1878 



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Fear them not therefore; for there is nothino: 

 r-overed, that shall not be roveHled; and hid, that 

 shall not be made known.— Math. X; 26. 



W NEVER liked secrets, and never waiit- 

 21 ed to be told one. I do not say this in a 

 — ' boasting way. for it is very likely a sort 

 of a negative virtue, and perhaps I carry it 

 to too great an extreme, in my aversion to 

 secrets for sale, patent rights, etc. I can 

 well remember when I used to feel annoyed 

 at having been forced to give a promise of 

 "not to tell;"' but, of late years, when any 

 one enjoins this strict secrecy, I am in the 

 habit of stopping them, nntil I can explain 

 that I want nothing told me, unless I can 

 have the liberty of repeating it, if my better 

 judgment tells me it should be told." If my 

 friend will not tell me under such condi- 

 tions, I much prefer to be left in ignorance. 

 NoW' , please remember I am not asking you 

 to take such a course, unless you choose, but 

 I am simply telling you how I do. 



Years ago, I taught school, or tried to 

 teach school, in a rather new country in the 

 western part of this .State. One evening, a 

 well to do farmer sent word that he would 

 like me to spend the night with his family. 

 They gave me for supper, a nice plate of 

 honey, yellow butter, and nice bread, with a 

 pitcher V)f ice cold milk. YAu see the good 

 woman of the house knew, by past experi- 

 ence, just what would please 'me most. Af- 

 ter supper, a slate and pencil was given me, 

 and I was asked to straighten out an account 

 with a hired girl. The girl herself, the old 

 farmer, and several stalwart sons gathered 

 around the table, as I went on with my "ci- 

 l)hering." When I gave the result, after an 

 hour or more. I well remember how the us- 

 ually sad face of the girl l)rightened up. The 

 "boys" had told her that she was in deljt to 

 them, as she was leaving her place to go out 

 upon the world, but I said, and the tigures 

 said (which wouldn't lie), that they owed her 

 something like S25.00. The old farmer, 

 whom I believe to have been just, even if he 

 was close, paid over the money. I started 

 to go home, to my sister's, but it was late, 

 and a freezing sleet was falling. I was asked 

 to stay all night, and after studying on the 

 probability of some more bread and butter 

 and lioney, with my favorite pitcher of ice 

 cold milk, I decided to stay. When I came 

 down in the morning, they were gathered 

 about the blazing tire place. Said one of the 

 boys: 



"Sam and Ira had their watches stole last 

 night." 



''Why, no!" said I, "where were they?" 



"Hanging upoverthemantle])ieceonthem 

 nails." 



"Btit. did no one hear any one in the 

 room':"' 



''No." 



"Yes; I did,'' said the farmer. "One of 

 you boys came down stairs in tlie night. 

 Xow which one of you was it?" 



"It wasn't me!" and "It wasn't me!" said 

 both Tom and Jeft", almost in the same 

 breath. I did not say it was not I, for the 

 idea never occurred to me, that a schoolmas- 



ter could be thought of as stealing, watches, 

 and I fear I was thinking too much of that 

 breakfast, to take much further notice of it, 

 more than to join in the general talk. After 

 the meal, I walked home over tlie crisp 

 snow, and was seated Ijy my sister's tire 

 W'aiting for school time.' and reading her 

 magazine the while. I was disturbed after 

 a time, by the entrance of several men. One 

 approached me and said: 



"Mr. Root, I would trouble you for your 

 keys." 



i arose, book in hand, and .stared with open 

 mouth, tirst at my sister, and then at tiie 

 man. 



"I have orders to search your effects: will 

 you hand me your keys?" 



Still I staretl in hopeless unconsciousness 

 of the fact that I was accused of having sto- 

 len the watches, but my sister, who was gift- 

 ed like other daughters of Eve. had a tongue 

 and a temper, too. and a regiment of soldiers 

 would not have kei)t her from talking just 

 then. I cannot remember what she said, 

 but it was to the effect that the poor uncon- 

 .scious boy (I was but 18) had never had a 

 lock and key on any of his earthly posses- 

 sions in his "life; tliat no such things were 

 needed in the family where he had been 

 brought up. and that any man or woman 

 with two eyes should have known better, af- 

 ter having known him a single hour. 



O. my sister. I thank you for yoiu- fearless, 

 hearty, and able defence of your younger 

 brother: I thank God. too, for the home and 

 early training I had received : but while I 

 stood there shaking, and rattling the door 

 latch which I had raised to show the consta- 

 ble where my small store of wordly effects 

 were — shakiiig the door latch because I be- 

 gan to tremble as it slowly dawned on my 

 understanding that I was suspected of being 

 a thief— I utterly forgot that although I did 

 not steal the watches. I had but a few 

 months before stolen a man's strawberries 

 in the dead of night, as I told you a few 

 months ago. ^ly sister never knew tliis, 

 aiul will not know it until she reads it on 

 these i)ages. or she could not have made the 

 constable apologize and liang his head as lie 

 did, wlien he went through with the form of 

 searcli. It occurs to me now, that my things 

 were in just about such a heap of disorder 

 as those of some other boys, whom I have 

 lately censtu'ed pretty severely. In the af- 

 ternoon, Sam called at the door of our little 

 school house to apologize, and to say that 

 Tom and Jeff were the guilty parties, ami 

 that they had just run off on the cars for To- 

 ledo. 



It is true, that in the house where we sev- 

 en children were brought up. there was nev- 

 er a lock and key. The outside door might 

 have been locked, but, if it was. I never 

 knew about it, and thus came. I susi)ect, my 

 dislike of locks or secrets. There was one 

 drawer in the bureau that contained tlie 

 deed of our little homestead, with other im- 

 portant papers, but even this liad no lock on 

 it, unless, forsooth, the simple name "Pa's 

 drawer'' were a lock, aiul lock enough it al- 

 ways seemed to be. If anything was to be 

 kept sacred from every clilld, it was )»ut in 

 that drawer, and there it .stayed. 



