FUN FOR THE SMALL BOY.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XXVII, Issue 3106, 2 May 1879, Page 2

FUN FOR THE SMALL BOY.

He was naturally cruel, and he told an acquaintance one day that he had anew trick to play on the public — something entirely new. Ho had a long string and a bra3s key tied to the end of it, which he said was the instrument of torture. Over the front sidewalk a maple treeseut some pretty strong branches. Into these, after dark, the boys climbed. " Now wait," said the principal, " till the first victim comes, and don't make a noise." Pretty soon an ordinarily dressed woman came along, and just as she had passed he let drop the key on the hard sidewalk, immediately pulling it up again. The woman came to a sudden stop, and began to fumble in her pockets to find out what she had dropped. She started on, but had not gone far before she came back, impelled by curiosity, and began a careful search of the walk. Meanwhile, the boys in the tree had stuffed their fists in their mouths to keep from scaring the game. A sympathetic sister came along, and together they turned over the chips and picked up all the stones on the walk. No money, no nothing did they find : and so went on to their homes, perhaps to worry all night, or perhaps a giggle in the tree turned their look cf disappointment to a very cheap Bmile, and a laugh from the same place made them have awful wicked thoughts about boys. One victim found a piece of tin, and laying the cause of the noiso to that, was saved from a great deal of worry. But when she picked it up and threw it down to test Uie sound, the boys nearly fell out of the tree. A man when caught would slap all of his pockets, glance around a little, but it was seldom that he was brought to a hard-pan search. When any one saw the trick after searching half an hour and saying all kind of little things for the amusement of the boys, he simply went away hurriedly. There was no remark to make, no name to call To get onb of sight as soon as possible seemed the most desirable. The triok is harmless ; no one breaks a leg or losos an pyo in its process. It might be reoo.-rmi hklhc! to constitutionally tired boys as a good way to sweep the walk. Tho victims will throw all the chips and stones into the street by curiosity power, as it wero.