Year: 1876

A DENVER boy of about the usual

 bad boy age, but uncummOnly ingen-

 ious in mischief, has accidentally de-

 lvelOped theory which is offered as a

 rational explanation of the phenomen-

 al meat-showers that are said to occur in some sections of this wonderful

 country. Modern showers of meat are

 as marvellous as the ancient rain of

 mamma in the wilderness, wherewith

 the chosen people were fed, but if the Denver incident be accepted as ac- IcOunting for them there Is a very small

 modicum of miracle left in this ex- Iceptional occurrences. But to the Den

 yer boys experiment. His indulgent ! father promised him if he would quit 1 the society of some young freebOOterS who had nightly carOusals in neigh ] boring vacant lot and stay at home i like a good boy, he would buy him dog wherewith he could be morally amused in the domestic doOr-yard. There were his little sister and the household cat for his game, and he could have lots of fun teasing them.

 The boy agreed to the proposition and

 the dog came. It was mean-lUOking dog, small with long bushy tail

 which tail had a cOwardly fashion of.

 getting between his legs and coming

 out in front and tickling his nose

 in moments of fear The dog had no

 courage tO worry the cat or tease the

 sister, and it looked like total failure

 But the boy was ingenious. He imag-

 ined that if he could manage 10 keep

 the dogs tail erect he would be as

 brave as any other dog, and he might

 get some fun out of him yet. He tried his mothers pearl starch, but itl did not answer He tried various other expedients but all proved futile. 1 The dogs tall would go between his l legs at the first hint of danger. and

 there was no fight or fun in him. It was evidently the tails fault One

 day peddler came along with large ! lot of toy balloons. A bright idea

 struck the boy The old folks were away from home, and since he had quit the freeboters and betaken him. self to innocent domestic joys, he had | no pocket money. But his enterprise did not fail him in thls extremity The balloons he must have, and he traded j q sufficient amount of the home per sOnal property to buy the peddler's whole stock To make the balloon at tachmentS to the dogs tail was but the ii work of a few minutes. The dog ap- | peared to get lighter hearted, and even

 seemed amused at the preparations. fl The whole balloon power being ap- t pied, the tail behaved Splendidlv, and ; the boy hisSed his regenerated dog on ( 10 a bigger one that happened to be pass ing the gate, fully expecting to have an , fight. At the first jump the {. Ittle dog rose in the air and sailed out II lf reach. The parents came on the |; scene just in time to see the dog disap- C bearing in the far blue ether. The l, Denver boy lost his dog, and may re- ( urn tO the society of freebOoterS, but l he little incident will explain a won ! ierful shower of meat that Is bound to [ occur somewhere out in Colorado, or the [ adjacent territories. The ingenious | 'Outh told the whole story of his trad ng with the peddler for the balloons, md escaped punishment on the ground ,f the aid and comfort he had given ! O scientific research. The father [ bought of Franklin flying his kite to c .atch the lightning. He saw his [ son flying a dog to make a { hover of meat and mercyfully spared { he boy. But the balloon power did I ,ring the dogs tail into an elevated position, which was 10 be demon

 trated $