Licking Valley courier., 1921-03-10

al ayS Deln
tempted to do some idiotic thing, and
have to suppress such impulses with
a mailed fist. It's all the outcome of
vanity A man hates to admit that
he's a back number. He wants to
assure the plain people that, notwith-
standing his gray whlskers and string
halted legs, he's four-horse team
with a dog under the wagon, when
it comes to athletic skill.
81 was in the livery barn the other
evening, when young Fretsinger be.
gun explaining that he had been tax
ing boxing lessons from one of the
old masters. He had learned all the
tricks of the game, and was just suf
fering agonles because there was no
body present who would stand up an6
exchange scientific swats with him.
"In my younger days, If do say II
myself, | was star performer ID
the ordinary d-drag-out
form of combat, but l never was wOrtli
shucks at boxing. Nobody knows that
better than / do. Why, then, did
inform Fretsinger that l would be glat
to spar few rounds with him? Ii
surely was vanity and nothing else
l had an idea that, while he might
have plenty of the fancy stuff Ol
hand, / might land one of my old-timi
haymakers; in which case l felt sure
the town would soon be ringing with
the story of an old mans prOwess.
$50 | took Off my long iimswlngei
coat, and my vest, and stood up foi
battle. If anybody tells you, my
friends, that Fretsinger doesn't know
how to WELD his hands, you may re-
gard the story rs rOorback. ! never
saw fists so numerous as on that Occa
sion. I couldn't see anything else fol
while, and they landed on me in
many unexpected places, and / dom
remember a time when / was so EN-
barrassed.
"Fretsinger explained afterwar6
that he merely tapped me gently be
cause I was venerable man ole
enough to he his grandfather. III that
case never want to become involved
in an argument with him when he is
in earnest. ! had n black eye for q
week after this recital and my nose
has never satisfied me since. Every
time / came downtown, ] had to eX.
plain TO thousand people that | black
ened my eye while splitting klndling
or that ! dropped sad-iron on It,
There is nothing more humiliatlne
than a black eye, and I made up my
mind that I'd try to realize my ad-
vanced age thereafter, and behave my
self like grave and reverend man.
"But no sooner had my eye recOv'
cred than l was In trouble again. ]
saw some young men wrestling, and
paused to point out that they didn't
know the rudiments of the game.
assured them that in my younger days
! was holy terror, and didn't think
that my hand had lost Its cunning
It would afford me genuine happiness
| said, to show them how wrestling
was done in the palmy days of Mul
doom and Whistler.
$50 ! removed my coat and vest ant
went into executive session with 6
husky young man who had no respect
for gray hairs. I am not sure about
what followed, hut think he mus
have thrown me over his head. Any
how, made great dent In the eartl
with my person, and was so sore fol
two weeks tlmt I had to take myself
around in 4 wheelbarrow. OF course
am determined TO make no more haC
breaks Of the kind, hut haven't mucl
confldonc" In myself, and tomorrow
you may see me climbing tree hal
mile high. to show some boys hov
to rob birds nests,n