gosh it is funny i forgot what i was going to say.

you see i think father and mother is about the best

peeple in the wirld. i dont know whitch is best.

father says mother is wirth 500 of him and he augt

to know becaus he has gnew her longer than i have.

well father sed well Joey, he calls her Joey, how

has the boy behaived himself today and mother sed

he has done verry well indeed. so father he sed

to me what do you say if we go in swimming at

the gravil and i sed all rite i wood like to. so we

went down to the boat and i rew him up to the

gravil and we went in and had a grate swim. father

dont like to have me swim under water. he says

i stay under so long that he gets scart for fear that

i wont never come up. after we got back home he

let me go down town with him and after he had

been to old Tom Conners store and old Nat Weeks

and old Josh Getchels and Gid Lyfords we went

into Fogg and Fellows store and father bougt a

new novil for me. the naim of it is Grissly Ike

the Scalp Lifter. i bet it is a riper. i havent read

it yet becaus father sed as long as he let me go out

befoar my tirm of imprisenment was over i had

got to let Cele read it first. so she read it most all

the evining. she only read one palsam tonite. she

aint so religus as i thougt she was when they is a

new novil round.

September 6, 186---brite and fair to-day and

cool. it feals like autum. i tell you i dont like to

have the summer go. one weak from nex munday

school begins. i hait to think of it. we will have

to do the old xamples about A. and B. and how

many squaire feet there is in 4 ackers 2 roods and

28 rods and New Hamshire is bounded on the

north by Maine on the east by long ileand Sound

on the south by Rode Iland and Conetticut and on

the west by New York, and the capital of Tennysee

is Tallyhassy and the capital of New York is Oswego

and things we lerned last year. sumtimes

i feal like saying to old Francis, who sed it aint,

but i know if i did he wood lam time out of me.

well i have got one moar weak. i hoap i wont be

kep in enny more. i cant spair a single minit.

went to chirch today. the quire coodent sing becaus

sumthing was rong with the organ. only the

squeel keys wood go and they went as loud as a

steam whistle. the base keys woodent maik a single

yip. old Chipper Berley clim into the organ after

chirch was over and found that sumbody had stufed

a old pair of overhals and a old hat all spatered

with paint into the big pipe. Chipper told Beany

he done it and Beany he sed he dident hoap to die

an cross his throte and then Chipper he held up the

overhals and the hat and they both had I. M. Watson

rote on them and so Beany has lost his gob

this time forever so Chipper sed and he waulked

Beany out by the ear. Beany told me honest he

dident do it. he sed he pumped jest as hard as he

cood becaus he dident want to let the wind go out.

Chipper sed the reeson he pumped so hard was

becaus he gnew that all the wind wood go into the

squeel keys and sound awful. Beany feals prety

bad over it becaus he needed the money. he has

bougt sumthing at old Bill Morrils gewelry store.

I knew what it is two and who it is for but Beany

dont know i know. Beany will feal prety cheap if

he has to give it back to old Bill. praps she wont

give it back to Beany. then Beany will be in a

scraip. ennyway if she wont give it back Beany

wont never forgive her. i hoap she wont. it will

be tuf on Beany.

September 7, 186---Beany is fealing prety bad.

he asted me if i cood lend him a dollar. honest i

coodent becaus i aint got it. he says he has got to

get a dollar ennyway. i lent him 40 cents so he

aint got to get but 60 cents moar. he tride to get

a gob today poasting bills but Cris Staples got it.

then Beany he went up to Chipper Berleys to get

his pay and Chipper told him he was lucky not to

get arested for distirbing a religus meating. so

Beany dont know what to do. he aint got ennything

to sell and i aint eether. he tride to borrow

it of Pewt but Pewt sed he dident have it.

September 8, 186---they is a circus coming to

town next Friday. it was going to be in Portsmouth

but there was another circus got the the

circus grounds ferst and so they are coming to

Exeter. me and Pewt and Beany are going to get

a gob poasting bills. the bill poaster was in town

today with a red and blue and gold cart with 2

calico horses and put up the big bills. he only had

2 big ones and dident have enny others and cant get

them until Wensday nite and he wants me and Pewt

and Beany to put them up in the nite so that when

the peeple get up in the morning they can see them

the ferst thing. the way he hapened to get us is

becaus Beanys father and Pewts father is painters

and paper hangers and so they went to them and

they wodent stay up all nite to do it and then he

asted if they was enny boys to do it for a dollar a

peace and a ticket and so we got the gob. we cant

tell ennyone jest what we have got to do but it is

bully. he told us that we was to put the pictuers

up in the rite places to make a show and atract the

attension of the peeple. where they cood see them

the best. so we are going to do it. he says the

secrit of poasting bills is to get them in the rite

places. he give us a list of the pictures. these are

them. the hippotymus the behemuth of hoaly rit.

the boar constricter whitch can crush and swalow a

hole dear or oxx at one meal. the hieener that by

stelth repairs to the graive yards at nite and digs

up the bodys of the ded and devours them. Jo Jo

the dog face man the ofspring of a babboon and a

aborrygine, the most repullsive haff human being

in the wirld. the stork which brings blessings to

the householes in the shape of babies. the cheater

or hunting lepard. the spider munkey, and the

tapir and the geraft. Pewt has got the list so peraps

i havent rote them all rite. we are going to

meat and deside where to poast them up as soon

as Pewt gets them. peraps tomorrow.

Sept. 9, 186---rany today and cold as time. i tell

you it ranes and blows. Aunt Sarah says may be

it is the equinoxious storm. that usually comes on

the 22th. i hoap it wont rane Wensday nite. we

cant poast up bills in a rane storm and if we dont

poast up them bills we dont get no dollar and no

ticket and what will Beany do then? Beany is in

a tite place. if he cant get that dollar he has got

to get that present back from Lizzie Tole. if she

wont give it back then Beany may have to go to

jale and he wont never forgive her. if she has to

give it back she will be mad with Beany forever

and ever. i almost hoap it will rane. no i dont

eether. it will be two tuf on Beany. what ever

Beany has did to me i like him and i hoap it wont

rane and that Beany will get his dollar. i cant be

mutch fairer than that can i?

this afternoon we went up in the barn on the

hay, me and Pewt and Beany and talked over where

we are going to poat up the bills nex Wensday nite

tomorrow. it raned so that Pewt dident dass to

bring over the bills. they are in his shop all roled

up in a role as big as my leg and tide tite. so we

looked at our list and we are going to put the picture

of the cheeter on decon Aspinwalls house. he is the

bigest cheeter we know and everybody says so.

the stork we are going to put on Mrs. Clarisser

Dorsons front door. Pewt says he heard his mother

say that the dorsons xpect a baby pretty soon. so

we all agreed that wood be the place to put it.

we all got jawing about where we shood put the

picture of the elefant. Beany thougt it had augt to

go on Horris Cobbs front door. Pewt thougt it

had augt to go on old mister Gechels store and i

thougt it had augt to go on Fatty Frogs house.

Horris Cobb is the fattest man in town but he aint

tall. odd mister Gechel is feerful tall, almost ten

feet i gess but he aint verry big as Fatty Fogg is lots

taller than Horris and 3 times as big round as old

mister Gechel. so we decided to put the elefant on

Fatty Foggs house and the Giraft on Gechels house.

the hieener we are going to put on the berrying

ground gait rite under where it says we are all passing

away. you know the hieener digs up people and

devours them and Beany says that will go well with

the sine. that was a good one for Beany. i bet

that circus man will say we are prety smart felers.

the howling munkey we are going to put on the

Methydist parsonage. the reverent Josiar Higgins

has got white whiskers on his throte jest like the

howling munkeys and i bet he can howl as loud

sundays. so that is the rite place for that picture.

i never gnew befoar how mutch beter it is to have

things did rite.

we are going to put the picture of the tapir on

my uncle Gilman's house. Pewt thougt it had augt

to be put on Ikey Blums house only Ikey aint got

any house and his shop is not on enny street. Ikey

has a old plug horse and colects bones and rags and

iron. he has the longest nose i ever see. it goes

way down over his mouth. i dont see how he can

eat. my uncle Gilman has got the next longest nose.

his nose is a good deal biger than Ikeys but it aint

so long. but uncle Gilman is lucky becaus he has

got a house to put the picture on. he can blow his

nose so it sounds jest like a cornet. not so good as

Bruce Briggam can play the cornet but prety good.

i bet he will be pleesed that he beat Ikey and Ikey

will be mad, but nobody can have evrything in this

wirld.

the picture of the boar constricter we are going

to put on the front gait of old decon Eberneaser

Petigrew. he goes to all the chirch supers and eats

moar than enny man there. one time Charlie Folsom

the resterant man whitch makes clam chowder

wanted to see how mutch old Eben cood eat and he

invited him in and made a hoal wash boiler full of

chowder. Charlie sed he put in a peck of clams and

2 galons of milk and a lot of potatoes and onyiuns

and he invited old decon Petigrew in and he et

and et and et and et. Charlie begun to get scat for

feer he wood bust. bimeby he stoped eating becaus

he coodent hold enny moar. he had et all but about

4 quats. Charlie dident sleep enny that nite he

wurrid so about decon. he thougt sure he wood die

befoar morning. so he got up erly the nex morning

and come down town. when he went by Ebens

house he looked up to see if there was enny craip

or a reath on the door. there wasent so he gnew

he hadent dide but he gessed he was prety sick. well

what do you think when he got to his resterant there

stood old Eben all rite wateing for him and he told

Charlie that if he dident want the rest of that chowder

he wood take it. so Charlie he give it to him

and he says he must be jest like a boar constricter.

father has always told me to do evry thing rite

that i attempt to do. he tells me that all the time. i

gess he will find that i can do things rite as well as

the nex one. tonite when we come out of the barn

it had stoped raning and the sun come out i hoap

it will be good wether tomorrow and nex day two.

Pewt is going to make 2 buckets of paist. me and

Beany are to get the flour for it and Pewt makes

it. he knows how better than we do. he and Beany

fernish the brushes to put on the paist. i fernish a

lantirn if it is two dark.

September 10, 186---brite and fair and jest bully

wether. i got up late today and i am glad of it

becaus i have a hard days wirk tonite, father told

me this morning that i must distinkly understand

that there aint going to be no fooling tonite but

jest wirk. i prommised we woodent do nothing but

wirk and put the bills in the best places so as to

pleese evrybody. that is what the circus man told

us not to do enny damige and not to get ennyone

mad but to put the bills where they will attrack the

most atension. and that is why he is to pay us so

mutch money and give us a ticket apeace to the show.

after breckfast i split up enuf wood for today

and luged in 2 pales of water and went over to

Pewts. Beany was there and we opened the role

of pictures and they were old lunkers. gosh the

howling munkeys looked jest like the reverent Josier

Higgins and the cheeter looked kind of slanty eyd

and meen like Decon Aspinwall. the boar constricter

was swalowing a live cow hoal. i bet peeple will

laff. and the tapir honest he looked kind of like

my uncle Gilman.

well we are going to go ferst over the river to

uncle Gilmans and then to old mister Gechel and

then to Pettigrews and then to Clarisser Dorsons

and then to Decon Aspinwalls and then to the reverent

Josier Higgins and so on. Pewt thinks it will

taik 2 hours to do it good so they cant be toar down

if we done it with tacs ennybody whitch dident like

it cood yank it off eesy but if we paist it on with a

little gum arab in it, it will have to be scrope off

with a gnife. so Pewt says and i gess he knows,

we carried up 2 paper bags of flour and Pewt made

2 buckits of paist. we paisted a picture of Flora

Temple the fastest trotting horse in the wirld on a

mahoginy buro that Pewts father is polishing for

Doctor Goram Potters grandfather and i bet it will

taik a weak to get it off. so i gess Pewts paist is

good paist. we are going to meat at Beanys at

haff past 12 oh clock. father is going to wake me

at 12 oh clock. i hoap he wont forget to wake up.

ennyway it wont make enny difference for i shant

go to sleep. i bet we will have a good time.

Beany says it is all up with him if he dont get

that dollar. he says he will be the ferst of his

family to go to jale. that is what a feller gets for

being in debt. Beany had augt to have wated. but

i supose when a feller gets going with a girl he

dont think. Beany is not bad but thinkless. i hoap

it will be a lessen to him. he is feerfully wurrid

but he needent be for if the wirst comes to wirst i

shall sell one of my hens. i havent told him this

becaus if he gnew it perhaps he wood spend the

dollar for sumthing else for her. but while i have

a hen to my naim Beany shall not go to jale. i wood

not go to bed at all tonite if father woodent know it

but if my lite aint out by 10 oh clock he hollers for

me to go to bed lively. so i am going to read

Grissly Ike the Scalp Lifter until 10 oh clock and

then go to bed and lissen for the clock to strike 12.

September 13, 186---this is saterday. i almost

wish i was ded. i havent been out of my room

sence Thirsday xcept to split wood and lug water

and feed the sheep and horse and hens. father says

one moar sumer like this one will make a gibbering

manioc of him. he says there must be sumthing

rong with me. he dont know wether he had augt

to lick it out of me or send me to the reform school

or to a place where they keep idjuts. that is the

way he talks to me but when old Decon Aspinwall

and the reerent Josier Higgins and Clarisser Dorsens

husband and old man Pettigrew sed i had augt

to be sent to the reform school he told them to go

strait to hell and try it if they thougt they cood.

Beanys father has kep Beany in his room and Pewts

father has kep Pewt in. the only time i can speak

to Beany is after father has went to Boston and

Beanys father has went down town we holler across

from our chamber winders. we havent seen Pewt

for his chamber is on the back of his house. i asted

Beany what he was going to do about the dollar and

he says he xpected the poliseman to come for him

enny time. i told him if the poliseman come to tell

him to come over and take the best hen i had.

Beany felt better and sed i was a trew frend. he

says it is a pity things is as they is but he cant help

it. a feller cant help they way he feals sumtimes.

peraps i am lucky that Beany has cut me out for if

i had cut him out i mite be xpecting to go to jale.

if i hadent heard father tell them men to go to hell

i wood be afrade of going tojale or the reform

school. i dont beleeve reform school or jale is enny

wirse then staying in your room when a circus

paraid is going by on the nex strete.

i think i will wright about what has hapened tomorrow

whitch is sunday. i want to finish reading

Grissly Ike the Scalp Lifter. Cele tiptode up to my

room and threw it in. Cele always stands up for a

feller when he is in truble. probly after the hoal

thing has bloan over if it ever does Cele will

tell mother she done rong in giving me the novil

and will ask to be punished that is jest like Cele.

September 14, 186---brite and fair. i am in my

room wrighting. most everybody has went to chirch

xcept mother who never gets time to go and father

who is eether over to Pewts fathers shop or over

to Beanys fathers barn talking. Beany has got his

gob back becaus they found out that Pewt put the

overhals and old hat into the organ. he done it to

play a trick on Beany but he dident meen to lose

him his gob. so it is all rite. i see Beany going to

chirch. i cant go. it is tuf to have to stay in your

room and not be aloud to go to chirch. that is a

prety way to bring up a boy i shood say. it will be

lucky for them if i dont grow up a drunkard and a

robber or a berglar. some day father will be sorry

for what he has did to me.

well it is a long story. last Thursday nite i fell

asleep and father waked me up at 12 oh clock. i

went to Beanys and found him and we went to Pewts

and got the paist and the pictures. i luged one

pale and Beany the other. Pewt luged the paper.

we had to change hands lots of times and set the

pales down. i tell you they was heavy. it was

clowdy but as it was moon time it was prety lite.

we dident see nobody and it seamed kind of dreery.

we got to uncle Gilmans and paisted the picture

of the tapir up rite on the front side of his house.

then we went to Gechels house and paisted up the

giraft. we had a long handeled brush and i had to

stand on Beanys shoulder to reech the girafs head.

the picture reeched nearly to the roof. once we

thougt we was cougt but it was only a horse kicking

in the barn. we dident make enny noise and

when we talked we jest wispered. it was almost as

mutch fun as hooking water mellons. then we went

to old Pettigrews and paisted up the boar constricter.

then we went to Fatty Foggs and his dog woodent

let us come near the house. we thougt he wood

knaw us and Pewt hit him with a rock and he yelped

so loud that old Fatty come down in his shirt tale

and a little tin lamp but we was hid behine sum

boards.

then we went to Clarisser Dorsens but it was all

lit up and doctor Perrys horse and chase was there

hiched to a poast. we wated and bimeby old man

Dorson come out on the run and went down town.

bimeby he came back with a old woman and they

went into the house so we coodent put the stork

picture on her house without being cougt and we

put it on Billy Hansoms house. Billy and his wife

have jest been married and last weak the fellers

give them a serinaid. so we thougt they wood be

pleased to be notised. by that time the town clock

struck 2. so we had to hurry and them pales was

heavy. so we come over the bridge and throug

Clifford strete to Coart strete. Pewt he had to go

into his house and while he was gone Beany sed it

wood be a good goke on Pewt to put Jo Jo the Dog

faced man picture on Pewts house because Pewts

father has got long wiskers. so we done it and when

Pewt come out we told him we had put it on old

Hen Dows house and Pewt thougt that was bully.

Then Beany wanted to go in his house to get

sum donuts and while he was in Pewt sed it wood

be a good thing to put the Spider Monkey picture

on Beanys house. Beanys father is kind of thin

and wear awful tite britches and a blew coat and

dresses elegant and so we done it and when Beany

come out with his donuts we set down and et them

and he dident notise ennything.

well after we had et the donuts we paisted up the

Cheeter picture on Decon Aspinwalls house and the

elefant on Horris Cobbs house and the Hineer one

on the berrying yard. we tried verry hard to do a

good gob there and we gnew it wood maik a fine

apearance rite under the sine we are all passing

away. then we come home. father let me in and

asted me if i done enny damige and i sed no. he

asted me where we paisted up the bills and i told him

he cood see in the morning when he went to the

trane. so i went to bed.

the nex morning mother come up and waked me

and told me to dress and come down stairs jest as

quick as i cood. she looked xcited. i asted her if

ennybody was sick and she sed wirse than that. i

cood hear peeple talking loud down stairs and i run

down as quick as i cood get my close on and without

washing my face or comeing my hair. when i got

down there in the setting room i saw Billy and Mrs.

Billy Hanson and old Pettigrew and Beanys father

and Pewts father and the reverent Josier Higgins

and old man Wiggins the trusty of the berrying

ground and Decon Aspinwall and Pewt and Beany

and father and mother and Aunt Sarah. and they

were all piching in xcept father and mother and

Aunt Sarah who dident say ennything. Mrs. Billy

Hanson sed she had never been so insulted in her

life. she sed she had lived a good cristian life and to

have sech a insult paisted on her house was more

than flesh and blud cood stand and she boohood

like a big baby. and Decon Aspinwall sed he had

stood all he was going to and this time the coarts

wood take it up and settle it onct for all if peeple

was to be insulted and defaimed and there rites

trampled on and the reverent Josier sed he thougt

the sacrid eddifise of whitch he was a unwerthy

paster had augt to be safe from infaimus attacks

and that he shood ast the coarts to rite him in the

publick ey.

and old man Wiggins he sed that the ded wood

tirn in there graives if they see what was on the

berrying ground gait. and Beanys father sed he

wasent going to be called a spider munkey for nothing

and Pewts father sed he was going to find out

who poasted up that Jo Jo bill befoar he left, if

it took the rest of his lifetime. then they all talked

together and made a feerful noise. bimeby father

sed now you have all had your chance, less find out

sumthing about it. so he told them what he gnew

about the circus man asking us to poast the bills

and Pewts father and Beanys father sed that was so.

then father asted me why i done it and i told him

we were told to poast the bills in aproprate places

to atrack attension and we done it. i sed we was

going to put the stork up on Missis Dorsens house

but the doctor was there and we coodent and so we

put it on Misses Hansons. and then Missis Hanson

saled into me like time again then Pewts father sed

Pewt sed he dident know ennything about puting the

Jo Jo bill on his house and i sed he was in the house

then and Beanys father sed Beany sed he dident

know about the spider munkey bill and i sed Beany

was in the house then and i done it.

then they all sed i was the ring leeder and had led

Pewt and Beany into temptasion and old Decon Aspinwall

sed it was mity queer that we dident put up

ennything on fathers house and the boy was the

father of the man and that he wood see that i was

sent to the reform school and that father paid

heavy damages.

that was the time father got mad and told him

to go to hell and old Decon went off to see his

lawyer. then father told the others that he wood

do all he cood to make it rite and he took me round

to all of them to their houses and made me beg their

pardon. peeple were scraping the pictures off and

washing them with hot water and evrybody was

laffing.

Uncle Gilman and Mister Gechel and Horris Cobb

all laffed and sed it was a good goke but the others

were all feerful mad with me and father and not

very mad with Pewt and Beany. that is all rite but

the idea of me leading Pewt and Beany into temtasion

makes me sick.

well Pewt got a licking and Beany got a licking

and i got a licking and we have all got to stay in

the house until school begins. but Beany had to go

to chirch to keep his gob.

it is prety tuf to stay in a fellers room and to hear

a circus band playing and not go jest becaus we

tride to do the best we cood. ennyway i am glad i

aint going to the reform school. father jest come

in with a paper. he sed he had been arested and

had to get bale. he sed old Decon Aspinwall had

sewed him for 10 thousand dollars for defaiming

his caracter. father sed old Decon had to go to

Portsmouth for a lawyer, and that Amos Tuck and

General Marstin and Judg Stickney and Alvy Wood

all come up and sed they wood see him throug without

paying a dam cent. father feals prety good tonite.

Aunt Sarah says he always does when there

is a chane for a fite.

this is the ferst time in my life i ever hoaped

school wood begin. ennything is beter than staying

in your room.

September 15, 186---school begun today and

i went. i dident supose i ever wood ruther go to

school than stay in my room espeshully a school

whitch is taugt by old Francis. but they is always

sumthing lively taiking place in old Francis school.

sumtimes Micky Guold is setting down on tacts or

the points of pens whitch has been stuck in his seet

so they wont fall over like a bent pin whitch aint

mutch good enyway most of the time and hollering

bludy merder and geting snached baldheaded for it

by old Francis, or Beany or Bug Chadwick is being

ferriled with a hard wood ruler with 2 hairs in the

pam of there hand to splitt the old ruler into fraggments

whitch i have never seen did yet in this life

or licked sumwhere else whare nuthing will do enny

good xcept a peace of paistboard or the Exeter

Newsleter in the set of their britches, or Pop Clark

is maid to eat a apple before the hoal school as fast

as he can with rot and wirm holes and wirms and

the stem and seeds and the coar or Skinny Bruce

is being snaiked over 2 seets and put in the woodbox

with the cuvver down because Gim Erly whitch sits

behine Skinny put a pin in the toe of his shue and

reeched over and kicked Tady Finton whitch sits in

front of Skinny and old Francis wont believe

Skinny but licks him onct for doing it and twict

for liing about it whitch he says is twict as wirse

as doing it, or Fatty Gilman is down on all foars and

howling while old Francis lams him with the haff of

the broom stick he stirs the fire with while Fatty

is triing hard to crawl throug a chair whitch he cant

do enny moar than the cammel cood crawl throug

the ey of the needle in the bible.

All of them things is taiking place in old Francis

school every day whitch makes it a very intersting

place when you are not the feller whitch is doing

them things but is setting down and waching them

out of the coner of your ey and pertending to studdy

hard whitch nobudy can do when sumbuddy is howling

terruble and banging agenst seets and you never

know when your tern wil come nex.

but it is lots beter than staying in your room

and not seing the fellers and coppying there xamples

and getting so far behine in your studdies that you

are shoar to get licked evry day for a week or 2.

there is sum fun in geting licked onct in a while if

you have a chance to escaip and it is a grate deel

moar fun if sumbuddy else gets licked for sumthing

you have did. sumtimes a feller will tel on sumbuddy

else and then evry feler whitch can lick him

licks him the ferst time they gets the chance. but

most of the fellers will take another fellers lickings

without a yip. Old Francis lickings is wirse than 2

or 3 of another fellers lickings but aint so bad as 30

or 40 lickings whitch a feller is shoar to get if he

tells on anuther feller to say nuthing about the girls

running their tungs out at you and calling you tattle

tail and stiking their nose up in the air when they

goes by you whitch maiks a feller feal prety cheep

whitch is sumtimes wirse than a licking.

So on the hoal i had ruther go to school than stay

in my room whitch dont make enny diference becaus

i have got to go ennyway wether i want to or not.

tonite i had to studdy Colburn arithmatic. it is

the wirst book i ever studded. i bet there aint a boy

in this wirld whitch doesnt want to paist time out of

old Colburn. i had ruther be a merderer if nomuddy

gnew it than be a feler whitch rote a arithmatic.

Ennyway old Colburn had a key whitch tells

jest how to do the xamples and has them all figgered

out. teechers is aloud to have the key but the

scholers cant have it. Enny time old Francis dont

know how to do a xample he looks in his key and

lerns how and then a feller whitch dont have a key

is snached baldheaded becaus he dont know how to

do it. i dont think that is fair. i had 10 xamples

to do and i have got them all did. Cele done 4 and

Keene 3 and father 3. so i am all rite tomorrow.

father give me 2 bats in the ear befoar i undestood

one xample. Keene gets mad but she dont dass to bat

me. Cele is the best.

September 16, 186---brite and fair. i havent let

my boat for a long time. Pewts' father has got the

best boats now. it was prety quite in school today

only 9 fellers got licked. five of them hollered to

make old Francis stop. Scotty Briggim never hollers

and Stubby Gooch and Tady Tilton and Jack

Mevlin dont ever holler. Nigger Bell never got

but one licking and he hollered louder than enny

feller i ever herd Old Francis dont lick him becaus

he hollers so loud.

September 17, 186---brite and fair. i havent had

a cent for moar than a weak. it is tuf to be so

poar. i have got to rase sum chink sumhow. Beany

aint paid me my 40 cents yet.

September 18, 186---i got licked today in school.

jest for nothing. sum one put sum gum in Medo

Thirstems seet and he coodent get up to resite and

old Francis yanked him up and found the gum and

licked me becaus i set jest behine his seet. he sed

he had been keeping his ey on me for a long time.

it cant be very long becaus school has only been 3

days. today was wensday and there wasent enny

school in the afternoon. me and Putter went up

river fishing and caught 8 pickeril. prety good

for us.

September 19, 186---brite and fair. nex weak

is the county fair and cattle show. i am going. the

band is pracktising evry nite and that is the reeson

i cant get my lessons. no feller can studdy when a

band is playing king John quickstep and red stocking

quickstep and romanse from Leeclare and departed

days and things like them rite across the strete. so

i miss in my lessons and get licked most every day.

sum day i am going to play in a band. i shall play

a e flat cornet like old Robinson and Bruce Briggim

and Rashe Belnap. they played a new peace tonite.

i shoodent think men whitch cood play in a band

wood ever do ennything else. i never wood.

September 20, 186---rany as time. i hoap it

wont rane next weak when they are having the fare.

tonite it raned so hard that the band dident pracktise

so i had time to studdy. i coodent do ennything

this afternoon but set in Ed Toles barn and

see the horses rubed down.

September 21, 186---brite and fair today. i went

to chirch today. After chirch me and father went

up to the fair grounds. they have got a lot of sheds

bilt and most of the fence is up and the ralings

round the track. i bet it will be a good fair.

Peekily Tiltons father plays in the band and 3

uncles. his father plays a b flat tenner horn and his

uncle Ed plays a e flat base horn and his uncle

George plays an e flat alto horn and his uncle Warrin

plays a b flat cornet. Peeliky says he is going to

play some day. he doesnt know what he will play

but he wil play sumthing. i asted father why he

dident play in the band and he sed they was dam

fools enuf in the wirld without he being one. i was

going to ast him to by me a cornet but i desided

i woodent jest yet. i gnew jest what he wood say

if i asted him.

father says he dont like band playing but i notise

he stays to home the nites the band plays and sets

on the steps an lisens and beets time with his foot

and sumtimes puts in as good base as Ed Tilton,

Peeliky Tiltons uncle can with his base horn and

when sumbuddy in the band plays out of tune he

gumps up and waulks up and down the piaza and

says why dont they hit that feller with a ax. so

i know he likes band playing as wel as i do. i wish

he played in the band fer then i wood go into the

bandroom and hear them. me and Beany tride

to go in one nite and we was jest going up stairs

when sumbuddy throwed a hoal pale of water on us

and we skined out prety lifely. i woodent care if

they only wood let us in after they had throwed

the water but they hollered get out of here you little

devils or we will drownd you. i bet them band

fellers can lick enny other band fellers and beat

them playing two. i bet our band is as good as enny

band in the wirld.

September 22, 186---i am terible xcited. we are

going to have three days vacasion this week while

they have the fair and cattle show and i have got a

seeson ticket becaus Charles Talor is going to have

Nellie to drive the hoal time. he gets the hay and

grane and straw for the annimals and has got to be

going in and out of the fair grounds al the time and

father has let him have Nellie and he give me and

father a seeson tickit. so i kin go all the time so

long as i split my kinlins and get in my wood and

all the pales of water mother wants. Beanys father

is going to ride in percession as marchal with a yeller

sash on and long yeller gloves on and a stick with

red and white and blew ribbons on it and so Beany

has got a seeson tickit two and Pewts father is going

to put sum golden pollish hens and sum rocky mountain

hens in the hen show and so Pewt has got a

seeson ticket. Beany has pade me back my forty

cents. i tell you there aint many fellers whitch has

as good luck as i have got. 3 days vacasion and a

season tickit to a fair and cattle show and plenty of

money. i dont se what else a feller cood want. tonite

i studded as hard as i cood with a band playing

2 or 3 new peaces. Cele helped me with my examples.

it wont do for me to miss in my lessons tomorrow

or nex day. i gess with Celes help i can

hang on for 2 days more after that i dont care so

mutch.

September 32, 186---it looks like rane. i hoap

it wil rane today if it ranes this weak. today i saw

a man drive throug town in a high wheal gig hiched

to a auful long legged horse. the man had on a

cap with a long viser and had pullers on his ranes

and had 2 pales hung under his gig and set on a lot

of blankits and the horse had on a white blanket

with red letters on it whitch sed Flying Tiger 2.57

enterd for the free for all. he asted Tommy Tomson

the way to the fair grounds and Tommy sed he

cood show him and he clim into the gig and drove

off. well Tommy he staid to the fair grounds all the

forenoon and in the afternon old Francis licked him

and made him holler two but Tommy sed it was

worth it to stay to the fair grounds haff a day and

get out of school for one licking. he sed it dident

hurt mutch and he only hollered to make him stop.

Tommy says they have bilt a bandstand and a stand

for the juges and pens for the pigs and hens and

cattle and resterants and pop corn places and evrything

else. i wood like to go up tonite but father

says i cant go up until the ferst day of the fair.

Tommy says there is going to be a snaik charmer

and a bull whitch gives milk and a girl whitch has

got 2 heads and 4 legs and 4 arms and a sheep with

6 legs. mother says i cant go in to see the girl with

4 legs becaus its impropper to look at a girls legs.

i asted father and he sed it is twict as impropper

to look at a 4 leged girls legs as a 2 leged one so i

cant go in to see that.

Tommy sed they was going to be a troting race

for bulls. Charley Treadwill has got a big white

and black bull named Nickerbocker whitch he drives

in a wagon with a bit in his mouth and he is going

to have a race with a bull from Portsmouth.

i bet on Charleys bull. i wish it was a bull fite. i

wood bet on Charleys bull.

old Wakeup Robinson is going to trot his horse

Prince John. they is going to have 2 bands the

Exeter band and the Newmarket band. i bet the

Exeter band is the best. i cant hardly wate for tomorrow.

i dident miss in school today and tonite we set out

on the steps to hear the band. old wisler Weeks is

going to play a fife in the band and old Potsy Dirgin

is going to play a fife two.

September 24, 186---brite and fair and county

fair two. that is a goke and a good one two but

nobuddy will ever see it but me. gosh i am tired

tonite i never had so much fun in my life. we had

the best percession i ever see. first come the marchals

George Perkins and John Gardner and Beanys

father and old Francis and John Gibson all on white

horses xcept George Perkins and John Gardner and

old Francis whitch was on red horses and Jon Gibson

whitch was on a spoted horse and they all looked

fine. then come the Exeter band and then a lot of

ox teems full of wimen in white with their hides

all brushed up with curry combs and their horns all

cuvered with ribbons and evergreens in their slats.

i tell you when old Giddings and old Wiliam Conner

and old Nat Gilman jabbed them with the ox godes

they walked along prety lifely. then come the Newmarket

band and then the fire ingine and a lot of

men with cains and stove pipe hats and then a steam

wagon and then Charles Tredwill driving his bull

and old wakeup Robinson with his troter and a sope

pedler with a humpback horse. it was the best percession

i ever see. the Exeter band played 4 times

as loud as the Newmarket band. i wish you cood

have heard Peeliky Tiltons uncles play you wood

have thougt they wood bust their cheeks but they

dident. Fatty Walker broak 2 heads on his base

drum the ferst day and Len Heirvey broak one in

the snair drum. I gnew they wood beat the Newmarket

band. tonite father and mother and Cele

and Keene and Georgie have went to the haughticulture

show in the town hall. they have all sorts

of frutes and beens and pees and beets and flowers

and gars of frute and perserves and bread and cake

and pyes to see whitch has maid the best and gnitting

and sowing things and drawings and paintings

and bea hives and stufed birds and a stufed wilcat

showing her teeth. it is ded so it cant hirt ennybuddy

and composisons of school girls and handwriting

and lots of things. i wanted to go but

father sed i codent go to evrything. i gess i will

go to bed. i have got a verry bizy day tomorow.

Beany is going to try and get a gob tomorow.

September 25, 186---brite and fair again. i am

prety tired again tonite and am staying to home.

father and arnt Sahar and Keene and Cele and

Georgie have went to the haughticulchure show this

time and me and mother are staying to home.

mother is rocking the baby and i am in my room

wrighting. today there was a percession this morning

and i was in it but only a litle while. i held

one end of the base drum but evry time Fatty Walker

wood hit it a good belt he wood send me flying

round sideways and at the end of the ferst peace i

felt jest as if old Francis had shook my livver out.

so i give it up. so they got Curley Conner a big

feller. Fatty cood bang the drum as hard as he

cood lam it but he coodent nock Curley round.

today the Exeter band beat the Newmarket band

again. it scart 4 horses and made them run awa

and smashed 3 wagons and throwed out 14 people

and the Newmarket band only scart one horse and

dident throw out enny peeple. i tell you Exeter

can beat Newmarket evry time.

Me and Pewt and Beany all got a chance to take a

gob. the man that hollers for Julia the snaik

charmer offerd us 1 doller apeace if we wood stand

up on the platform and let a boar constricter coil

around us and then Julia the snaik charmer wood

come out and charm the snaiks and save our lifes.

you bet we dident take that gob.

Beany got a gob hollering for a peap show of war

pictures but his father come riding up and snaiked

him out. i give 5 cents of my 40 cents that Beany

pade me to get a shock in a lectric machine and

when i got hold of the handels i coodent let go.

i felt like a crasy boan all over and i danced and

hollered till Jerry Carter come up and told the man

if he dident stop the machine he wood smash it and

smash him two so the man he stopped it and i let

go and run. Everybuddy laffed but me and Jerry

Carter.

then we went to the track to see the bull race.

there was a big black bull hiched into a gig troting

up and down the track and they were wating for

Charly Tredwill and Nickerbocker. bimeby he

come troting down the track and when the red bull

see the other he stopd and pawed the ground and

bellered and Nickerboker he done the sam and both

men begun to lick them but the bulls dident notise

it enny more than if a fli stang them and they put

their heds down and began to push and butt and

hook and roar and they tiped over the gig and the

wagon and throwed Charly and the other man out

and stepped on Charly Tredwill's head and nocked

down the rales and went bang agenst the Juges

stand and everybuddy hollered for Charlys bull

xcept about haff of them whitch hollered for the

other bull but nobuddy dassed to go near them.

bimeby the Captain of the Ingine company whitch

was going to have a xibition squirt hollered to the

fellers to start the breaks and they done it and begun

to squert rite on the bulls heads and they coodent

stand it and they stoped fiting. they were all tuckered

out and there harnasses and wagons was all

smashed to kinlin wood. it was beter than enny dog

fite i ever see. every buddy sed it was the best

thing in the show. i wish they had let them fite it

out. i bet Charlys bull wood lick. father sed

twict that Charly wasent hirt becaus his head was

solid way through. that enny feller whitch wood

fool away his time to trane a bull to trot in a race

coodent be hirt by ennything stepping on his head.

Beany has got a gob as waiter in a resterrent. he

got 50 cents yesterday. Pewt got 50 cents in working

for a feler whitch has a lot of poasts and a lot

of rings. the poasts is all numbered and they is a

preasent for every poast. You give 10 cents to

toss a ring. if you toss it good and it goes over a

poast you get a gold wach or a 12 blaided gnife

or a gold headed cain or a sigar or a whip or a doll

or a glass pitcher. i tossed it over a poast and got

a sigar and i give the sigar to old Barny Casidy and

he lit it and took 2 puffs and spit it out and sed it

was made of a old horse blanket. tomorrow is the

last day of the fair and if i am going to ern enny

money i have got to get a gob prety quick. father

is going to stay at home tomorow to go to the fair.

i have had a auful good time today and seen some

good races but i havent had a gob. Pewt and Beany

always have the luck.

September 28, 186---this is a rany sunday. i

cant go to chirch becaus my paint has not come off

yet. i shood not dass to go to chirch becaus peeple

wood laff rite out loud. father says he dont believe

it will ever come off. but mother says it will with

plenty of greece and soft sope. i am most raw

now. i wish father had kiled that man. i never

got into so bad a scraip before. father says that he

has desided that the reform school or the idjut

assilem is the only place for me but mother says i

needent wurry about that for that is only his talk

but i must be more cairful in the future. i told

her i dident meen ennything rong but only wanted

to earn a little money and she sed she gnew that but

there is sum ways of erning money whitch is open to

objecsion and i gess she is rite and this is one of

them ways. After a feller has had his skin scrubed

with soft sope and bristol brick for two days jest

like pollishing a brass door gnocker he wishes he

was ded.

Well you see i maid up my mind to get a gob

becaus Beany had and Pewt had and i had spent

all my money. so the first thing i done when i had

did my choars was to put for the fair grounds erly.

when i got there i went to the resterrent and asted

them if they wanted a waiter. they sed no but they

was a feller whitch had a tent nex to Julia the snaik

charmer whitch has ben triing to get 2 boys. so i

went over there and there was a new tent and a big

picture painted on a sheet of the wild men of Bornio

whitch was captured after a dredful fite in whitch 6

bludhounds was kiled and 4 men fataly injered for

life. they was a picture of soldiers and hunters with

guns and bludhounds chasing the 2 wild men and

carring off the wounded men and the ded dogs.

when i got there i saw a big man with a big

mustash talking with Hiram Mingo a nigger boy.

i asted him if he had a gob for me and he looked

at me and sed i was prety skinny but perhaps he

cood fix me. he asted us into the tent. i woodent

go for i was afrade of the wild men of Bornio but

he sed the tent was emty. so we went in and he sed

he had bad luck. That both his wild men was sick

and he had a wife and nine small children, and

he had got to earn there bread and the only way to

do it was to get sum kind hearted feller like us to be

wild men. he sed if we wood do that for him he

wood pay us 2 dollars apeace and his nine children

and his sick wife and blind mother wood pray for

us on her gnees. i was auful sorry for him he

looked so sad. he sed he had looked up a lot of

feller and talked with a lot and we was the only

fellers that was smart enuf to do it. he sed he never

was gnew to maik a mistake in a feller. he gnew he

cood trust us enny time. so i asted him what we

wood have to do and he sed he wood paint us up

like wild men and put on sum firs and leperd skins

and sum brass rings on our hine legs and a necklace

of tiger claws and all we wood have to do

was to snarl and say yowk and let out howls, and try

to get at peeple. i dident want to black up but

Hiram dident care becaus he is a nigger. so is asted

him if the black wood ware off and he sed yes and

so after a while i sed i wood. well he made me

take off all my close and he painted me all over

black and he put sum black stuf on my hair and

twisted out all the points whitch stuck up, then he

wound a leperd skin round me and round Hiram

and i had a neck lace of tiger claws and 2 brass

rings round my hine legs. then he took sum red

paint and he painted sum big scars on us where

tigers had toar us. when he showed me in the

looking glass how it looked it scart me. i never

would have gnew it was me. i was wirse looking

than a babboon.

then he learned us how to snarl and yowl and

make faces. he sed it was easier for me to make

faces than enny feller he had ever gnew and he sed

it must come natural to me. He sed i wood scare

a gorilla white. then he lerned us how to fite and

sed we must snarl and fite when he was out on

the platform telling the peeple about us and then we

wood rush in and crack a whip and fire a pistol in

our faces and stop us.

Well after we had lerned how he put a ox chane

on to us and then he went out and begun to holler.

he sed ladies and gentlemen for one short day only

you are privileged to see the wild men of Bornio,

imported at vast expense by arrangements with the

king of Bornio and captured after a terific fite after

6 dogs was killed and 4 men fataly ingered for

life. they are of small size but like the man munky

they have the strength of 7 strong men in their

sinews and boans and in there native lair they track

and kill the maneeting tiger and the lion with there

naked hands. then he pounded his stick twict on

the platform and it was a signal to us and we begun

to yowl and snarl and stamp and he sed there

they are taring each other to bits and he rushed in

and hollered and cracked his whip and fired his pistal

and we yowled and snarld and peeple begun to

rush up and pay 10 cents to come in. when they

saw us one woman sed my what dredful looking

things and one man sed i have got a 15 years old

boy that can lick boath of them munkys. so when

he and his boy come near the platform i gumped

at him and made a auful face and let out a auful

howl and i wish you cood have seen that 15 years

old boy hiper acrost that tent and holler. he was

scart most to deth and the man two and a woman

screached and they had to carry her out. then

the man cracked his whip and drove me back snarling

and making auful faces and Hiram he let out

sum auful yowls and bit his chane and fomed at

the mouth with sope and the man told how only

last weak he had to put on us a red hot iron to drive

us off a hieener whitch had got out of its cage and

had atacted us but he was two lait and before he

cood drive us from our pray we toar him to bits.

A man asted what we et and he sed live rabits and

chickings and sometimes frogs. well peeple kep

coming in droves and bimeby i see Beany an Pewt

come. Beanys eyes were jest like sorcers. i laid

down and snarled a litle and i pertended to be

asleep and snarled in my sleep like a dog does. i

wanted Beany to come near me and so i kep quite

and bimeby Beany and Pewt come close to the platform

and i make a gump at them and let out the

loudest yowl and maid the feerfullst face i cood.

wel Beany went heels over head and hollered bludy

merder and Pewt he div rite out under the bottom

of the tent and that is the last i see of them. a lot

of people come in whitch i gnew and i scart a lot of

them most to deth and old mister Emerson lost his

false teeth and dident das to come back after them.

i never had so mutch fun in my life. bimeby i see

father and Charles Talor come in. when they see

us Talor begun to laff and sed thunder George the

skinny munky faced one is skinny enuf to be your

boy and father laffed and sed did you ever see sutch

a looking thing in your life. i wated till they come

up and then i gumped to the end of my chane and

yowled feerful and toar my hair and stamped my

feet and made faces and snarled auful and Hiram

done the same. they kep back out of reech and

father sed well if them is the kind of things fellers

see whitch has the delirim tremens i never shall taik

another drink what do you say Talor and they laffed

and went out. well we scart peeple all that day and

had a grate time. at dinner he closed the tent and

give us sumthing to eat and drink and then in the

afternoon we done the same thing. we got prety

tired of it but we kep on. bimeby father come in

again and looked round and asted sum men if they

had seen his boy. they sed no and he went away.

bimeby he come in agen and stood and looked at us

a long time. i was tired and dident yowl so mutch.

after awhile he come up near and i made a gump

at him and knashed my teeth. he kep back so i

coodent tare him whitch was a good thing for him

for he wood have broak my back and he sed that is

the ferst time i ever see blew eyd nigger and he

kept looking. well a lot of peeple come in and the

man begun to talk about us and pounded the platform

and we had augt to have fit, but we was boath

prety sick of it and he cracked his whip clost to

Hiram and snached a peace of skin off his back

and it hirt Hiram so bad that he forgot he was a

wild man of Bornio and had been toar by a tiger and

he begun to ball and in a minit evrybuddy was hollering

cheet cheet and father jumped over the raling

and grabed me and yanked me off that platform and

men were hollering kill the cheet and evrybuddy

was trying to get at him and codent find him for he

had got out sumway. wel father sed you infernal

idjut where is your close and i sed in that trunk

and he opened the trunk and got out my close and

made me put them on and Hiram he put his on and

peeple were hollering for there money back for it

was a cheet and i sed where is my 2 dollars and

father sed what you ned is 2 lickings and that is

what you will get when i get you home if i can ever

get your hide clean enuf to lick and he got Charles

Talor to drive up with Nellie and took me home.

When we come out of the tent they was a big crowd

whitch holllered and laffed at us and all the fellers

hollered Plupy the niger munky and Plupy the wild

man of Bornio. it was tuf on me for all Hiram

Mingo had to do was to put on his close and hat and

he was all rite. well when we got home and went

into the house mother was so surprised that she nerly

dropped the baby. i gess she wood have but he

begun to howl and grab her round the neck and

hold his breth and grow black in the face and Franky

and Annie howled and held on to her skerts and to

aunt Sarahs two and they had to be took out of the

room and when mother and aunt Sarah come back

they sed what have you got there George and father

sed it is your smart son, and mother sed what has

he been doing now, and father sed he has been a

wild man of Bornio at 10 cents a whack and mother

and arnt Sarah sed well of all things in this wirld

and then they begun to laff until the teers roled down

there cheaks and father sed i know it aint no laffing

matter and mother sed i know it aint and then she

lafed so it hirt her side. bimeby father sed what

are we going to do. i draw the line at bringing

up a babboon or a man munky in this family.

So mother and aunt Sarah and father and me

went down to the kitchen and got a tub and filled

it with warm water and they put me in and then

they scrubed me with soft sope and then they took

me out and most of the black was on. the water

was sum black but they sed they coodent see it was

enny blacker than when i took my reglar Saterday

bath. then they filled the tub again and scrubed me

with soft sope and bristol brick. it about skined me

and maid me holler. that took off sum of the black.

then they tride seesand and that hirt so they had to

stop so they greesed me with lard and wiped it off

and father sed i was improving. he sed i looked

like a half nigger and he guessed nex week they cood

get me to look like a quarune and praps weak after

nex like a octerune.

i have got to stay in until i get white again.

mother says i am the wirst looking thing she ever

see in her life. father is talking about reform school

again but i ges i needent wurry. today i was two

soar to be scrubed so i was greased and wiped off.

Tomorrow if i am not two soar they are going

to try bristol brick and soft soap again. i had my

head shaived. father done it with the horse clippers.

tomorrow if i am not two soar they are going

to try bristol brick and soft sope again i asted father

if they cougt that man and he sed no they never

wood. it is tuf to end a weak this way. it is a auful

xperience for a feller whitch has always tride to do

rite.

September 29, 186---today they almost

skined me alive. i feel like a haol pimpel all red

and swole up. after they get throug skining me with

soft sope and bristol brick and seesand they greece

me all over. they are using mutten taller now becaus

lard is too xpensive so mother says, and father says

it suits me for i am the champeen mutten hed. i ges i

am a quadrune now. it taiks me a hoal day to get

over being skun so they can skin me again. i asted

father why he coodent put me in a tirning laith and

tirn me down jest like they maik wheal hubs down to

old Gus Browns hub shop. father he sed it looked

as if he wood have to and he wood see Gus about it

today. ennyway i dont beleeve it wood hirt as mutch

as seesand.

September 30, 186---Beany come in to see me today.

he laffed so that i told him if he dident stop

i wood give him a bang in the snoot so he stoped.

we plade checkers and dominose. he can beet me

evry time. Beany says i cant go in swiming enny

more for 4 years becaus if i get wet the black comes

back. gosh i wunder if that is so. i have been

reeding Uncle Toms Cabbin and i dont like it enny

moar. i asted mother if what Beany sed was trew

and she laffed and sed of coarse it aint in your

blud and i sed it wood get in if they wasent prety

cairful not to scrub me two hard.

i asted father about it when he come home and

he sed he wasent sure. he sed it depended sum on

how i behaved. that sumtimes a feller wood tirn

black with raige, and if he had been blacked up it mite

come back. i told him i wood do the best i cood if

i ever got white again. i asted how he suposed i

ever was fool enuf to do what i had did and he sed

it seamed to be eesier for me to be a fool than for

most folks. then he sed i was too anchious for

money. he sed it reminded him of a line in a poim

whitch was rote by a lattin gentleman naimed Publius

virgin. i asted him if he was enny relasion of

old John Virgin whitch oaned the trotting horses

and he sed no he dident think he cood be. if he

was it must be straned prety fine. the line went like

this

a cused thirst for gold to what dust

thou compel the human mind

i rote it down jest as father sed it. i dont know

what it means but i dident dass to tel him that and

so i sed yes sir i woodent be surprised if it done jest

that.

I wish i cood go to school again. i wood be willing

to have old Francis lam me.

i suppose the fellers will all laff and call me

munkey face and wild man of Bornio but i woodent

cair for that. tomorrow i shall be well enuf to be

scrubed again. tonite i am greeced and almost too

slipery to lay in bed. i am glad i am not a eal or

a hornpout. i feel jest like them only i aint got

enny horns.

September 31. brite and fair. i have been

scrubed again. i bet they was sum fishooks in that

seesand. it felt so. enyway i am a octerune now

and most white. mother says one moar greecing

will be enuf.

September 32, 186---the last time i was greeced

i had the itch. it wasent as bad as this but i remember

it well.

September 33 186---today i went down town. i

have been away a long time but the town looks about

the saim. Kelley and Gardners have sole 2 gnifes

and Fogg and Fellows have sole sum pipes and a

cuppy Olliver Optics magazene and old Luke Langly

has sole a gointed comb and a tin horn and wagon

but in other respecks things look about the saim. i

am glad i wasent away long enuf for the place to

chainge. that wood be dreadful. i herd of a man

onct whitch was sent to jale for his hoal life.

bimby they was a new king in the land and he let out

the men whitch was in jale this poar man was so

glad to get out that he run 9 miles all the way

home but when he got home evrything had chainged.

where his house was stood a methydist chapel and

where his frends house was they had bilt a pest

house for small pocks pashients and where the green

house stood they had bilt a glue factory and where

the libary stood they was a slauter house. but in

spite of all these improovments he did not feal to

home and he was verry loansum. so he went back

to the king and gnelt down on his gnees and sed

nobble and venial monnark send me back to jale for

my friends are scatered and my house is gone. so

the king whitch was a verry kind harted monnark

sent him back to jale where he lived hapily many

years on bread and water and sumtimes only water.

so i know jest how he felt when i come down

town the ferst time to see if things had chainged.

but they havent mutch.

September 34, 186---well of all the big fools i

ever see in my life they aint no September 31 or 32

or 34 and i rote them down. this is October 4.

there was a frost last nite. i wanted to go to school

this morning but mother sed i had beter wait until

Monday and begin fresh. so i done errants and

split wood and luged pales of water and raiked leeves

this afternoon and me and Potter rew up the river

to the rapids. the lily pads was all ded and the

leeves of the trees was red and yellow. the blewgays

was calling and it semed kind of loansume. it

seamed good to row again in a boat. tomorrow i

shall go to chirch. i have missed chirch a good deel.

i never thougt i cood. i never thougt i cood miss

school but i have.

October 5, 186---i went to chirch today. the

minister preeched about our duty to our father and

mother. i have been thinking a grate deel laitly about

how litle i have amounted to and what a lot of

truble i have gave my parents and my frens. when

a feller is kep in his room prety near all summer

suffering from a awful soar skin diseeze caused

by being painted black by a man whitch had augt

to have gnew better and scrubed with soft sope and

bristol brick and seesand to get off the black and not

knowing from day to day and from weak to weak

wether he will be a nigger or a white man all the

rest of his life i tell you he begins to think over the

mean things he has did and resolv to do better

if he ever gets well and has the chanct. and when

a feller gets well and gets a chanct as i have did

he aint mutch of a feler if he brakes his resolvs and

hadent augt to get well.

father has always gave me a good edjucasien and

i have lerned to read well and to spel acuraitly and

the multiplacsion table is rite at the end of my tung

and i can wright down enny table without looking in

the book. the hardest is 9 but it is jest as easy to

me as 1.

9 times 1 is-9

9 times 2 is 18

9 times 3 is 26

9 times 4 is 32

9 times 5 is 40

9 times 6 is 49

9 times 7 is 56

9 times 8 is 68

9 times 9 is 79

9 times 10 is 90

there if eny feller can do enny better than that i

shood like to see him. then i can bound New Hampshire

and i know all the counties in the state whitch

will be of the gratest asistence to me when i go out

into the wirld to maik my fortune. i only wish

father had a morgige on his home but he hasent.

if he had i wood come back sum time to pay it. i

asted father one day why he dident have a mortgige

and he sed he dident have enny home to morgige

but had to hire a house of J. Albert Clark. father

sed that enny feller with 40 leven children to suport

whitch cood by him a house or a farm was smarter

than he was.

so i have desided first to give up Beany and Pewt.

it will be tuf to give them up. peeple sumtimes have

to strugle hard to give up smoaking and drinking

but sumtimes they doesent. Pwets father and

Beanys father will be glad beaus they boath says

that neither Pewt or Beany ever done a rong thing

befoar they were so frendly with me. so i am glad

there will be sumone whitch will be glad of it. ennyway

i gess they dont know Pewt and Beany so well

as i do. i cood tell sum things about them if i was

meen enuf. i talked it over with Cele and she

thinks if i wood reed the palsams evry day it wood

help but i am afrade i coodent do boath. i wunder

if pewt and Beany can get along without me. i

hoap they will be able to stand it but i woodent be

surprised if they coodent without sum suffering.

ennyway they have got to stand it becaus from this

time we aint going together enny moar. of coarse

i shall speek to them when i meat them and say hi

Beany and hi Pewt but they wont be enny moar

ringing door bells nites and plugging tomatose and

grean apples. that will be hard two because it is

jest the time for them things and the cucumbers is

brite yeller and full of guice and seeds. if a feller

waring a stove pipe hat shood come along the strete

when i was near a tomatoe vine or a cucumber bush

i am afraide i shood have to let ding at him. i

dont beleeve the palsams wood do enny good. there

is sum things that no feller can stand. but i am

going to do the best i can even if i am like a solitary

sandpiper or hork whitch always goes aloan. i am

not going to tell the folks jest what i am going to do.

they will find out later by my acks. sum fellers

talks two mutch. i am not goin to be 1 of that

kind. i am going to keep my mouth shet and do rite

and no feller can do rite if he goes round with Pewt

and Beany and fellers like them. i like them boath

better than i like the best scolars in school and the

fellers whitch dont never miss in there lessons but a

feller has got to do his duty sum times in his life. i

am going to bed and try to sleap but i dont beleeve

i shall sleap a winck.

October 6, 186---brite and fair. i went to school

today for the ferst time. the fellers was glad to see

me. they augt to have been becaus they maid lots

of fun of me. they call me the wild man of Bornio

and munkey face and scrached themselves and pertended

to be awful soar. but i dident cair i was so

glad to get back to school and to see the fellers that

they cood hav called me ennything. ennyway a

feller whitch has been called polelegs and skinny and

daddy long legs and yeller legs dont mind a few

moar nicnaims. i dident get licked today but ame

prety near getting. it seamed like old times to set

at my desk and see old Francis shake the fellers up.

old Francis aint changed a bit.

tonite i was raiking up leeves when Beany come

over. i sed hi Beany and he ses hi Plupy. what

are you doing raiking leeves and i sed yes. he sed

have you got anuther raik and i sed no. then he

sed when you get tired i will raik and i sed aint going

to get tired. then he sed if you aint it will be

the ferst time. then i sed peraps and i kep on

raiking. then he sed i have got a raik to home and

i will go over and get it and come back and help

you i sed you needent truble yourself. and he sed

it is more fun wirking then setting round doing

nuthing and i sed that is why i am wirking. then he

sed well i will get my raik and i sed if you have got

enny raiking to do you can do it in your own yard

and Beany he stopd and looked at me sirprised and

sed what is eeting of you Plupy and i sed nuthing is

eeting of me, and he sed what have i did and i sed

nuthing and Beany he sed what maiks you ack so

queer and i sed i aint acking queer and he sed you

are two and i sed i aint neetner and he sed sumthing

is certainly eeting of you and i sed no there

aint nothing eeting of me only this is my gob and i

am going to do it without enny help. then Beany

he sed all rite Plupy if that is the way you are going

to ack i bet it is the last time i ever offer to help

you and i sed i hoap so and Beany he went off wisling

loud without maiking enny tune.

i set out to call him back and maik up with him

but i dident. i kep on raiking and looked at Beany

out of the corner of my ey but he dident look back

and he was waulking stif leged and when Beany

waulks that way you mite jest as well give up. he

is as obstinite as a mule.

after supper i finished raiking and then split up

my kinlins. after i had split them i forgot and

started for Beanys but jest as i was going out of my

yard i remembered that me and Beany was throug.

so i went back and set on the steps. Beany Pewt

and Medo Thirston and Nipper and sum of the other

fellers was playing club the gool and the gool was in

Beanys yard so i coodent go out and play becaus

me and Beany was throug. i was crasy to play but

i coodent. after dark i studded hard but i coodent

lern ennything becaus i cood hear Beany and the

other fellers hollering and laffing. i bet Beany done

it a perpose. enyway Beany you jest wate till tomorrow

and and see what you will get when old

Francis finds out you havent studded your leson, and

you two Pewt.

October 7, 186---went to school today. Beany

dident speek to me. so i wated till he got his licking

for not having his lesson. well you never see

sutch luck as Beany has. they was jest 1 xample

i hadent done. Cele coodent do it or Keene and

father had went down town. so i thougt i woodent

be called up on that sum. wel i got called up on

that sum and coodent do it and got licked and Beany

got called up after i had missed and i thougt it wood

be sum fun to see Beany licked. well what do you

think Beany he up and done the example rite. i never

was so sirprised in my life. then old Francis told

me i had augt to be ashaimed of myself. that if i

had did as Elbrige, Elbrige is Beany you know,

done and staid in and studded insted of romeing the

stretes i woodent have missed. i sed yes sir. i

wood like to know how Beany done that xample.

i saw Pewt today and spoke to him. he acted queer.

i wonder if Beany told him.

tonite the fellers plaid again in Beanys yard.

they plaid coram. most always they play coram in

the school yard where there is moar room but tonite

they plaid it in Beanys yard. so i coodent do ennything

but set on the steps after i had done my choars.

they aint much fun in that. i miss Beany a good

deel. it is going to be hard to keep away from him

but it is the rite thing to do. it is 2 days that i

havent got in enny scraip. if i had been going with

Beany and Pewt i wood have got in some scraip

befoar this. it is 2 days sence i have had enny

fun. but it shall get used to it after a while. i studded

hard tonite with Cele and Keene and got all my

xamples. Keene says i dont try. it aint enny of

her bisiness. she only done two of them and Cele

the other 8.

but i notise that the ones whitch does the leest has

the most to say. if Keene says mutch more about

me i wont let her do enny moar of my xamples. so

she had better be cairful what she says. i am going

to bed erly for they aint enny of the fellers to talk to.

October 8, 186---brite and fair. i went to school

today. dident miss in my lessons mutch not enuf to

get licked. Beany had sum good luck and sum

how he did his xample rite. Pewt missed but

xplained the reeson so well that he dident even get

shook. Pewt is grate fer that. he can ast questions

so as to maik old Francis think he knows sumthing

about it when he dont know ennything. i

wish i cood do that. if i dont know the xample i

cant ack as if i did, i am wateing for Beany to get

a good licking to pay him for being meen to me

nites and having all the fellers play in his yard. i

bet i woodent have did that to him.

this afternoon there wasent enny school and i

thougt i wood have sum fun. i went down to Ed

Toles but he had went to drive a man to North Kamton.

Frank Hanes had went sumwhere when i

went up to his house. then i went up to the Chadwicks

but they and Parson Otis and Fatty Gilman

had went sumwhere but nobody gnew where. then

i went home and found that Potter Goram and Chick

Chickering had come down with there butterfli nets

to get me to go and get sum lait buterflise. i tell

you i hipered down to Moultons field and they

wasent there and then up to the grove and they

wasent there. then i went home feeling prety

loansum.

well there wasent ennything to do for fun so i

split sum wood and then mother asted me if i wood

screw sum things up in the kitchen to hang close on.

so i got the screw driver and went to wirk. while i

was wirking Pewt came over. i was awful glad to

see Pewt but i thougt he had acked kind of meen to

me in not coming over to see me befoar and so i

thougt i would punish him a litle befoar i maid up.

so i said hi Pewt and went on with my wirk. Pewt

sed what are you doing Plupy and i sed saying my

prairs before going to bed. then Pewt sed huh and

kept quiet and i went on wirking and wisling as if

i was aloan. bimbye Pewt sed if you take a hammer

and drive the screw in a little way it will taik

hold and i sed sort of scornful is that so and he sed

yes that is so and if you want to get that screw in

this weak you had better do as i say. i dident say

ennything only grunted and kep wirking until it

broak the head of the screw off then Pewt begun

to laff and said there what did i tell you. let me

show you how to do it Plupy. i sed supose you

think you can bild a barn. Pewt sed peraps i can

and i sed sumone is getting prety smart round here

and Pewt said i know a feller whitch aint very smart

and i sed well if you dont like what you see round

here you know where you can go and Pewt he sed

i bet i know where i can go and i am going there

two old Plupe and the next tim i come round here

again you will know it and i sed no sirre i shant

know it for when you come over here again i shall

be sumwhere elce.

then Pewt went off hollering

Plupys mad and i am glad

and i know what will pleeze him

taik a nail and scrach his tale

and hang him up and greece him.

jest as loud as he cood holer and then he hollered you

are a old seesand munky and a bristol brick wild

man of Bornio, and i hollered silver is better than

pewter and who hooked Perry Moultons apples and

Pewt hollered back who et them and i shet up becaus

i was afrade mother mite hear him.

well after Pewt had went i felt wirse than ever

becaus i realy was glad to see him and wanted him

to stay and have sum fun but sumhow i coodent help

being meen to him. it is funny how a feller will do

jest what he dont want to do and the more he dont

want to the more he will do it.

well after Pewt went off mad and i took a hammer

and done jest what he told me and them screws did

jest as he sed they wood and i dident have enny

truble. i gues i was a darn fool for sassing Pewt

when he was doing me a good tirn but he needent

have called me them names at leest he needent have

called me them mad. you can call a feller naimes

good natured and he jest laffs but if you call a feller

the saim naims mad then they is a row and the

fellers dont speek enny more.

well tonite Pewt and Beany had all the fellers over

to Beanys house having a grate time and mister

Watson Beanys father come out and plaid with them

jest lika a boy and they had a lot of fun and then

mister Watson Beanys father went in and dressed

up in an old stovepipe hat and pertended he was a

drunk man and he wood stager agenst the fense and

they wood plug him with roten tomatose and cucumbers

and nock his old stovepipe hat off and squash on

his close and he wood chase them and tumble down

and you never see sutch fun in your life. i tell you

i was jest about crasy to go over there but i coodent

becaus me and Beany was mad and Pewt two so i

had to stay on my steps and watch them. you never

see sutch fun in your life. mister Watson Beanys

father is the funniest man i ever see he dont never

drink or get drunk but he can ack like a drunk man

jest so you wood think he was drunk and maik you

kill yourself laffing.

well after it grew dark i went in to study but i

felt so loansum that i went up stairs and went to

bed. mother came up and asted me if i was sick and

i sed no only i dident feal verry well and she wanted

to give me sum castor oil but i sed i was all rite. so

she went down after she had felt of my head and it

was cold so she sed i was all rite only a little tired.

Cele sed she wood do my xamples for me and i cood

copy them in the morning. it is awful hard to give

up your frends becaus they have a bad effect on you.

i bet it is harder than to give up licker after a man

has been a drunkerd all his life. it dont seam to be

hard for Pewt and Beany to give me up. they seam

to have more fun than ever befoar. enny way i

have got to get used to it. father says you can get

used to enything if you taik time enuf.

October 9, 186---rany today and windy. about

a milion leeves blowed down today. tonite we had

a fire in the air tite stove and it seamed moar cheerful.

Beany and Pewt coodent have the fellers in

Beanys yard. i am still wundering how Beany

lerned how to do them xamples. it aint like him

to know now. i still feal prety blew.

October 10, 186-- brite and fair. there was a

frost last nite. I dident miss today. neether Pewt

or Beany spoke to me. tonite i done my choars and

went and set on the steps and wached the fellers

playing in Beanys yard. i felt prety bad. father

sed what is the matter with you. i sed nothing

and he sed you have been acking like a sick cat for

a weak why dont you go over and play with the boys

and i sed i dont want to. he sed you havent had a

fite with Elbridge, Elbridge is Beany you know, and

i sed no. then he asted me if i had a fite with

Clarence, Clarence is Pewt you know, and i sed no, i

havent had enny fie with Pewt, then he went in and

set by the table and red the Exeter Newsletter

whitch always comes out on Fridays. i went in and

went up stairs because we dont have xamples on Saturday

only speeking and geogrify.

after i went up stairs i went into the front room.

it was warm and the windows was open. father

had went out on the front steps and i was setting in

the window lissening to the fellers and wishing i was

out there with them. bimeby i heard father say to

mother Joey what is the matter with Harry laitly.

he has been acking nummer than a deef mewt and

mother sed i dont know what it is. he has done his

choars better than i ever gnew him to do them xcept

jest befoar crismas and 4th of July and he eets well

but he dont play enny moar and he dont seam like

himself enny moar. then father he sed i dont like it.

i hoap he isnt going to be a lollypop or a goody good

boy. if there is ennything i hait in this wirld it is a

miss Nancy sort of boy.

Aunt Sarah she up and sed i gess you needent

wurry about any boy of yours being a miss Nancy,

George Shute, and father laffed and sed well it dont

seam as if i ever cood have a boy like that but you

cant be sure. as far as i know there aint enny ministers

in my family sence the pilgrim fathers landed

on the wild New Ingland shoar. then Aunt Sarah

she sed peraps it would have been better if they had

been a few and father he sed that may be so but i

dout it. then father he sed it aint natural for a boy

to set round like a sick hen. either he is thinking

up sum deviltry or he is getting to be a lollipop and

of the 2 things i ruther it wood be the ferst.

then mother sed i dont quite agree with you

George. i dont like a miss Nancy enny moar than

you do but i dont beleeve it is nessary for a boy to be

thinking up deviltry to be a real boy. then father

he sed i gess you was never a boy Joey or you woodent

say that. A boy is going to raise tune or he aint

a boy and you mite as well put him into skerts to

onct. i never gnew a puppy to grow up into a good

dog unless he chewed up slippers and spoilt moar

things than he was wirth. then mother sed that

depends on what you call a good dog. if you meen

a dog whitch is all the time fiting that is one thing

but if you meen a real good dog that is another

thing. then father he sed i woodent give a cent for

a dog that cant fite. a god dog that is groan up

dont care to fite but will if he has to. and a good

man dont cair to but will if he has to. they is a

difference between a good boy and a goody good

boy. i wood ruther my boy wood git into scraips

than not. if he dont i know sumthing is rong with

him.

then mother she sed if you like to have him get

into scraips why do you get so mad with him and

lick him, only mother she sed punnish him, when he

gets into scraips and father sed dont you see i cant

aprove of his scraips for if i did he wood be in

scraips all the time and he wood be if he gnew what i

was saying. then father began to laff and to tell

what he and Gim Melcher and Bill Yung and Beanys

father and Pewts father done when they was boys

and he asted if all of them fellers wasent pretty

good men and Aunt Sarah sed none of them is mutch

to brag of and father laffed and sed that shows you

aint a good judge of caracter.

i tell you when i herd what father sed i maid up

my mind that i wood maik up with Beany and Pewt

and we wood show father and Pewts father and

Beanys father that we was jest as lifely as they was

when they was boys. then i tell you i felt beter than

i had felt for a long while and i am going to bed.

to-morrow i will maik up with Pewt and Beany.

October 11, 186---brite and fair. today i maid

up with Pewt and Beany. it wasent near so hard as

i thought it wood be. i gess boath of them missed

me two but not as mutch as i missed them becaus

they had the other fellers. this afternoon we got up

a club whitch we call the Terrible 3. i am the president

becaus i got it up. Pewt is the secritery becaus

he can wright so good and Beany is the tresurer becaus

it dont cost ennything to get in and he aint got

enny money to taik cair of. the objeck of the club

is to do tuf things and not get found out. i aint got

time to wright enny moar about it tonite becaus we

aint had a reglar meating of the club yet. we are

going to have one tomorrow after chirch and wright

out a consecration and bi laws. after we have did

this things is going to be ifely round here.

October 12, 186---brite and fair. it is jest raning

leeves today. i went to chirch and to sunday

school. Beany sed he was going to raise time in

chirch so as to lose his gob. he sed a feller whitch

was going to be tresurer of the Terible 3 hadent

augt to have a chirch gob, but me and Pewt told

him he must kep his gob becaus if he wasent going

to get caugt when we done tuf things we must be

respecktable befoar folks. we told Beany that if he

rased time two mutch and a feller hapened to get

his windows broak he wood say we fellers done it

and then peraps we cood lie out of it and peraps

we coodent. so Beany he desided to behaive and to

keep his gob, and he done well and only let the wind

out of the organ 1 time and that was when he was

looking at a rooster fite in old man Elliots yard

throug the window, and of coarse when there is a

rooster fite or a dog fite or enny kind of a fite a feller

has jest got to look at it. the only thing that

maid it funier than time was becaus they had got a

woman from out of town to sing in the quire and

she was singing

the voice of one criing in the wilderniss

and jest then the organ went eooowaugh and sounded

like when you step on 40 cats tales to onct and

stoped and then begun again and we cood hear

Beany pumping as fast as he cood and the old bellose

maid a noise just like the braiks on a fire ingine,

like this, chunka, chunka, chunka, and everybody

laffed and the woman set down mad and woodent

sing eny moar.

Chipper and old Hen Dow jawed Beany like time

after chirch. Beany he told them why he done it

but they dident seam to think that was enny xcuse

and kep on jawing him. Chipper he sed he has

stood moar from Beany than he had from enny

feller and that a house of worship wasent a place for

munky shines and this was the last chanct Beany

shood have. so Beany kep his gob but he has a

narow escaip and will have to be moar cairful nex

time.

well after sunday school we met in Beanys barn

and rote out the consecration and bi laws. it is a

old peeler. i had borrowed sum bi laws of a club

father usted to be in and i had rote down a lot of

things to put in and Pewt coppied them after we

had talked them over becaus Pewt can wright so

good. This is what he rote.

Consecration and bi laws of the

Terrible 3.

we Pewt and Beany and Plupy do hearbi asosiate

ourselfs together under the corperat naim of the

Terible 3.

artickle 1. the object of this asosiasion is to brake

windows, to plug green apples and ripe tomatose

and roten cucumbers at peeple we dont like or whitch

wares there best close on a weak day, or whitch feels

two big for his britches. to get even with fellers

and with peeple whitch has done rong to us in the

past or in the future. wether we have to do it

with slingshots or roten egs.

resolvd that the use of slingshots and roten egs is

only to be used when enny unusuel or crool rong

has been did us. and when the punishment must

be sevear.

artickle 2. the main objeck of the members is not

to get cougt and evry feller whitch is a member must

agree never to betray enny other feller if he gets

cougt himself and is licked to maik him tell. and

enny feller whitch does tell on another member will

be maid to eet a live toad and 4 angel wirms. it

is no xcuse if he does it under terible tortures sutch

as shaking hands with a pensil between your fingers

or putting musterd on your tung or licking you with

a bed slot in whitch tacts has been put.

artickle 3. the offisers of the asosiation shall be a

president a secritary and a tresurer. the duty of

the president shall be to call the meatings of the

asosiation. the duty of the secritary shall be to

wright down what is did at the meatings. the duty

of the treasurer is to take cair of the money of the

association.

artickle 4. it dont cost ennything to get into the

asosiation. the Terrible 3 is good frends and will

stand by eech other as long as live remanes and no

money makes anny diference. nobody elce can get

in but the Terible 3 at enny prise what ever.

artickle 5. steeling is absolootly forbiddon. this

aplise to money, gewils, hens, roosters and chickings,

dogs, horses and cattle and ennything whitch peeple

has in there houses and barns, but does not apli to

apples, pares straberries and frutes in their seeson

befoar they has been pictd and put in the house or

barn and nothing in this consecration shall be considered

as hendering enny one of the Terible 3 from

pluging ennything at cats dogs or other animals.

artickle 6. at the end of the asosiasion whitch will

come when enny of the members is ded or in jale the

propity of the asosiasion shall be divided equil between

sutch of the members as aint ded or in jale

and the records of the asosiation if there is enny

shall be birnt and distroid.

bi laws

I. evry member shall be reddy to fite for another

member at a moments notise.

II. evry member shall be reddy to lie for another

member when ever he can help him by liing. if he

can help him by teling the trooth he will be xpected

to do so if he can.

III. if a feller gets cougt he is xpected to lay it on

to sum feller whitch is likely to do them things

whitch he is cougt for doing.

IV. the fellers whitch is most likely to do the

things whitch a feller is most likely to get cougt for

doing is Fatty Gilman, Skinny Bruce, Tady Fenton,

Jack Melvin, Whack, Pozzy and Bug Chadwick,

Fatty Melcher, Pop Clark, Hiram Mingo, Ben Rundlett,

Ed Tole and several others.

V. evry member has go to commit them naims

to memory and keep them at his tungs end becaus

he mite need them at enny time.

VI. as far as posiable members must keep out

of enny trubble with wimmen. the Terible 3 does

not wage war against wimmen. of coarse when a

woman has got a husband whitch the Terible 3 has

ennything agenst she must taik her chanct but she

wont be hirt if she keeps her fingers out of the pye.

i have never knew a woman to do that in our lifes.

it aint our falt that she is his wife. she done it

herself.

VII. as far as posiable the Terible 3 will try to

keep out of trubble in school. it aint that we are

scart of old Francis but it seams sumtimes as if he

had got eys in the back of his hed and gnew evrything

a feller thinks befoar he thinks it.

then we all sined. we was going to have 3 or 4

more bi laws but we dident know enny moar roman

numbers and you have got to have figger numbers

for the artickles and roman numbers for the bi laws.

after we had sined it i thougt we cood have got them

from the clock. we dident think of that.

after we had sined it Pewt gave it to me to keep

as i am the president. he sed he had augt to keep

them becaus he is secritary but i told him that artickle

3 of the consecration sed the duty of the secretary

was to wright what was did at the meatings

and dident say he was to keep the paper. so Pewt

give in.

Oct. 13, 186---brite and fair. the secritary of the

Terible 3 got licked in school today becaus he sed

geogrify is the sience of numbers and the art of

compewting by them. he told old Francis he wasent

thinking and old Francis he give him a licking to

maik him think. tonite the Terible 3 comited our

ferst crime. this is the way we done it. we agread

to be studding our lessons at 8 oh clock. when it

struck 8 we wood go out for a drink or sumthing

and meat on Elm strete jest behine Pewts and

Beanys house. Pewt and Beany had got a pile of

ripe tomatose. then we would ding old William

Hobbs door bell and when he come to the door we

wood paist him. He always drives us out of his

yard so we done it. when it struck 8 oh clock i sed

i forgot to shet up my hens and a skunk may come

round. Keene sed i will help you. i sed no i will

do it. what would you do if we met a skunk. so i

went down and hipered over to Elm Strete. Pewt

and Beany was there with their hands full of tomatose.

Pewt tiptode up and rung the bell. in a

minit old Hobbs come to the door with a candle

shaded with his hand. as soon as he come out we

let ding as hard as we cood eech one 3 or 4 tomatose.

one nocked the candle out of his hand and

put it out. one hit him square in the mouth and

squashed. 2 or 3 hit him in other places and the

rest squashed on the house. i wish you cood herd

him spitt and sware and holler. jest as soon as we

pluged him we started running towards front strete

and then went behine the Unitarial chirch throug a

hole in Fifields fense into Beanys yard. i wasent

away from the house more than 3 minits. when i

came in mother sed did you shet the door to the hen

coop and i sed yes. i did shet it becaus i thought

she mite ast me.

in about half an hour old man Hobbs rung our

door bell and asted mother where i was. she sed

do you want to see him and he sed where has he

been tonite and she sed he has been in studdying

all the evening ever sence supper and he sed are you

sure and she sed why yes i have been here myself.

then he sed well sum boys came to my house and

rung my door bell and when i come to the door they

threw roten vegitables at me and asaulted me and if

i can find out ther edentitty i am going to persecute

them to the xtent of the law and send them to jale.

mother she sed it is a shaim and i certainly hoap

you will find out who they are and i am very glad

to say that my son had nothing to do iwth it and

i am sure he wood not do ennything of the kind.

so old Hobbs he went away and mother came in and

told us. she sed he hadent quite got all of the tomatose

out of his wiskers but she hoped he wood

ketch them. i hoap so two over the left. it may

lern old Hobbs a lesson if he isent two old to learn.

i am afrade he is.

October 14, 186---i have got 2 horks. Potter

Goram give them to me. they is full groan and

verry hansum. one is a hen hork and the other a red

taled hork. gess what i naimed them. one is Hork

and the other Spitt. mother sed those were dredful

naims but i think they are prety good ones. i feed

them on meat and fishes and rats and mice. if you

poak them with a stick they grab it with his claus

and hiss like a snaik. there eys is yellow. i dont

let folks poak them.

tonite i called a meating of he Terible 3. i had

rote the record of what we had did and Pewt had

coppied it. i thougt i had better wright it becaus

i can spel so mutch beter than Pewt.

well Pewt read the record and Beany reported

that there wasent enny money in the tresury. then

i asted if ennybody had ennything to say and Beany

sed that we had better paist old decon Aspinwall

next for he was so meen. i was afrade he wood

lay it onto me becaus i had trubble with him 2 times.

then Pewt sed we cood nale up a sine in front of

his house sassing him, but i had done that onct for

a circus. so we desided to lay for him sum time but

not yet. ennyway we have got him marked.

so after supper we took a few grean apples and

our sticks and went into Pewts back yard behind

the trees and plugged sum apples as hard as we

cood without ameing. we fired them in the direxion

of J. Albert Clarks house becaus he had ordered me

and Beany out of his yard one day jest for nothing.

we wood all plug together jest as hard as we cood

plug and then lissen hard. we cood tell by the sound

when they wood hit on the roofs or not. bimeby

we herd the gingle of glass 2 times. then we begun

to play coram and kep hollering and laffin. then

we herd J. Ward Levitt holler who in hell is firing

rocks through my winders. then he hollered to

father and sed George look here and see what your

dam boy has been up to and we herd father say

what is it Ward and Ward sed he has broak 2 winders

in my shop and you have got to pay for them.

then father sed all rite. if he done it i will pay but

if he hasent done it i wont. so ferst father hollered

for me and i dident hear him. then they went over

to Beanys and i wasent there and Beanys mother

sed i hadent been there. then they come through

old Mrs. Seeveys yard and then into Pewts and we

were playing coram. then J Ward sed here are the

devils and father sed dident you hear me holler and

i sed did you holler and looked at him sirprized and

father sed i hollered louder than a steem wissel and

i sed we were playing coram and making so mutch

noise that i gess it drownded your holler out. then

he sed how long have you been here and i sed ever

sence suppr.

then father sed Ward says you broak 2 winders in

his shop, and i sed how cood i when i have been

here evry minit. and father sed are you sure you

havent been out of this yard sence you come here,

now dont you lie to me and i sed hoap to die and

cross my throte have i Pewt have i Beany and Pewt

and Beany both hoaped to die and crossed there

throtes.

then father sed there Ward you see they coodent

have did it for it is twict as far as enn one of them

can throw and Ward he sed i dont know about that.

then father sed try boys and see how far you can

throw and try as hard as you can. so i pict up a

rock and let ding and nearly throwed my arm out

of goint and it went clear across Mrs. Seeveys yard

into Beanys and then Pewt he throwed clear over

Beanys house into old Heads yard and beat me and

Beany throwed into his yard but not so far as i did.

then old Ward he sed we dident try and father sed

if you can throw across Mrs. Seeveys yard and into

Watsons yard, Watson is Beanys father you know,

i will pay for them winders even if Harry dident

brake them.

then old J Ward he sed all rite George i will show

these boys what i can do and he took off his long

taled coat and roled up his sleaves and hunted round

for a rock and then he let ding and the rock went

sideways rite towards Mrs. Seeveys house and went

rite throug one of her kichen winders and the minit

it went in she come out yapping who has broak my

winder and old J. Ward stood with his mouth open

and one hind leg in the air where he had drawed it

up when he saw the rock going towerds the winder.

so when she hollered who broak my winder he put

his hind leg down and stutered and sed i gess i done

it maam and she sed what did you do it for? aint

you got enny better business than to go round

throwing rocks throug peeples winders and he sed

i was jest showing these boys how to throw a stone

and she sed well if they cant throw enny better than

you can i gess you havent showed them mutch. now

if you will show me about 25 cents for that winder

and i will say no moar about it. so old J. Ward

pade her 25 cents and she went in. then father sed

are you sure you dident brake them winders yourself

Ward you seam to be a good shot. old J. Ward

laffed and sed well George i gess these boys dident

do it, but i am going to find out who done it if it

takes me a weak. i bet that out of a John Bowley

done it. John Bowley is Squawboo Bowley you

know, or posiably that Peenut Perkins or Johnny

Kelly. so old J. Ward is going to pich into them.

enny way we dident meen to brake his winders

and the Terible 3 hasent got ennything agenst old J.

Ward for he is a good feller and dont never drive

us out of his Carrige shop, but if we had sed we

done it it mite let the hoal thing out. so i gess we

done rite but we will even up with old J. Albert

sum time. his time will come unless he changes his

ways.

October 15, 186---brite and fair. wenesday and so

no school this afternoon. as it is warm the fish bit

prety well and i went down to my boat and cougt

ten shiners and a lot of minnis. it is prety lait for

them. then i fed Hork and Spitt and you had augt

to have see them eat. i dont know what i shall

do when the fish stop biting. rats is scarce and i

cant aford chickings.