tM
VOLUME I,
OXEORD, N. 0., WEDNESDAY, OGTODEU 13, 1875.
■MBEll 41.
ONE OF T3SJ! «TJ50T:SAS!>
KOA'S WA.!^"l'5iJl>.”
FliOM TIIK X. Y. OBSKliTJiR.
Charles was appoiiitod as clcj'h
to a dry-goods luerchaiit ne.ii'h,'-
two years ago. lie is there still
and )iot likely to luaY’G soon ; for
his employer likes him well and
Charles likes his place and his
employer, too. lie is paid no
more wages than the other boys,
though he deserves, and would
receive more, were it not contra
ry to the rule.s of the firm. Charles
himself, however, is satisfied with
what he has and thinks it is all
he deserves now, but expects to
get an increase a,s soon as ho is
really worth it.
He does not dress extravagant
ly : for his mother is poor and
his sala,ry i.s small; he dresses
neatly, however, and wears sub
stantial clotlung, wiiich is always
respectable on boj's. Most of
the other clerks are .worse in ap
pearance than he, thougli the}'
are all better off at home, .and
have more wages.' The diflerence
is easil} accounted for: ho takes
care of his money ; they take no
care of theirs, but spend it in
fancy clothes, gold-headed canes,
mecscliaum pipes, gold rings, ci
gars, a drink of beer when thir.s-
tv, and tlien, a tlieatre ticket
1 Tice or three times a week taltes
all the rest; or, if it is summer
time, tlioy spend more on Sab
bath liav pleasure excursions than
it c..*.ts giem tor their board.
is nut like fliem. He
is iii'iu..tj'ii'UK {rnin iiKirning till
icgiu, n..v,-r les.iiig a. moment that
li- call Use to advantage for his
einpl-iyer. .knd he fpciids his
loaoings in the hapjiiest place on
ssirti!—his mother's home ! He
has as much eiijov'mcnt, too, as
aiiv youa.g man in the city : he
iiiidx it in reading to his in.otlier
while she itlies the needle beside
her little round work-table, winch
Charles sent honie to her on
Cliiistraas Day. He is anihitious
and w'islies to improve his mind,
so that wlien ho beco'.nc,s a iner-
■chaiit he can take his place among
the most intelligent of them, if
not among the richest. He is ac
tive in business, and his employ
ers sa}', “Charles can do more in
■it dav than any two of the others.’’
I don’t know that he is aware of
this himself; whether he is or
not, we are sure tliat he ucver
thinks ho does too much, nor re
solves to do less iii the future.
Ho is always truthfiil and very
.conscientious in kecpitig his word.
He minds what he is told, and
thinks tliat his employers know
better than ho what they want
done and how he ought to do it.
Such a boy as that is usually
■envied by liis companions, and
this is the case with him. Yet no
one can help admiring and loving
him. lie carefully manages to
keep them all under obligation to
him for a dozen favors or more.
And this sl>ows that very young
piorsons can be obliging even to^
superiors.
Before ho was so well known
as he is now, the boys often treat
ed hiim rather I'udel}', but he soon
made them ashamed of them
selves by retin’iiiii^' politeness for
rudeness, and gooil for evil. His
companions are not tlie only ones
■who notice this: his employer
sees it well, and holds him up be
fore the other clerks as an exam
ple for tlumi to i'ollow. It may
be bis intelligence which make.s
Charlie so obliging; but have not
all boys the same opportunities
of improvement, and even much,
better, if they would iiso them ?
Let (hem become diligent in bus
iness and iK'rsevering in study,
aiul they may yet overtake
Charles. He is not so much
•irnarter than others, hut if ho can
do his work in half the time other
boys require, it is Ijecatiso he
gives double the attention that
they do. Good coinpany and
close attetiLioii to his books make
him intelligent. Not bad and
corrupt books th.at hoy.s ' conceal
when their parai',t.s or other re
spectable friends and superiors
are near, but books winch his
pastor approves and encourages
him to read.
Charle.s is a good boy ami
spends his hour at noon not with
many others like him.self, at the
door of a hotel, smoking cigars,
but at the rooms of the Y'oung
Men’s Ciu'istian Association, a
feiv blocks from his place of bus
iness. He says that bad habits
are formed in hours of idlans.ss,
and tJiat
“Satliu fiii-.k ft-Mne iiiittchief still
For idle bands to do-”
He is quite fta honest ■with re
gard to othery as he is to himself,
and when by aiistake lie took a
countcrieit live dollar bill fi-oin a
stranger and did not detect it till
tho porso]i had goaie, he instantly
reported tlie mistake to his em
ployer and said 1^; wouJ4 bear
the lose of it himseli.
It it-; no -wonder lljat Charles is
a great favorite with his employ
er and indeed -vvitli every one iii
the house. He is not mudi of a
loser by his conduct, which en-
titlotl him to tlmir conddoiiee anl
esloem ; for there is not a Olirist-
iiias which comes ai’ouud that
does not bring to liirn a handsome
present in money from Ins'* em-
plo)'er, befc;id3s many other small
er gift-s.
We daro not give hie correct
name and full address in this pa
per : for he is one of the “Thous
and Bo}'s” for which, if he were
known, probably a thou.sarui ein-
])ioycrs would each be glad to
dismiss one of las boys and ap
ply for him. d'iiey need not
tijink of that: for fiis eniploycr
would pay liim double wages
rather tJian let lilm go. Wq will
therefore leave him whore he is
till he serves out liis liino ; lie
will then be ko])t as llieir first
salesman, and before many years,
we doubt not, he shall be part
owner in tlie firm wliere he is
now a clerk.
There is not a boy in the Uni
ted States of America who may
not be like this one, if he pleases
to cultivate carefulty the qualities
spoken of in him. And no one
who ignores these need be disap
pointed if his employer should
turn him olt at any moment.
linniiOCK.
children. At lerist this -svas tlic
little history I built lup for Lor in
my brain from a woaI or
lliat I heard between her and her
husband \\t the station, avS ho put
licr into the carriage with an af-
foctior.ate fiu-eweli. I always
"watch witli great intere.'g the fare-
wolls and greetings of my follo-w
travellers, and have a fasliimi of
thinking out for in3'Hcdf the wliole
story of tlunr-previous lives fr«)m
the little liints that I get in this
way. It is to me a.s if I -weie
permitted to oj-ion the second vol
ume of an interesting romance,
pind allowed to read only one
siiort scene in this, and asked to
guess as nearly as possible from
this the story and the characters of
the actors in it.
A SSAilLWAA INCJUJEMT.
It was a third-clnss carriage.
She was a })leasant faced young
woman, going, I think, for the
first time after lier marriage to
visit her parents m her old liome,
to show them their two fine grand
Tlie youngest child was an in
fant of about three or fourmontlis
old—very quiet and good; the
other was a pretty, re.stle.s8 little
girl oi tiirce, -who could not be
sfili a single moment, and kept
tlie careful mother ]>asv by her
questions and wants ami childish
prattle. Slio was not at all ba.sh-
fid and soon talked to us rdso in
sucli a natural, conquettish con
descending way that wo were
quite in love with tlie charming
little lassie, and begged hernioth-
ca* not to check heu- innocent ad
vances to ua. ^
■^When*^ hud been ' traveling
together for two or thre^e hours,
and began to feel quite like old
acquaintances, while tlie train was
going at full speed, tho mother
half ro.se from her scat to place
the girl, wlio had left her place,
again on the opposite seat. How
it happened I have never uiider-
stooi; it was one of those acci
dents wliich seemed impossible,
and, in fact, only happened once
in a liundred tliousand times ; but
just as she stood lialf erect, hold
ing her sleeping babe upon one
arm and lier little frolicsome mai
den somewliat awkwardly on the
other, the little girl made one of
lier sudden, quick movements,
and in an instant she was gone
from our eyes.
What a mon'.ent I Tlio poor
mother stood fixed and rigid in
exactly the same attitud’!, licr
arm still bent as tliougli around
her cliild, gazing wltli wide open,
fired eyes at tlie place -whonco
slie vanished. She seemed liter
ally suddenly turned to stone;
with the rest of us the case was
almost the same. How long this
lasted I do not know ; doubtless
it seemed to us much longer than
it really was. Then the young
motlicr seemed to eome to herself
and mode a sudden movement as
if she would spring through the
■v\'indow after her vanishing dar
ling, now far away. I caught her
quickly fast and held her, while
tho kind young lady who sat op
posite her took the babe from her
arms, and we all began to talk
together, no ono listening to tlie
other, about what was to be done
for her. Some how we managed
in oui’ excitement to do all that
was possible; the gufird came,
-the train was stopped, and tlie
mother, -without speaking to one
of us, or oven looking at us, loft
tho train, supporting herself on
ono arm of tho sympathizing
guard, while lie field the stiil
slee])ing baby fast in tbo oiiu-r,
U1 course the train must 'I'o
with incroasod speed to maki.^ iq
for tho moment of dohu', so tluiR
was no {•liauce for us to soo inon'
“Teh'grapli to us at the next sta
tion,’’ said ono of t.lio railroad
function.aries to tbo guaril. “Vos,
ye.-;, bo sure to do it imniodiatoly,”
cri(3di a dozen voices; for in .some
myslorloi's vviqy tho hews oi'
llio accld{‘nt had run tb.rougli tho
train as if by electricity, and a
long row rf s^unpatiuzing faces
watched from tho carriage tlie
disa’ppearing forms of the mother
and tile guard.
“It will take her half an liour
to reach the spot, and it is just
thirty-five minutes now to tho
next station,” said tlie stout gon-
ile.man in the corner, taking out
his watch aiul holding it open in
his liand, Lis eyes fixed upon it.
He had struck me as one of tlio
m-vst selfish and disagreeable old
genticnian possible ; scarcely an
swering afpolite question from a
neighbor ; and then in the sliortest
and grufibst manner possible; ho
had seemed completely ah.sorbed
by Ida newsj)a}X)r and bir snull
box, not having noticed the little
fairy in any way excojit to glance
at lutr novY and tlien witli a sav
age expression as her clear, child
isli Liugh luid disturbed his read
ing. Now his -w'liole soul seemed
to be fixed on the watch before
him, and he “chided tlio lardy
lliglit of time” again and again in
w'ords more forcible than oriia-
mentaJ.
There was a young would be
dandy in one corner ; slight, straw-
coloretl gloves, a slender cane, an
infant moustache, an e^'e-glass
struck in ono eye, seemed to be,
in his opinion, tokens of vast su
periority over tlie oilier travel
lers ; and lie spoke very little, ex
cept occasionally to make some
supercilious remark or ask some
question about third-class travel-
ling, apparently to produce on
us the impression that ho "W'-as a
young nobleman, or jirince, per
haps, in disguise, seeing for him
self how oniinary mortals fared.
What a oliHnge had conic over
him now; the e^’e-glass hung
dangling hither and tldther ; -with
t!ic kid gloves, of which he had
been so dainty, lie had grasped
tlie dirtp^ facing of tho door, and
was straining liis gaze. fi.rst back-
ivard, until the poor mother -was
no longer to be seen, and then
fonvard to the next station, -where
the news was to meet us.
Now at last wq are tliere ; the
train halts, and one of the guariLs
runs quickly into tho little ofiice
over wliich “Tolegi’aph” is paint
ed. Everybody who can possi
bly get his or her hoad out the
window on that side thnists it
out Thoro is a moment of in
tense Fusponse; liere comes the
guard with a dispatch in liis hand;
he stands about midway between
the ends oi tbe train and begins
to read it out in his clear, loud,
ofiicial tones: “Child perfectly
sound; alighted on a pile of straw
in a iiedd, not two feet from a
stone wall !”
Then what a scene ! Every
man at the train windoivs has his
hat off in a momciiit and is wav
ing it and chooriTig as ifhev.'ould
sjilit Ills throat; lo’crv woman is
buried iii her po(‘k('t-l!;nu]kcr('lM(-f,
cr) ing and laughing togctlu'r.
Ifiio su.mt (;I.l egotist aud the vain,
youug dandy liave tlirown tlimr
lu.s arouiul ecnli otliur, and jn
emlii’aciiig with the lioariiuess
tliat belongs fu tlie sons of tan.
' nferland, altliough tbev neve”
met lieioro this morn in (r.—'’Fja*
stiff old maul in the (*(>riier lias
slmken m^-- hands in bodi of liers
so many times that I toel the^' aro
qiijto sore.
^ All the inhabitants of liie litfle
village came running around the
tra-ui.—“What is it ? Where is
be ? Is it the Kaiser himself, or
is it tlio Kronprhiz f’ tiiey ask
in bewildered excitement at ,tlie
sight of ours.
Jhit all tho Kaisers and iCron-
prmzos in Europe j'ut together
could not liavo aroused the flood
uf fouling tliat surged through
that train. It was sgunputh^"' with
a sentiment far older than loyalti'^
—love—whicli was stirring eve
ry Jieart; it was sympathy with a
mothers love.
There are (says an observer)
the greatest varieties in the state
of sieep-walkurs ; some hearing
without seeing; others seeing
without hearing. Some possess-
iiig a state of conciousness almost
approaching to the waking state ;
others being in a coiHlition little
removed from ptr.eet sleep,' (')ri
this account, while we inanao'O-to
hold a conversation with one per
son, another i,s altogelher incapa
ble of forming a single idea, or
giving, it utterance, even if form
ed, For the same reason, tho
first, guideil by a certain jjortion
oi intellect, pursues with safety
Ills W'ihl pei'uiiibuhition.s ; . tvhiio
the second, driven on bv the im-
jmlse of will, and his reasoning
faculties locked up in utter sfu-
por, staggers into dangers of eve-
1')' kind. It is not always safe to
arouse a sleep-walker: and man}*
eases of the fatal effects thence
arising have been detailed by an
thors, Nor is it at all imlikolv
that a person, even of strong
nerves, might bo violently agita
ted by awakingiuHsituation sodif-
ferent from that in which lie we.rA
to bol, .Vmoiig other examples,
ihiit of a young lady who was ad
dicted to this tillbcliou may be
mentioned. Knowing her failing,
lier friend.s made a point of lock
ing her door and seenring tho
tvitnlow of lier (dinmber , in sucli
a manner that .“ho could not pos-
sibly got out, Gno night tlioso
preeautions were uufortumly
overlooked, and, in a pavoxysnr
of sumnanibulisiu, sb.c walked in
to tho garden behind the house.
When there, she was recognized
by some of tlio family, who worn
wanied by the noise she made
on opening the door ; and- tlioy
followcd and aivoke her; but smdi
was the effect produced u'pen the
nervous system, tliat she almost
instantly oxjilred.
An old citizen of Crofton, Ky,,
who was troubled by owls that
invaded his heiincrv, has got rid
of them, Ono night he ground n
scythe-blade very keen, split a
pole twenty feet long, inserted
the blade, and hoisted the pole.
Owls never lit on this but once.
One gaderi i f ewi-toes was jiiid*-
! ed mi met mei'ning, ami the
I faiiiiei has not Ini.t a lieu .since.