Whilomville Stories

he wished to become a sort of a perpetual velocipede-rider. But the powers of the family laid a number of judicious embargoes upon him, and he was prevented from becoming a fanatic. Of course th

s he left it id

girl in a red hood. He had been in love with her for some three weeks. His desk was near her desk in school, but he had never spoken to her. He had been afraid to take such

boys were afraid; third, they had no idea of what to say, because they esteemed the proper sentences should be supernaturally incisive and eloquent. In consequ

wore the red hood must have exchanged glances at least two hundred times in every school-hour, and this exc

n his romance during the night that he was actually detected at times feverishly listening for the "first bell." Dr. Trescott was exceedingly complacent of the change, and as for Mrs. Tres

on that he hastily lied to himself about it. No, he was not following Abbie. He was merely making his way homeward through the new

ruffly, to his retainer.

demanded t

b'c

uh

ore fun-goi

t once understood the object of the chase, and looking back giggling, they pretended to quicken their pace. But they were always looking back. Jimmie now began his courtship in earnest. The first th

After his overthrow he raised himself, coolly brushed some dust and

n you can," said Jim

esponded the r

not do. There m

immie, imperiously.

anced and calculated a moment, and jumped withou

t you, didn't I? Easy. I beat you." He made a g

ed the other,

as indestructible. If the retainer had been in the plot, it is conceivable that he would have endured this treatment with mere whispered, half-laughing

is heels came a badly battered retainer. Oakland Park was a somewhat strange country to the boys. They were dubious of the

thrilling boy. On this pretext and that pretext, he kept his retainer in play before th

Tommie Semple, one of the weaklings who made friends with t

ar as he strolled well inside his own frontiers. Jimmie and his retainer had not expected this boy to display

e moved forward briskly

ay. "I know you can," he dec

of insolent surprise in the fact that he still existed, and began to trundle her hoop off t

as playing near the perambulator, pretentiously mak

d away her face, and daintily swished her skirts as if he were contagion itself. But Jimmie was happy. His soul was satisfied with the mere presence of the beloved object so long as he could feel that she furtively gazed upon him from time to time and noted his extraordinary prowess, which he was

e tooling down towards them. "Who's this comi

, "an' he's got a new velocipede,

ck him?" as

to appear as a man of respectable achievement, but with Horace coming

h he haughtily accepted as a familiar thing. Only Jimmie and his re

o, Ji

o, Ho

ce Jimmie said, pompous

He did not wish anybody in the worl

ger one than that, too! A good deal

ted Horace,

'Ain't I? 'Ain't I go

answered wi

d deal bigger! An'

statement that Jimmie also owned a velocipede. As for the contention that this

y position. So he affected to look with contempt upon it. Voluminously he bragged of the velocipede in the stable at home. He pai

ter impossibility. Horace was very sick of it. His defence was reduced to a mere mec

can you go? How fast can you go?" he dema

nswered with proper defiance. "

said Jimmie. "Y

and pedalled back again. "There, now!" he shouted, triumphantly. "Ain't that fast? There, now!" There was a low murmur of appreciation from the little girls. Jimmie saw with

"Why," he yelled, "that ain't goin' fast 'tall! That ain't goin' fast 'tall! Why,

solemnly at the wide-eye

I can go like the wind! Can't I, Clarence? And I can ride far, too-oh, awful far! Can't I,

battered glories. "I can ride right over the curb-st

't be nothin' for me to do! I've rode mine down Bridge Street hill. Yessir! 'Ain't I,

hill? You never!" sa

I, Clarence? D

r again nodded solem

ou can do wonders! I s'pose you could ride down that bank there?" he asked, with art. He had indicated a grassy terrace some six feet in height which

HE VANISHED FROM TH

stantly and sublimely arose to the occasion. "That bank?" he asked, scornful

s arose; it was the song of incredulity and ridicule. "O-o-o-o-o!" An

" The neighborhood's superficial hostility to foreigners arose like magic under the influence of his sudden suc

e velocipede, "If you'll lend me yours

thought of a blow which would make Jimmie's humiliation complete. "Besides," he sai

with cheers, looked upon him in a sudden blank silence. Ji

, then! Let's see you do it! Let's see you do it! Now!" In a

complete! Instead, it had boomeranged Horace

anything! I coul

e and his partisans. "Dare you

e moving through their clamor to the edge of the bank. Sitting on the velocipede, he looked at the ravine, and then, with gloomy pri

om the edge of the walk. The start

and his retainer exchanged a glance of horror and fled the neighborhood. They did not look back until they had reached the top of the hill near the lake. They could see Hor