Sarah L. Barrow

“ They are all hard rules except the fourth. I do not keep them well myself, my dear children. No one can, [13] without constant watchfulness and prayer for help from above; but you can try, will you?"
"I will, mamma," said Helen, in a low, earnest tone, her blue eyes filling with tears.
"And you, George, will you?"
"Yes, mamma, I will try. I can't be a very good boy, as you know. I get so tired of being good sometimes, that I feel like jumping over the house to get the badness out of me, instead of sitting down quietly and thinking about my duty, as papa says I must. ”

“ Mrs. Mincemeat, the fat cook, had made the boys each put on one of her blue check aprons, tied under their chins, to save their uniforms; and when they appeared in this new array, their faces as red and shining as a stick of sealing wax, there was a general shout of laughter.
"Well, my precious babies," cried one.
"Don't soil your new bibs, my tiddy-ikle duckies!" called another. [92]
"There, don't tease them," said Freddy, the general peacemaker; "Come, fellows, let's have dinner; ham's good, I tell you!" and down they sat at table, in high, good humor. ”

“ It is very seldom that you hear of such remarkably good children as George and Helen were for the next few days. They were really something astonishing! George did not slam the door more than once or twice in a whole day; and one morning when he was going to ride on the bannisters as usual, he said "Oh, I forgot!" and immediately walked down stairs as slowly and gravely as a grandfather. ”

“ At these words, the regiment strung themselves in a long line, like so many kibobs on a straw, with their captains standing in front. "Now, [114] Captain Livingston, dismiss your company to quarters," and off marched the first company, four "men" strong, toward the tents; then the next four, and so on, until all had gone, and then came posting back again without the smallest delay.
Colonel Freddy was obediently following his own orders by dismissing himself, with a sublime disregard of rank, when Peter suddenly called out, "I say, Fred, there's one thing you've forgotten!" ”

“ These wonderful tents were furnished just like real soldiers' dwellings; with a good warm blanket for each of the three occupants, a bright tin basin and tooth mug, a cedar bucket to draw water, a square looking glass, like a sticking plaster, and a couple of wooden lockers (which, between ourselves, were made of claret boxes) in each one; beside camp stools in abundance for everybody.
"Here's the officers' quarters!" [88] cried George, as he flung open the door of the smoke house.
"No, that's the guard house, Chadwick," said Harry, "where we put the refracti-rac-tic-tactories." ”

“ THE STORY OF THE SOCKS. BY AUNT FANNY.
"Oh dear! what shall I do?" cried George, fretfully, one rainy afternoon. "Mamma, do tell me what to do."
"And I'm so tired!" echoed Helen, who was lazily playing with a kitten in her lap. "I don't see why it should rain on a Friday afternoon, when we have no lessons to learn. We can't go out, and no one can come to see us. It's too bad, there!"
"Helen, do you know better than God?" asked her mother, speaking [8] very gravely. "You forget that He sends the rain." ”

“ George and Helen were two charming, ingenuous children. George was full of frolic, mischief, and fun, with generous impulses and excellent intentions, which only required peculiar and careful training and encouragement to develop him into a steady, high-principled man. ”

“ Then came Major Peter Schermerhorn, who was [70] the prime spirit of mischief of the party, and last, though not least, the great Colonel Freddy; who was dancing about in a high state of glee; while the rest of the men, seeing that the Colonel didn't regard dignity in the least, had an impromptu Zouave drill (which consists principally in turning somersaults) all round the dining room, the grown people looking on, in agonies of suppressed laughter. ”

“ After stowing all the things away neatly in the smokehouse, and arranging their surplus luggage (which had been sent down the previous Saturday) , in the lockers, they all had a grand game at fox and geese, which lasted until Freddy, perfectly worn out with laughing and scampering about, exclaimed, "Come, fellows, do let's sit down and be quiet; I'm as tired as if I had walked from here to China."
"Yes, let's be solemn a little [95] while," said Peter. "In these momentous times, we army men ought to be thinking how to fix off the old secessionists and that sort of thing. ”

“ All the other cubs in the wood can run about as they please, and why should we be kept in this poky old cave? Suppose we try to get away the big log before the door?' for this was what Grumpy-growly put up to keep them at home.
"'Good! I go in for that!' cried Bushyball, Titehugge, and Stubtail, the other cubs. ”

“ But don't think he ever abuses the kindness of his loving papa and mamma; no—although he is full of noise, fun, and innocent mischief, he is a good, obedient little fellow—and that is why they love to do all they can to make him happy. But you must not tell that I said where he lives.
When Mr. Jourdain came home that evening, Freddy, of course, began to tell him the first thing, about the regiment and Mr. Schermerhorn's delightful invitation. You may be sure he gave a full-length description of the pleasures of camp life, as retailed by Peter to an enthusiastic audience [42] at recess ”

“ Her little Helen, though just as full of play and fun, was more easily managed. A present of a book so won upon her love and gratitude, that her mother [18] had only to hold out the prospect of a new one, and a loving kiss (Helen prized the kiss even more than the book) as a reward for good behavior, to make her quite a pattern of a dear, amiable little girl.
The next morning the kind mother called upon her friend Aunt Fanny, bringing George and Helen with her, as it was Saturday. ”

“ Custard hobbled down stairs, and the children hopped, skipped, and jumped up stairs, both wondering what would come of this magical word "socks."
Helen had a pretty little room opening out of her mother's, but George's was in an upper story. When they were both asleep, the mother took out of her son's bureau a clean white sock, sewed a tape loop on the edge, put a small parcel inside, and hung it on a neat brass nail, which [30] was driven in a door directly opposite his bed, where it would catch his eye as soon as he awoke. ”

“ Hurrah for Jackson and the Stars and Stripes!" So saying, Freddy cut a caper in the air, that made about forty "chaney alleys," "stony alleys," "glass agates," and "middles," pop out of his satchel, which was slung over one shoulder, and roll into all the corners of the room.
"Where is your encampment to be?" said his mother, as gravely as she could.
"Oh, down on Mr. Schermerhorn's place at Astoria. Peter Schermerhorn [38] told us to-day that his father was willing we should have it there, and has invited us all to come and stay a whole week. We're to live in real tents!" ”

“ I say, mamma, couldn't you write a letter to one of those delightful people and beg them to hurry up with more stories, especially some about bad children;—not exactly wicked, you know, but full of mischief. Then I am sure that they are all true. Only wait till I'm a man! ”

“ COLONEL FREDDY; OR, THE MARCH AND ENCAMPMENT OF THE DASHAHED ZOUAVES. CHAPTER I. RAISING A REGIMENT.
One bright afternoon last summer, about two weeks after the dreadful battle of Bull Run, Freddy Jourdain burst open the door of his mother's room and rushed in, exclaiming: "Jolly, mother! such fun! What do you think the boys in our school are going to do?"
"Why what?" asked his mother. [36]
"Yes, I should really like to know why you come tearing up stairs yelling like forty steam engines!" added his sister Bella, who was rather a particular young lady. ”

“ Then he went on:
"They had a jolly time climbing trees, rolling on the soft grass, and playing with the other bears they met; but at last Titehugge and Stubtail, the youngest, declared they were too tired to go another step, and must take a little nap. Longclawse and Bushyball thought they would go off to see the election, which they had been told [99] was to take place that very day, and the others, promising not to stir from the spot without them, curled themselves up into tight round balls, and went to sleep.
"While they were dreaming away, a fox came along. ”

“ Titehugge accordingly rammed and jammed his head with great difficulty into the hole, which proved such an uncommonly tight fit, that, not finding any honey, he began trying to pull it back double quick; but lo and behold! pull and tug, scratch and swear as he might, he was caught in a mouse trap not intended for bears, while the fox stood below giggling. After he had amused himself enough with Titehugge's struggles, he scampered off to find Stubtail ”

“ I! I!" cried a chorus of voices.
"Can't do every one at once; come, Freddy, you're the commander-in-chief, suppose you set the example."
"Here goes, then!" exclaimed Freddy; and down he sat on the spring board.
Snip! went the long scissors, and off came a beautiful curl. Snap! more demolition on the other side, and in five minutes such a worn-out old scrubbing brush as his head looked like, never was seen anywhere, even on a Zouave; George, of course, running [51] out his tongue so far at every snip of the scissors, that it was a mercy it didn't get cut off, too. ”

“ But how was this difficult matter of sock and stocking to be settled? Why, by the children's papa, to be sure! for he was a lawyer, and did nothing all day long but settle difficulties, or make them worse, I don't know which.
He took two long slips of paper, and wrote "Socks" on one and "Stockings" on the other. These he put in his hat, which George brought [27] out of the hall. Then he rang the bell, and told the waiter who answered it to request Mrs. Custard, the cook, to come up to the parlor for a moment. ”

“ I know that different children require different sorts of punishment, and as neither your father nor I approve of beating you like a dog, and you say [15] that shutting you up with nothing to do only makes you worse, I shall advise him the next time you are naughty, to send immediately for a load of wood, and make you saw it all up into small pieces, or take you where some house is building and order you to run up and down a long ladder all day with a hod of bricks on your shoulder, or hire you out to blow the big bellows for a blacksmith. ”

“ Now, if I tell you a secret, you must promise not to let any one know it. Freddy's parents live in the Fifth avenue above Madison Square, in the city of New York. His father is a rich man, and Freddy, a bright, manly lad, [41] between thirteen and fourteen at the time I am writing about, and the only son, is a good deal indulged. ”

“ Camp McClellan must be looked out for."
"Very well, suppose you begin!" laughed Jimmy.
"Hum, I'm the Colonel; Colonels can't be sentinels."
"But I want to go to bed!" objected Will Costar.
"Well, I love my country, but I think the country had better turn in too!" said Harry. "What business has the country to be awake and getting into mischief in the middle of the night?"
"Voted," cried Peter, "that the guard be mounted, but that it shall go to bed as soon as it gets sleepy!"
"Good for you! that's the way to fix it!" said Colonel Freddy. "Now [116] then, boys, who'll turn out?" ”

“ When he was all dressed, he ran down stairs and found, on entering the dining room, that he was the only one there. A large mirror was over the mantel, which reflected the handsome room, with its deep bay window, filled with flowers, its sideboard, loaded with massive plate, and the breakfast table, covered with its snowy cloth, and nice beefsteak, muffins, and coffee, [62] looking so tempting to hungry folks.
Freddy's eye fell on the mirror, and a new idea came into his head. "Hurrah! here's a capital chance to see how I look from head to foot," he thought ”

“ I go in for that!" shouted Will Costar, "whatever reractitactories may be."
"You're on the wrong tack now, old chap," added Tom Pringle. "But only see what I've discovered! such a high old battery, boys! six brass cannon nearly as big as boot-jacks. ”

“ Freddy! what have you been doing?" he exclaimed, raising his hands, and pushing his spectacles to the top of his forehead, to look at them better.
"Oh, only getting our hair cut in the Zouave pattern," said Peter, as cool as a cucumber. "Don't you know, Doctor, that we've organized a regiment?"
"Organized a regiment!" repeated the doctor, his spectacles almost falling off with astonishment.
"Yes, sir, the Dashahed Zouaves; haven't you heard of them?"
"Is there any end to the mischief of boys?" exclaimed the doctor; "If [54] such things had happened in my young days, our old master, Dr. ”