Beautiful Joe [70]
and I'm sure it isn't. Look at Harry. He works as hard as
you do."
"Isn't that like a woman?" said Mr. Wood, with a good-natured laugh. "The
present generation consists of her son, and the past of her husband. I don't
think all our young people are lazy, Hattie; but how in creation, unless the
Lord rains down a few farmers, are we going to support all our young lawyers and
doctors? They say the world is getting healthier and better, but we've got to
fight a little more, and raise some more criminals, and we've got to take to
eating pies and doughnuts for breakfast again, or some of our young sprouts from
the colleges will go a begging."
"You don't mean to undervalue the advantages of a good education, do you, Mr.
Wood?" said Mr. Maxwell.
"No, no; look at Harry there. Isn't he pegging away at his studies with my
hearty approval? and he's going to be nothing but a plain, common farmer. But
he'll be a better one than I've been though, because he's got a trained mind. I
found that out when he was a lad going to the village school. He'd lay out his
little garden by geometry, and dig his ditches by algebra. Education's a help to
any man. What I am trying to get at is this, that in some way or other we're
running more to brains and less to hard work than our forefathers did."
Mr. Wood was beating on the table with his forefinger while he talked, and every
one was laughing at him. "When you've quite finished speechifying, John," said
Mrs. Wood, "perhaps you'll serve the berries and pass the cream and sugar Do you
get yellow cream like this in the village, Mr. Maxwell?"
"No, Mrs. Wood," he said; "ours is a much paler yellow," and then there was a
great tinkling of china, and passing of dishes, and talking and laughing, and no
one noticed that I was not in my usual place in the hall. I could not get over
my dread of the green creature, and I had crept under the table, so that if it
came out and frightened Miss Laura, I could jump up and catch it.
When tea was half over, she gave a little cry. I sprang up on her lap, and
there, gliding over the table toward her, was the wicked-looking green thing. I
stepped on the table, and had it by the middle before it could get to her. My
hind legs were in a dish of jelly, and my front ones were in a plate of cake,
and I was very uncomfortable. The tail of the green thing hung in a milk
pitcher, and its tongue was still going at me, but I held it firmly and stood
quite still.
"Drop it, drop it!" cried Miss Laura, in tones of distress, and Mr. Maxwell
struck me on the back, so I let the thing go, and stood sheepishly looking about
me. Mr. Wood was leaning back in his chair, laughing with all his might, and
Mrs. Wood was staring at her untidy table with rather a long face. Miss Laura
told me to jump on the floor, and then she helped her aunt to take the spoiled
things off the table.
I felt that I had done wrong, so I slunk out into the hall. Mr. Maxwell was
sitting on the lounge, tearing his handkerchief in strips and tying them around
the creature where my teeth had stuck in. I had been careful not to hurt it
much, for I knew it was a pet of his; but he did not know that, and scowled at
me, saying: "You rascal; you've hurt my poor snake terribly."
I felt so badly to hear this that I went and stood with my head in a corner. I
had almost rather be whipped than scolded. After a while, Mr. Maxwell went back
into the room, and they all went on with their tea. I could hear Mr. Wood's
loud, cheery voice, "The dog did quite right. A snake is mostly a poisonous
creature, and his instinct told him to protect his mistress. Where is he? Joe,
Joe!"
I would not move till Miss Laura came and spoke to me. "Dear old dog," she
whispered, "you knew the snake was there all the time, didn't you?" Her words
made me feel better, and I followed her to the dining room, where Mr. Wood made
me sit beside him and eat scraps from his hand all through the meal.
Mr. Maxwell had got over his ill humor, and
you do."
"Isn't that like a woman?" said Mr. Wood, with a good-natured laugh. "The
present generation consists of her son, and the past of her husband. I don't
think all our young people are lazy, Hattie; but how in creation, unless the
Lord rains down a few farmers, are we going to support all our young lawyers and
doctors? They say the world is getting healthier and better, but we've got to
fight a little more, and raise some more criminals, and we've got to take to
eating pies and doughnuts for breakfast again, or some of our young sprouts from
the colleges will go a begging."
"You don't mean to undervalue the advantages of a good education, do you, Mr.
Wood?" said Mr. Maxwell.
"No, no; look at Harry there. Isn't he pegging away at his studies with my
hearty approval? and he's going to be nothing but a plain, common farmer. But
he'll be a better one than I've been though, because he's got a trained mind. I
found that out when he was a lad going to the village school. He'd lay out his
little garden by geometry, and dig his ditches by algebra. Education's a help to
any man. What I am trying to get at is this, that in some way or other we're
running more to brains and less to hard work than our forefathers did."
Mr. Wood was beating on the table with his forefinger while he talked, and every
one was laughing at him. "When you've quite finished speechifying, John," said
Mrs. Wood, "perhaps you'll serve the berries and pass the cream and sugar Do you
get yellow cream like this in the village, Mr. Maxwell?"
"No, Mrs. Wood," he said; "ours is a much paler yellow," and then there was a
great tinkling of china, and passing of dishes, and talking and laughing, and no
one noticed that I was not in my usual place in the hall. I could not get over
my dread of the green creature, and I had crept under the table, so that if it
came out and frightened Miss Laura, I could jump up and catch it.
When tea was half over, she gave a little cry. I sprang up on her lap, and
there, gliding over the table toward her, was the wicked-looking green thing. I
stepped on the table, and had it by the middle before it could get to her. My
hind legs were in a dish of jelly, and my front ones were in a plate of cake,
and I was very uncomfortable. The tail of the green thing hung in a milk
pitcher, and its tongue was still going at me, but I held it firmly and stood
quite still.
"Drop it, drop it!" cried Miss Laura, in tones of distress, and Mr. Maxwell
struck me on the back, so I let the thing go, and stood sheepishly looking about
me. Mr. Wood was leaning back in his chair, laughing with all his might, and
Mrs. Wood was staring at her untidy table with rather a long face. Miss Laura
told me to jump on the floor, and then she helped her aunt to take the spoiled
things off the table.
I felt that I had done wrong, so I slunk out into the hall. Mr. Maxwell was
sitting on the lounge, tearing his handkerchief in strips and tying them around
the creature where my teeth had stuck in. I had been careful not to hurt it
much, for I knew it was a pet of his; but he did not know that, and scowled at
me, saying: "You rascal; you've hurt my poor snake terribly."
I felt so badly to hear this that I went and stood with my head in a corner. I
had almost rather be whipped than scolded. After a while, Mr. Maxwell went back
into the room, and they all went on with their tea. I could hear Mr. Wood's
loud, cheery voice, "The dog did quite right. A snake is mostly a poisonous
creature, and his instinct told him to protect his mistress. Where is he? Joe,
Joe!"
I would not move till Miss Laura came and spoke to me. "Dear old dog," she
whispered, "you knew the snake was there all the time, didn't you?" Her words
made me feel better, and I followed her to the dining room, where Mr. Wood made
me sit beside him and eat scraps from his hand all through the meal.
Mr. Maxwell had got over his ill humor, and