University of Virginia Library

102. CII.
THE WISE OLD RAT.

Wunst upon a time, a wise old rat, whose gray
hares showd concloosivly to the most ordinary intellek
the wisdom that yeers and experense kin
only give, startid out a foragin for the wants uv
his luvd wuns 2 hum.

He had n't bin ingaged in this ardoous dooty
but a short time, when he wuz surroundid by a
small, but intensely wickid boy, who 2 wunst give
chase. The wise old rat, not hevin bin a home
gard, run, and in runnin fell in2 a dry cistern,
wich wuz about 17 feet deep. It wuz jest dark,
and the boy, seezin a shingle, huv it at him. It
mist its aim, and he wuz about heevin a brick,
wen he bethunk hisself thus:

“Hold,” sez he, “he can't git out. I will let
him stay, and to-morrer I 'll hist Nip, my tarrier,
in, and it 'll be hunky fun 2 see him kill him.”

Upon wich, with a sardonic grin orespredin

his utherwise intellektooal countenanse, he strode
hawtily away.

The wales uv the entrapt wun soon brot 2
the spot his noomerus progeny and their mother.
In agony uv sperit, they wrung their paws and
cried—

“Bald-hed, cum up.”

“Verily, wood I,” sez he, “but how? No, no,
my childern—it 's all up with me. Let day-lite
return, and I 'm a goner. My time is short.
Bless yoo, wife uv my buzzum—bless yoo, produx
uv our chased luv. I hed hoped 2 hev lived
long enuff 2 hev tawt yoo the neetest way uv
chawin thro a cubberd, uv dodgin cats, and uv
suckin eggs, but fate is too menny for me—I
suckkum.”

At this momenchus crisis a hevy rane sot in.

“Now,” sez he, “I am shoorly gone. The cistern
will fill with water, and I shel drown. O,
horrid fate, that I shood live to be a drowndid
rat!”

The rane fell, and soon the bottom uv the cistern
wuz covered. In his despare he notist the
shingle a flotin, and in hopes uv prolongin his life
a few momence, he sprang onto it, and began disclosin
to his wife the locashen uv a cheeze he hed
discovered, when observin that the shingle bore

him, he stopt suddently. His wife begged him
to go on, and not let so important a sekrit die
with him.

“Shet up,” retorts he, in his anshent way; “ef
this rane holds out long enuff, I 'm ez good ez a
dozen ded rats.”

Shoor enuff, it did rane till the cistern wuz full,
the rat menetime flotin comfortably on the shingle.
When it wuz quite full, he paddled it to the
side with his fore-feet (steerin with his tale,) and
gaily sprang onto terry firmy, wich is Lattin for
dry land. * * *

That nite ther wuz goy in the habitashen uv
that rat. He gatherd his children about him, and
tellin em the story uv his advencher, moralizd
thus to em:

“Observ, my children, that blessins cum to us
very frekently in disgise. We murmer at terriers,
wich rend us with neetnis and dispatch.
But mark. Hed not that boy hed a rat terrier
he wood hev dispatched me with brix. Thus is
the evil desires uv the wickid made to work good
for the saints, uv whom I am which.

“How I dredid that shingle! Yet, but for that
shingle yoor dad wood hev bin a innanymait
corpse. Troo, I am entitled to credit for my
skill in dodgin it, but uv what avale wood hev

bin that skill hed I hed no opportoonity 2 exercise
it?

“The rane wuz 2 hev bin my destrucshen.
Blessid wuz the rane! The flud that wuz 2
overwhelm me, bore me on its buzzum 2 safety.

“In concloosion. Providense alluz furnishis
oppertoonities — he is trooly grate who hez the
branes 2 know the proper time to grab, and the
nerve to do it. Let Nil Despritrando be yer motto,
keep yer eers open, yer eyes peeled, and yer claws
sharp, and you 'll go thro life a sailin. Remember,
ther is no evil but is mixed with good; the
wise turn evil 2 good, while the foolish sink under
it. Bless yoo, my children—good-nite. I will
seek my couch.”