Year: 1874

Oe'AA Ct1hCu away liOu lie Will all
that was left in it. haven't tried to
be good since, much"


We now got into a Broadway stage
going down, and being unable on ac-
count of the noise to converse further
upon those spiritual conflicts of Billy's
which so much interested me, amused
ourselves with looking out until just
as we reached the Astor House, when
he asked me where we were going.


"Where do you guess ?" said I:


He cast a glance through the front
window, and his face became irradiat-
ed. Oh, there's nothing like the SIM
pie, cheap luxury of pleasing a child,
to create sunshine enough for the
chasing away Of the bluest adult
devils!


"We're going to Barnum'sw said
Billy, involuntarily olapping his
hands.


So we were-and, much as stuck-up
people pretended to look down on the
place, 1 frequently am. Not only so,
but I always see that class largely rep
resented there when I do 60. To be
sure they always make believe that
they only visit it to amuse the child.
ren, or because they've country cous.
ms visiting them, and never fail to re.
fer to the vulgar set one finds there
and the fact Of the animals smelling
like any thing but Jockey Club; yet
l notice that after they've been in the
hall three minutes they're as much in.
terested as any of the people they
come to poh-poh, and only put on the
high-bred air when they fancy some
one Of their own class is looking al
them. I boldly acknowledge that !
60 because I like it. I am especially
happy, to be sure, if I have a child
along to 60 into ecstacies, and give me
a chance, by asking questions, for the
exhibition of that fund of information
which is said to be one Of my CHIEF
charms in the social circle, and on
several occasions has led that portion
of the public Immediately about the
Happy Family into the. erroneous i'm.
preston that I was Mr.. Barnum ex.
planning his 100000 curiosities.


On the present occasion we found
several visitors Of the better class in
the room devoted to the Aquarium
Among these was a young lady ap.
parently about nineteen, in tight-ft.
ting basque Of black velvet which
showed her elegant figure to fine ad.
vantage, a skirt Of garnet silk looped
up over a pretty Balmoral, and the
daintiest imaginable pair of kid walk
ing-boots. Her height was a triAe
over the medium eyes soft ex-
pressive brown, shaded by masses Of
hair which exactly matched their col.
or, and, at that rat-and-miceless day
fell in such graceful abandon as to
show at once that nature was the only
maid who crimped their waves into
them. Her complexion was rosy
with health and sympathetic enjoy.
ment; her mouth was faultless, he1
nose sensitive, her manners full of re-
finement, and her voice musical as a
wood-robin's, when she spoke to the
little boy of six at her sid0to whom
she was revealing the palace Of the
great show-king. Billy and I were
fattening our noses against the abode
Of the balloon-fsh, and determining
whether he looked most like a horse
chestnut burr or a ripe cucumber
when his eyes and my own simultan.
eously fell on the child and lady. In
a moment, to Billy, the balloon-fsh
was as though he had not been.


@'That's pretty little boyw said I
And then I asked Billy one of those
senseless routine questions which must
make children look at us, regarding
the scope Of our intellects very much
as we look at bushmen.


''How would you like to play with
him?"


"Him p replied Billy, scornfally
"that's his first pair Of boots; see hin
pull up his little breeches to show tn.
red tops to 'em! But, Crackey ! ISM
she a smasher!'


After that we visited the wax fig
ures and the sleepy snakes, the learn
ed seal and the glass-blowers, every
where enjoying what we saw all tht
more because that beautiful girl anc
child were not far from US. When
ever we passed from one room int
another, Billy could be caught look
ing anxiously to see is they were com
ing too.


Time fails me to describe how Bill
ly was lost in astonishment at tn
Lightning Calculator wanted me t.
beg the secret of that prodigy for hin
to do his sums by-inally thought h
had discovered it, and resolved tt
keep his arm whirling all the time h
| studied his arithmetic lesson the mex
morning. Equally inadequate is i
to relate in. full how he became g
confused among the wax-works tha
he pinched the solemnest Snowman
legs to see if he was real, and perplex
ed the beautiful Circassian to tn
verge Of idiocy by telling her he ha
read all about the way they sold girl
like her in his geography.