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The Mother’s Choice.
One evening sat around the fire,
(A pleasant sight to see,)
Two children at the mother's side,
And one upon her knee,
*■ Mother!” a dark-haired boy exclaimed,
“ A sailor, let me roam
To north, south, east and west, but yet,
Come back to you and home.”
“ No, Edward,” cried a blue-eyed child;
“No treacherous sea for me ;
A soldier hold, with plume and sword—
A soldier will I be.”
“Nay,” said the th:rd, “ but I would wear
A surplice white and band —
Would road the prayers, the sermon preach,
And in the pulpit stand.”
“ My children,” said the mother mild,
“ I care not what you be —
Or soldier, sailor, clergyman,
It matters not to me,
“ So you be good, and brave, and kind,
Alike to rich and poor,
For such find welcome here on earth,
And open Heaven’s door.” Boston Post.
Written for Burke’s Weekly.
JACK DOBELL;
Or, A Boy’s Adventures in Texas.
A STORY FOR BOYS.
CHAPTER XY.
A BOW WITHOUT A BOW-STRING —THE MEX
ICAN LION —SAVED BY A 110G —THE COL
ORADO RIVER CROSSING A SWOLLEN
STREAM SIGNS OF A SETTLEMENT COM
FORTABLE AND WELL-FURNISHED QUAR
TERS —A FEAST AFTER A LONG FAST.
X the morning I gave the
finishing touches to my
bow, and then, for the first
time, the idea crossed my
**s(Qrr* mind that I had nothing
that would answer for a string.
I tried the bark of several shrubs,
and also the leaves of the bear
in grass, but although I exerted my
ingenuity to the utmost, I entirely failed
to make a cord sufficiently strong to
string my bow, and I finally had to aban
don the attempt altogether.
This was a great disappointment, for
I had calculated largely upon supplying
myself with an abundance of small game
by means of my bow. The day was so
far gone when I finished my unsuccessful
experiments at cord-twisting, that I
thought it best to remain for the night
where I was, and take an early start in
the morning, but as I got but little rest,
on account of a “Mexican lion” that kept
me awake nearly the whole night, I was
sorry that I had not gone on.
. About two hours, I suppose, after I had
laid down to sleep, I was roused by a very
sudden and heavy shower of rain, which
wet me to the skin and almost extinguish
ed my fire. The darkness was so intense
that I could not see my hand before me.
I attempted to kindle my fire into a blaze
BURKE’S WEEKLY.
again, but the wood was so saturated with
water I failed to do so, and laid down
once more, intending to take things as
easily as possible under such uncomfort
able circumstances. Just then I thought
I heard the stealthy but heavy tread of
some animal near me. I listened atten
tively, and was soon satisfied that I had
not been mistaken. Now and then, the
animal, whatever it was, appeared to stop,
and then I could hear nothing ; but again
and again the cracking of twigs, and its
cat-like tread, were distinctly audible,
and it was evidently approaching nearer
and nearer the spot where I was lying.
Every instant I expected it to spring up
on me, and with no weapon excepting
my broken drawing-knife, I knew that I
stood but little chance of defending my
self. At last, and just when I was on the
qui vive of expectation, the lion, for such
it proved to be, gave a loud, sharp roar.
My hair stood on end, and for an instant
I thought I was gone; but the next mo
ment I heard a hog give one squeal, and
then all was still. It seemed that while
I was sleeping, a drove of wild hogs, un
conscious of my proximity, had made.a
bed close by me, and it was one of these
that the lion was after, and not myself.
After killing the hog, he laid down by
it, and began devouring it. I could hear
him craunching its bones, at the same
time making a purring noise like that
made by a cat when eating a mouse, only
a great deal louder. I sincerely hoped he
had got a hog big enough to satisfy his
appetite, and no doubt such was the fact,
for in the morning, when I examined the
spot where he had caught and eaten his
prey, there was nothing left of a large
hog except one jowl. His tracks, which
were plainly visible in the soft earth, were
broader than the palm of my hand, and I
felt truly thankful that he had had the
good taste to prefer hog meat to my own
carcase.
As soon as the sun was up, I made
haste to leave a locality where I had pass
ed such an unpleasant and disagreeable
night. Nothing worthy of note occurred
during the day, and towards evening I
came to a body of timber that had been
visible for many miles back, looking like
a low, dark cloud on the northern and
eastern horizon. This I entered and con
tinued on my course. About dusk I came
to a large river, which I supposed to be,
and which in reality was, the Colorado.
At this point it was only about one bun
dled and fifty yards wide, but it was very
full and the current rapid, so I concluded
it would be prudent to wait until morn
ing before I attempted to swim it. I
pitched my camp upon the bank, and
went to bed supperless, as I had eaten my
last piece of pork that day for dinner. )
slept soundly, however, and was not dis
turbed by wolves, or other “varmints”
As soon as it was fairly light. 1 went
down to the edge of the water, where I
collected three or four of the lightest and
driest pieces of drift wood I could find
which I bound securely together with a
small grape vine. I then pulled off my
boots and clothes, and placing them upon
this raft, I set it afloat and pluiwed in
after it, holding on to one end and push,
ing it before me as 1 swam. In this way
I finally made the opposite bank, but not
until I had been carried a considerable
distance down the river by the strength
of the current. I then dressed myself,
and, when I had rested a while to recover
from my fatigue, I proceeded on my way
through a heavily-timbered bottom, sev
eral miles wide, from which I at length
emerged into the open prairie.
In passing through the bottom, I no
ticed several piles of rails and a large tree
cut down, a portion of which had been
split into boards, which convinced me
that there was a settlement near by, and
in fact, as soon as I struck the prairie I
discovered a house about a quarter of a
mile above me on the edge of the timber.
I approached it cautiously, keeping under
cover of the woods, but seeing no sign to
indicate that any one was about the prem
ises, I ventured in. It was apparent that
the Mexicans had not visited the place,
for everything remained just as it was
left by the inhabitants —furniture un
touched, cases filled with books, cribs
with corn, and meat house well stocked
with bacon. I had some hope that possi
bly a gun might have been forgotten in
the hurried departure of the people who
lived there, but though I searched every
nook and corner, I could not find any
thing in the shape of a weapon more for
midable than a carving knife, which I was
very glad to get, as my drawing knife
was botli dull and unwieldy. Besides the
knife, I found a good many other things
in this house which I greatly needed,
among them a tin cup, a knapsack, anew
pair of shoes, several pairs of draweis,
and two or three shirts, all of which 1 ielt
no compunctions of conscience in app'o
printing to my own use, as I knew tin)
would be stolen or destroyed if found b)
the Mexicans.
In a closet in one of the rooms, 1 ; d'°
found a part of a sack of coffee and a bai
rel of sugar. The sight of all this stoic
of provisions was a very agreeable one
me, in my half-famished condition, and
determined to remain at this house a 1
day for the purpose of recruiting my b