THE COURIER.
11
IE PARABLE Of 1 CHIMNEY.
"Undo Anthony," commanded An
thony's sweetheart, "tell me n storv."
"Well.Bweetheart," answered Anthony,
waked from his dreaming by the lire,
'what shall it be?"
Sweetheart climbed into his lap whero
he sat in his big rocker, and decided
oh! so sedately, "about a little boy."
"Onco upon a time," commenced An
thony dubiously, "thero was a little boy,
and ho hud a urotty blue velvet Jacket
with silver buttons, aud beautiful warm
red knickerbockers that were madeouito
. .
loose, and he woro nice shiney whoes
with black silk stockings, flow's that,
Sweetheart?"
"Wasn't his legs cold?" asked Sweet
heart. "No," said Anthony," "for he had nico
warm leggings, juBt tho color of bis
Jacket, and with silver buttons too.
Now what do you think was the color of
Jiio cap?"
"I know!" cried Sweetheart, wriscline
the crease of Anthony's trousers intLe
thmpo nf inoniratinn. "roil inoMiUn hi
knickerbockeis!"
"So it was! Don't you think that was
a nice little boy ?"'
"Yes! that was a very nice little boy."
And then the inevitable "what did ho
do?"
"Why, what do you think he did?"
procrastinated Anthony.
"I don't know" slowly, then, thebluo
eyes big with a child's wonder at itsown
invention, "ho-Wont-up-thochimney!"
"My gracious!" said Anthony, "what
- ... ...
a dirty place tor sucu a nico Jittle boy
to go in! Was that tho end of him?"
"No o. Why, Uncle Anthony, ho
wanted to seo out the top."
"Oh," said Anthony, subsiding, "ho
wanted to seo out tho top!" And with
a new look in his kindly bluo eyes, "that
accounts for it."
Anthony's study of tho fireplace lasted
till Sweetbeart, in her face that queer
reverence very Email folk show when
they tako note in their elders of what
they cannot understand, put her littlo
soft hand to his face and turned it to-
ward her. "How ever did he do it,
Uncle Anthony?"
"Will," said Anthony rousing, "it was
an awfully dirty place for a clean littlo
boy to go into, but, you know, he want
ed to see out the top, and he couldn't
find any other way. There were plenty
of people about who might havo told
him but none of them thought of itsavo
one or two, and these knew but little of
climbing.
"Ho might have gone upstairs to tho
garrot, but, even after climbing all thoso
stairP, ho would havo needed a ladder to
reach tho trap door in the roof, and but
a very few people keep such ladders,
Lassie, I'm sure I don't know who would
give him one. And, if he had cucceeded
in getting a ladder, thero would still
havo been tho trap door, locked tight
and fast, and how would ho have gotten
through it?"
"Could he open it with a Key?" asked
Sweetheart.
"I don't know about that," said An
thony, "it lakes a veiy wonderful key to
open such a door. Every little boy has
just one such key, and never can get an-
other, and it is risky work for him to ry
-
to file it to fit. Ho is more than likply
to ruin it forever. So, you see, after ho
has climbed all thoso stairs, and bad
managed to get a ladder, his key might
not have fitted that lock and ho would
have had to commence all over again
nnlPRs he were satisfied iust to stay
there in tho garret and look out through
the cracks. You sleepy?" This with a
6kake.
"No!" indignantly.
"Well, then there was another way
tho littlo boy might have gone to tho
top, but ho never thought of it, aud I
don't believe he was strong enough. He
might have carried up boxes from down
town and have built a stairway outside
all tho way up to the roof, just as you
build with your blockB "
aweomeart s mouglit went away up
l?rouBh aI1 tno " anil ceilings to tho
ridge pole. "Uh, my! said she, "what a
big lot of boxes !'
"Yes." said Anthony, "what a big lot
of boxes! Hut that would have been
safer, you know, though rather slow.
"So this little boy. being a rather pig-
headed little boy with all, decided to
go up tho chimney. Ho might very
easily have crawled up by bracine him-
solf aKanst tho sides, but he didn't very
1. i:l. 1: l I i i
much like cradling and. besides, ho
would have gotten very dirty so. Ho
could seethe beautiful blue sky through
tho top, but the chimney Iool ed so dirty,
but he was bound to go up and ho
thought he could keep clean well enough
if he was careful. So he put out tho
tire.
"There arc all sorts of fires, Sweet
heart, and that was an awfully wicked
tire, for all it sparkled and snapped and
rU8tled and Jumped so. It caused all
tho soot in the chimney! Whero do
wicked people go?"
"Bad place," answered Sweetheart,
promptly.
"Just so." said Anthony, "and that's
where tho flame went when tho little
boy put out the fire. I am very sorry
indeed for tha folk who get their scorch
ing in the particular corner where that
flame is burning.
"So the little boy carried out all tho
ashes, and then ho got the broom and
6wePl dovcn a11 the 60ot from iust as far
Iln fir -" fimtlil vnn nli "
up as he could reach.
"Did ho get any on his pretty
clothes?" put in Sweetheart.
"Yes, dear, even then, before ho was
star ted. I am afraid ho must havo been
careless. So when he was all ready ho
took four sticks which he'd had ever
sinco bo was a baby, and he pushed tho
sucks in oeiween me stones or the
chimney, Just so." thrusting in matches
between tho bricks of tho fireplace,
"that ho would havo one for each hand
and foot. But when he commenced to
c'mb aUl1 reacned down for tho lowest
suck to place it auovo tho highest one,
ho found ho couldn't possibly pull it
out, so then what?"
Sweetheart took a long long look at
the lowest of the matches.
"Why, Uncle Anthony, I guess ho
could break it off."
"Yes," said And so ho did, but it was
rough on the stick. And so ho kept on
breaking eff tho lowest stick and put-
ting it above tho highest one, till ho
had gotten up as far as he had cleaned
the chimney, when, all at once, he got a,
"Iotch of soot right on his nose."
"0b.' my!' geved Sweet heart.
"This startled him so," continued
Anthony, "that he fell clear down to tho
bottom of the chimney, breaking off all
ms sucks on me way.snumero nowas:"
-jiaKo mm go up, uncio Anmony:'
cried Sweetheart.
"Yes," promised Anthony, a queer set
on his lips, "I'll make him go up."
"So the little boy thought over it for
a long time, and finally went out and got
a board that just exactly fitted tho
cnimney, and tie put me board on his
heau and started up again, pushing all
the soot before him. That was a very
,. .......
rougn, ugij looKicg ooaro, aweemeart,
and it was full or nails sticking through
on the outside, and whenever one of
those nails would strike anything tho
harder it scratched, tno more it pushed
"acK t&rougn tno ooard and hurt the
little boy. But he didn't care, just so it
womu KeeP ou ln0 soot-
"0b Uncle Anthony," cried S.veet-
heart, "don't let him get very dirty!"
"No! by heaven, I'll not." said
Anthony, swinging up from his chair
and walking the room with the littlo tot
in his arms, his face aquiver with tho
thoughts that were in him.
"And so tho Htllo boy went up and up
and up. und tho board and loud of soot
got so heavy and it was all so hard for
him that ho hud to bend his head and
tuke tho load upon his shoulders, and
kept getting heavier and hoavier, till, at
last he bent so that the bo ird wason his
l,ack and all he could see was the bottom
or tho chimney and the long way ho had
come; and ho got, oh, so tired; and so
hungn; and so lonely; anil his hands
hurt' so; and every little they would slip
against tho rough rocks and get alt
bruised and dirty, and he was almost
ready to drop the board and iust
scramble up any way, but, somehow, ho
........ .-
wouldn't let himself do that. And then
a great many people came to tho bottcm
of tho chimnoy, and some of tnem won
dered what in tho world ho was doirg
up there, and others called up to him
and told him how ho should have set
about it, and others told him that ho
should have gotton different sticks that
would not havo broken so easily. They
wero very careful, those people down
below, to keep clear of the soot and so
they couldn't help him any.
"The littlo boy couldn't tell at all how
much farther he had to go, but ho knew
there was bluo sky above him, and ho
knew he must go on now, for his sticks
were so short ho couldn't possibly climb
back to the bcttom, and if ho fell ho
would drop in tho fireplaca before the
people, all bruised and helpless and
covered with tho soot he'd gathered in
falling, and just as he was getting so
weak that it seemed as if ho couldn't
help but lean against tho dirty wall-
-all
of a sudden the board flew out tho top
. as
of the chimney.'"
"Goodie!" shouted Sw?etheart.
. jurnp-
ing in his arms as ho walked.
"The littlo boy was so surprised that
he very nearly fell back after all, but,
with a good scramble ho came out on
top and there, all about him, was tho
glorious, sunlit world for him to enjoy.
So then all the people ran out of tho
house to seo him, and tley looked, oh,
so glad, because ho was safely out on
top."
Sweetheart eavo a lone Bi-rh. "I'm c
gaij too!" she said.
o - o e - " "
Togother they sack again in tho old
chair, and Anthony, his hand a bit
shaken, somehow, wijh his storytelling,
rolled a cigarette and lit it.
Presently Sweetheart asked, "did ho
come down again Undo Anthony?"
"Oh, yes, ho could come down wel!
enoucb. for those tran doors onen vcrv
easily from shove, and he just dropped
through to tho garret floor and went
down stairs to all tho good people ho
baa wanted to seo for so long. And
didn't they wash all tho sooti.ff him so
nicely, and Teed him so well."
"Yes," added Sweetheart gravely, "and
they tied up whero his poor hands wero
cut just like mamma did my thumb."
"So they did, God bless them," said
Anthony.
After a timo Sweetheart asked,
drowsily, "did tho littlo boy ever go up
a&ain Uncle Anthony?'
why bless you, yes, Sweetheart, his
0Dg climb had made him so strong that
ho could Just run up those stairs, and
tho door was always onen for him. ami
there were plenty of good people ready
to give him ladders. He hadn't known
there wero so many ladders in all tho
-- 7 -
world; though he had noticed most of
the people before.
"So now all that he had to bother him
wa3 the scramble up tho roof, and ho
took his key and made a nairof Himl.m,,
irons just like those Papa puts on his
boots when it's icv."
And so they rocked before the fire til),
at last, Anthony carried the dozing
child away to Mama and to bed.
The shock of the cold sheets roused
her, and, as Anthony came in for his
good night kiss, she asked,
"Where did all the soot gi to? Uncle
Anthony?"
"It blow into tho eyes of thoeo who
kindled that wicked lire, dearie."
Anthony bent dcHsr to catch tho
niurmoring as the blue eyes closed.
it "I think he ought to go and wino 'em
out!"
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