getting quite dark, 1t was
seven o'clock. Then Brother said, 81
think we are lost again"
II think we are, too, "Nsaid Sister.
Aristotle barked. don't know wheth-
er he thought they were lost or not.
1t is sometimes very hard to tell what
dogs think. Anyhow" said Brother,
"let's have supper" 1--WE haven't any
thing to eat except berries" said Sis
ter. "Of course, there are lots Of
mushrooms, obut they may be poison
GUS"
"Of course" answered Brother. II
should never dare to eat mushrooms.
But berries are very good"
So they sat down, all of them, and
ate berries. Aristotle ate as many as
anybody That shows how hungry he
was, for he didn't care for fruit, ordi-
narily. Aristotle would not have eaten
even peaches and cream, with sugar
on 1t, when he could get dog biscuit.
But now he ate blackberries till his
teeth were as black as ink.
Then they all got up and walked
some more, ald then some. They
walked till their heads were dizzy,
and they kept falling down. 1t was
no fun at all. The woods became
colder and colder and darker and
darker.
eve must stay here all night" said
Brother, land 1 am going to make
shelter for u.s." He took his knife
and cut some long sapli1gs. These he
laid against a tree, SO as to make a
sort of tent underneath. Then he piled
bOughs on top of the saplings for a
roof, and they crept in. The ground
was covered with soft pine needles,
and the place was really very snug.
But, oh, dear me, it then began to
rain. In a few minutes the roof of
boughs began to leak, and in a little
while the rain beat through and made
the children very wet. 1t made Arls-
totle just as wet, too, and he whim-
pered and licked Brothers hand, and
wanted to get out of the shelter.
"We must stir around" said Broth
er, "or we shall get very cold. So
come on, my dear"
Sister got up bravely, and they
started on again, stumbling through
the dark and rainy woods.
Finally Sister leaned up against
very large tree-oh, tremendously
large that tree was land said that
she felt too tired to go any farther.
She said she couldn't go another step.
"All right" said Brother, who had