It was further apparent from the agricultural appearance of the room
that beans had been sowed broadcast by means of the apple-corer,
which Wash had converted into a pop-gun with a mechanical ingenuity
worthy of more general appreciation. He felt this deeply, and when
Christie reproved him for leading his sisters astray, he resented
the liberty she took, and retired in high dudgeon to the cellar,
where he appeared to set up a menagerie,--for bears, lions, and
unknown animals, endowed with great vocal powers, were heard to
solicit patronage from below.
Somewhat exhausted by her labors, Christie rested, after clearing up
the room, while the children found a solace for all afflictions in
the consumption of relays of bread and molasses, which infantile
restorative occurred like an inspiration to the mind of their
guardian.
Peace reigned for fifteen minutes; then came a loud crash from the
cellar, followed by a violent splashing, and wild cries of, "Oh, oh,
oh, I've fell into the pork barrel! I'm drownin', I'm drownin'!"
Down rushed Christie, and the sticky innocents ran screaming after,
to behold their pickled brother fished up from the briny deep. A
spectacle well calculated to impress upon their infant minds the
awful consequences of straying from the paths of virtue.
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