  There never was such luck. I've always thought that I'd rather have a monkey than be a million heir. There is nothing that could be half so splendid as a real It was Mr. Travers that got the monkey for me. One day there came a woman with an organ and a monkey into our yard. She was an Italian, but she could speak a sort of English and she said that the "murderin' spalpeen of a monkey was just wearing the life of her out." So says Mr. Travers "What will you take for him?" and says she, "It's five dollars I'd be after selling him for, and may good luck go wid ye!" What did Mr. Travers do but give her the money and hand the monkey to me, saying, "Here, Jimmy! take him and be happy." Wasn't I just happy though? Jocko—that's the monkey's name—is the loveliest monkey that ever lived. Toby Tyler may talk about his "Mr. Stubbs," and tell how he understands everything said to him, and begs for crullers, and all that; but I tell you "Mr. Stubbs" was just an ordinary illiterit monkey alongside of my Jocko. I hadn't had him an hour when he got out of my arms and was on the supper table before I could get him. The table was all set and Bridget was just going to ring the bell, but the monkey didn't wait for her. To see him eating the chicken salad was just wonderful. He finished the whole dish in about two minutes, and was washing it down with the oil out of the salad bottle when I caught him. Mother was awfully good about it and only said, "Poor little beast he must be half starved Susan how much he reminds me of your brother." A good mother is as good a thing as a boy deserves, no matter how good he is. The salad someway did not seem to agree with Jocko for he was dreadfully sick that night. You should have seen how limp he was, just like a girl that has fainted away and her young man is trying to lift her up. Mother doctored him. She gave him castor oil as if he was her own son, and wrapped him up in a blanket and put a mustard plaster on his stomach and soaked the end of his tail in warm water. He was all right the next day and was real grateful. I know he was grateful because he showed it by trying to do good to others, at any rate to the cat. Our cat wouldn't speak to him at first, but he coaxed her with milk, just as he had seen me do and finally caught her. It must have been dreadfully aggravoking to the cat, for instead of letting her have the milk he insisted that she was sick and must have medicine. So he took Bridget's bottle of hair-oil and a big spoon and gave the cat such a dose. When I caught him and made him let the cat go there were about six table-spoonfuls of oil missing. Mr. Travers said it was a good thing for it would improve the cat's voice and make her yowl smoother, and that he had felt for a long time that she needed to be oiled. Mother said that the monkey was cruel and it was a shame but I know that he meant to be kind. He knew the oil mother gave him had done him good, and he wanted to do the cat good. I know just how he felt, for I've been blamed many a time for trying to do good, and I can tell you it always hurt my feelings. The monkey was in the kitchen while Bridget was getting dinner yesterday and he watched her broil the steak as if he was meaning to learn to cook and help her in her work, he's that kind and thoughtful. The cat was outdoors, but two of her kittens were in the kitchen, and they were not old enough to be afraid of the monkey. When dinner was served Bridget went up stairs and by-and-by mother says "What's that dreadful smell sure's you're alive Susan the baby has fallen in to the fire." Everybody jumped up and ran up stairs, all but me, for I knew Jocko was in the kitchen and I was afraid it was he that was burning. When I got into the kitchen there was that lovely monkey broiling one of the kittens on the gridiron just as he had seen Bridget broil the steak. The kitten's fur was singeing and she was mewing, and the other kitten was sitting up on the floor licking her chops and enjoying it and Jocko was on his hind-legs as solemn and busy as an owl. I snatched the gridiron away from him and took the kitten off before she was burned any except her fur, and when mother and Susan came down stairs they couldn't understand what it was that had been burning and guessed the cook must have put egg-shell on the fire. This is all the monkey has done since I got him day before yesterday. Father has been away for a week but is coming back in a few days, and won't he be delighted when he finds a monkey in the house? Athens, Georgia.
Louis J. Brumby. In justice to Master Louis, we state that the above letter was received at our office on December 14, 1880, but owing to the crowded state of our Post-office Box, has been pushed aside until now. A large number of our correspondents are in the same trouble as this Georgia boy. The demands upon them are so large that they can not possibly obtain a sufficient supply of postmarks, stamps, or other things to meet them all promptly, and they are in distress, fearing that they will be thought dishonorable, when they are in reality overwhelmed by the great number of demands upon their boyish resources. The explanation of this trouble is very simple. A boy possessing a small number of stamps and postmarks, or perhaps a shelf of pretty minerals, being anxious to obtain more, sends a request for exchange to Young People. Now the subscribers to Young People number many thousands, and the number of readers can not be estimated. A great many of these also have small collections which they are anxious to enlarge. The consequence is that the boy who has offered exchange receives to his astonishment a dozen or more letters daily, many of them containing specimens for which an immediate return is expected. Now he has started out with, say, three hundred postmarks—probably not so many—as his stock in trade, and has offered a given number from the State where he lives for the same number from any other State. The demands of the first week exhaust his small store, and even with the help of his friends he can not collect fast enough to satisfy his correspondents. He can not use those he has received, even were he willing to part with them, for they are not from the State from which he has promised specimens, so he is compelled to work slowly, and appear for the time to be neglectful and remiss in keeping his promises. Could he answer every letter, and explain how matters stood, of course all would be right. But he is a school-boy, and has lessons to learn, or is otherwise employed; and even if he has leisure, no one needs to be told that to answer a large number of letters every day is an impossible performance for a boy from ten to fifteen years old, the average limits of the age of those who offer exchange in our columns. In view of the impossibility of promptly answering all communications, the Post-office Box is often requested to publish an explanation. Whenever it is possible, we print these boyish appeals for indulgence, but they are very often crowded out. We are sorry to see so little reason and forbearance on the part of some boys who fail to receive answers from exchanges at the time they expect. We have received numerous complaints, to all of which we pay no attention, and which we often have positive proof are wholly unjust. We assure those boys from whom we have received such communications that they do not rise in our estimation by their hasty accusations of their correspondents, of whose circumstances or character they know nothing, beyond the mere fact that their letters to them have not been immediately answered. A boy who is himself honorable will seek excuses for his delinquent correspondent, and will never accuse him of unfairness, even in his own mind, unless he has positive proof that the charge is well founded. In future, all requests for exchange, accompanied by complaints of the delinquency of other parties, will not be noticed in our columns. Considering the length of our exchange list, these misunderstandings have been so few that they may be classed as exceptions to the general rule. The majority of our correspondents speak in the highest terms of the fairness with which exchanges have been conducted, of the valuable additions they have made to their collections, and of the pleasant friendships they have formed. In spite of all our good advice in the matter of full and distinctly written addresses, carelessness in this respect is still the source of some annoyance. We frequently receive letters from boys and girls who are troubled because they have received some specimen which they can not even acknowledge, as the sender omitted either name or address, sometimes both. We have no space to explain all these matters, and in such cases leave it for the careless correspondent to learn by experience the troublous results of inattention. Young Men's Society for Home Study.—A very useful society has been formed in Cambridge, Massachusetts, for the purpose of aiding boys of fifteen years and upward in systematic study. It is organized under the lead of such gentlemen as Oliver Wendell Holmes, Henry W. Longfellow, William D. Howells, Charles Dudley Warner, and others, and is designed to guide and encourage the youth of America by opening to them, by means of correspondence, systematic courses of study in various subjects. Courses of reading and plans of work are arranged, from which subscribers to the society may select one or more, according to their taste and leisure, and aid is given them from time to time through directions and advice. The courses embrace history, natural science, mathematics, and literatures of different nations, divided into sections. No subscribers are admitted under fifteen years of age. Each member pays a fee of two dollars on entering. Full particulars may be obtained by addressing the secretary, Frederic Gardiner, Jun., Cambridge, Massachusetts, to whom all communications, marked Y.M.S. on a corner of the envelope, should be sent by all who desire further information on the subject, with postage stamp inclosed for the reply. Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.
J. and M. A fresh twig covered with soft, pearly aments accompanied this letter. Fergus Falls, Minnesota.
Eddie S. Cincinnati, Ohio.
Julia H.D. Middle Bar, California.
Kate S. Baltimore, Maryland.
John E.H. These metal trees make very beautiful ornaments, and it is very interesting to watch the formations. A recipe for a lead tree was given in the Post-office Box of Young People No. 48. Ocean Grove, New Jersey.
Maude M. New York City.
Arthur D.B.
Freddie C.B. Sullivan, Indiana.
Helen M. New York City.
J.C.L. Providence, Rhode Island.
Horace G.B. Columbus, Mississippi.
Charles W.W. Lincoln, Tennessee, January 18, 1881.
Ambrose Strang. Newport, Delaware.
Nellie B.F.
L.A.V.Z.,
Percy L. McDermott,
Frank L. Brewer,
Alice E. Thorp, The following exchanges are also offered by correspondents:
Sam G. Smith,
Alice V. Smith,
Jay H. Maltby,
E.L. Brice, Sunbury, Penn.
B.C.G.,
Jean C. Porter,
Johnnie Seeley,
Charles F. Jenkins,
Howard G. Chase,
Howard J. Van Doren,
Willard Barnes,
Claude N. Comstock,
Harry Lee,
Frank H. Payne,
Eddy Loomis,
R.H. Reddish,
Charles H. Dailey,
Clarence Marshall,
Helen A. Searing,
Adolph Valois,
A.J. Dent,
Charles Garrison,
Jennie Denison,
Charles G. Carter,
Charles J. Livingood,
Harry F. Sinclair, C.N.C.—The specimen you send is a postmark. For purposes of exchange it is better to cut the postmark square, as it is more easily pasted in an album in the manner described in an article on "Stamp Collecting" in Young People No. 54, which has been applied by many of our readers to postmarks as well. We have been requested to bring to the notice of those correspondents who may write to Judith Wolff, of Barranquilla, that they can not receive answers to their letters sooner than six or eight weeks. "Electricity."—"The Brave Swiss Boy" has not been published in book form. The entire story, however, is contained in the first nine numbers of Young People, Vol. I. Virgie McL.—We are very sorry to disappoint you, but our Post-office Box is so crowded that we can not give up space to your poem. Neither can we print your offer of exchange, for reasons which were given in the introductory paragraph to the Post-office Box of Young People No. 45. Nellie A.B.—See answer to William D. in the Post-office Box of No. 64. New Subscriber.—The article you inquire about is entitled "A Cheap Canoe," and is contained in No. 26, page 350, of Harper's Young People, Vol. I. A.C.—The price of the cover for Harper's Magazine is fifty cents. Otis S.—We can not give the description you desire. C.P.J.—It is now so late in the season that the information you ask for will not be given in Young People until next winter. School-Boy.—Ferdinand De Soto, who discovered the Mississippi River, was born in Estremadura, Spain, about 1495. He came to America when very young, and was one of the most daring companions of Pizarro in the conquest of Peru. In 1538 he attempted the conquest of Florida, believing that he should find heaps of gold there, instead of which he and his men had a very sad time, and after many misfortunes, gave up their fruitless search. De Soto died on the banks of the Mississippi in 1542, and his companions, wishing to conceal his death from the Indians, sunk his body by night in the middle of the river. Julie J.B.—Juggernaut, the holy city of the Hindoos, is situated on the Bay of Bengal. Its main street is composed of temples and other religious edifices, and at the southern end is an immense structure, said to have been built during the twelfth century, which is dedicated to the idol Juggernaut—a word signifying "lord of the world." This idol has an enormous chariot forty-five feet high, and mounted on sixteen wheels, and during the great festival, which occurs in March, it is taken from the temple, and being placed on the chariot, is dragged about the streets by the thousands of pilgrims who come from all parts of India to this yearly celebration. So terrible are the ignorance and superstition of these idol-worshippers that, until prevented by the British authorities, hundreds threw themselves beneath the wheels of this enormous car during its passage through the city, and were crushed to death. Even mothers would throw their infants to be killed in this horrible manner, thinking in this way to secure for them eternal happiness and favor in the eyes of the hideous idol. Although this absurd worship is still carried on to a large extent, the sacrifice of victims is no longer possible. Willie Parkhurst.—"How to Build an Ice-Boat" was published in Young People No. 56. Fred B. and Fred W.—A set of Dallemeyer lenses, even of the smallest size, is somewhat expensive. You can get good portrait lenses from eight dollars a set to a very high price. There are other and cheaper kinds which would, no doubt, answer your purpose. The best thing for you to do is to go to some large dealer in photographic instruments, and get a list of styles and prices of lenses and materials.—"The Moral Pirates" began in Young People No. 31, and was concluded in No. 45. Favors are acknowledged from Freddie L. Foster, Kirk Haddock, E.H. Brown, Mary L. Shober, Maggie A.E., Ettie C.I., Lee M. Hopper, Maud P. Abbott, John Demarest, Mamie Valentine, William G. Moore, B.F. Corey, Minnie C.M., Bessie W., Maud C., Samuel K.B., B.T.H., L. Jay E., Martie W.H., Willie C.C., Lewis H., Pickey and Quinea Francis, Marion Ellis, Irene McM., Willie Lloyd, "Starlight," Ned Beck, Ina H. Bartlett, Josephine Beekman, Mertie W.L., Gertrude G., Jimmie Canfield, Stella L. Paine, Aseneth Michener, Mary Lawrence, David Baker Rushmore, A.G.D., Willie C. Whetton, Mary L. McCullock. Correct answers to puzzles have been received from Roe Stewart, Howard B. Lent, Eddie and Willie Kendel, Louise Smith, Bessie Winans, G.J. Broome, Jun., Charles Gaylor, E.J.W., Carrie M. Pike, "Starry Flag," Isobel and Harry Jacobs, E.E. Harris, Daisy Mitchell, Allie Maxwell, Andrew C. De Motte, Charlie Haight. PUZZLES FROM YOUNG CONTRIBUTORS.No. 1.ENIGMA.In frequent, not in oft. No. 2.RHOMBOID.Across.—A cut. A germ. To rip. To pull. In the body. Down.—A letter from Washington. In the same manner. Regular. To notice. To venture. A fish. A pronoun. Another letter from Washington. Walter. No. 3.DIAMOND.In ride. A character in music. Parts of the body. Suspended. To loose. A Latin numeral. In ride. Mark Marcy. No. 4.EASY SQUARES.1. First, a musical instrument. Second, a tree found in the East Indies. Third, a bog. Fourth, a town in Upper Egypt. Johnnie. 2. First, prospect. Second, inactive. Third, a girl's name. Fourth, feeble. T.K.P. No. 5.ENIGMA.In bold, not in shy. ANSWERS TO PUZZLES IN No. 64.No. 1.
No. 3.Potash. No. 4.Kentucky. Charade, on page 192—Crowbar. |
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