216 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[J L’LY, 
These tired children are enjoying such sweet, sound 
sleep as only good health and innocence can give. They 
are so quiet that tile timid rabbit is not afraid to take a 
near peep at them, and the little bird feels secure as lie 
hops about close to their feet. It is certain that they love 
each other; notice how trustingly the girl lias laid her 
head near her brother, and how affectionately his hand 
rests upon her arm. Their scanty and tattered clothing 
shows them to be poor. Perhaps they have wandered 
away from the city to enjoy the green fields and shady 
woods—though we can hardly suppose that; they are 
too plump and ruddy for poor city children. Often as 
we meet the thin, pale, little girls.and boys that wander 
about the streets of New-York, we wish that they might 
be sent where fresh air and wholesome food vvould 
bring the roses to their cheeks, and happiness to their 
hearts. Probably the children in the picture belong to 
some laboring man, who leaves them to take care of 
each oilier while he is at his work. They have a better, 
chance for happiness than thousands whose parents are 
•icli enough to keep them close at home with servants to 
wait on them, and prevent them from doing any tiling 
for themselves. The picture suggests a thought that may 
be of use to you during the warm weather now coming 
on. Be cautious about playing hard in the hot sunshine. 
Many diseases may result from becoming overheated by 
violent exercise. Seek the sitade of the woods for your 
sports, or if you live on the open prairie, keep near the 
buildings which may afford protection from the sun. 
Above all let your life be so innocent that your sleep may 
be as quiet and refreshing as that shown in this picture. 
Tlac Boys <>$' New Tori* City.... BA. 
THE SHOEBLACKS. 
This class of boys, like the newsboys described in the 
last Agriculturist, meet one at all public places. If a 
man lias not carefully polished his boots before venturing 
info the street, and has not also been careful to keep 
them unsoiled in his walk down town, he will very soon 
be reminded of it. “ Black yer boots.” “ Shine ’em up 
sir.” will be sounded in his ears at almost every cornea. 
The little fellows have a peculiar way of saying it, that 
sounds very much like “ What a shame to be seen walk¬ 
ing the street.? with such untidy shoe leather,” or “how 
much better you would look if your bools were only 
bright;” usually they point down to your feet, and thus 
nail.your own attention and that of the bystanders to the 
need of their services. Although this may sometimes be 
rather vexing yet it is on the whole not a useless annoy¬ 
ance. Without doubt many a man is led to be more care- 
'ul of his per'onal appearance, and neater in his habits, 
ftom these f> ,iy hints. Indeed the writer knows of more 
titan one ir.s xnce where the shoes are polished at home 
every m'.rxlng to escape the pertinacity of the shoe¬ 
blacks. o bese boys are like the newsboys, orphans, or 
sons of poor parents, obliged to pick up their own living. 
This makes them enterprising and sharp, and they soon 
learn considerable of human nature. A friend of the 
writer crossing the City Park recently, was accosted by 
one of them with “Black yer boots Captain,” when anoth¬ 
er put in, “ Let me shir.c ’em up Major," thus giving very 
rapid promotion to his hoped-for customer, and endeav¬ 
oring to secure his patronage by an appeal to his vanity. 
One of them not long ago, thus brought a troublesome 
customer to terms. Ilis charge was five cents, but the 
penurious man would offer only three. , The boy under¬ 
took the job, and soon had one boot shiniug like a mirror, 
when he deliberately picked up his brushes and started 
to leave. “ Hold on here, you haven’t finished,” said the 
man. “ Oh, never mind,” was the reply, “ I can do better 
round the corner; I won’t charge you anything for the 
one bool.” The bystanders burst into a laugh at the queer 
fix of the man, the other boot being wofully dingy, and 
he was soon glad to give the boy ten cents to complete 
the job. The shoe¬ 
blacks manage to 
pick up enough to 
feed and half clothe 
them ; perhaps they 
might do more if they 
were prudent, but 
like most boys wild 
receive a street edu¬ 
cation, most of them 
soon learn vices 
which take all their 
earnings, and keep 
them degraded. Sure¬ 
ly the Agriculturist 
boys would not like 
to change places with 
this class. On the 
contrary, hundreds of 
these boys would 
think themselves hap¬ 
py beyond expres¬ 
sion, could they be 
transported to the 
country, to live in 
such homes as you 
enjoy. No special! 
effort has been made here in their behalf. In London 
they have been formed into a society, called' the Shoe¬ 
black Brigade, in which they are encouraged by rewards 
and other stimulants at first, to industry and good habits. 
A Wallc in tlie Country. 
What would some of our city boys and girls say to this 
style of taking a walk ? Here they must have stone 
pavements laid smoothly and swept every day, for fear 
of soiling their shoes. They know little of the pleasure 
of a ramble in the fields over the green sward, or of the 
fun of wading the brooks when no bridge is convenient. 
The writer was once greatly amused at the sad dilemma 
of a little boy whose parents took him to spend a few 
weeks in the country. Shortly after they arrived, the 
child was heard crying by the side of the road. On being 
asked what was the matter, the little fellow sobbed out, 
“ I can’t find the sidewalk.” Another one, who had nev¬ 
er before seen a hill, walked with some difficulty to the 
top of a rather steep knoll near the house, and when 
about to descend, turned around and made his way down 
>n his hands and knees, as he had been accustomed to 
-r»wl down stairs. Girls and boys in the city are often 
amused by the ways of their country cousins, when they 
visit town, but the latter find as much to laugh about in 
the ignorance of their town friends about farm matters. 
A gentleman from the city while traveling in Vermont 
asked a farmer how lie thought he would act among the 
strange sights of New-York. “Why,” replied tire farmer, 
“I suppose I should g-out round, just as you do up here.” 
Some of our young friends who visit their relatives in 
the country this summer, may do well to remember this 
sensible and witty reply, when templed to laugh at them. 
The Soldier Boy’s l>ream. 
The following anecdote is related in the “ Spirit of the 
Fair,” of a German boy who was confined in one of the 
hospitals, from the effects of a wound received at the 
taking of Fort Pulaski. lie said to his attendant, “I 
was walking alone in a great city, and came to a bridge 
over a deep river. As 1 crossed the bridge, it broke sud¬ 
denly and 1 fell into the water and was sinking. Then 
you came to me and drew me out, and carried me to land, 
and I was all wet, and you were all wet, and you took, 
me home to your oti.-n house, and gave me a whole new 
suit of clothes, dry and warm. Then I was going away, 
but you brought me into your garden and told me to pick 
any flower I liked. So I went to take a rose, and as I 
was picking it I died ; but you called aloud to me not to 
drop the rose but to take it with me and plant it in lleav 
-en for you. So I went to heaven and planted the flower, 
and it grew and blossomed, and then I sent you down 
word that the rose was blooming, and you died, and 
came up and found it there, blooming for yon. And v\e 
were together in Heaven. It was such a pleasant dream, 
and I am so happy to-day!” 
A Tallied Retie. 
Among the relics exhibited at the Metropolitan Sani¬ 
tary Fair recently held in this City, was a torn dollar 
bill, which had this touching story. A clergyman called 
upon his congregation to contribute to the Sanitary 
Commission, and met a liberal response. The next 
day a woman who depends upon her daily work for her 
own support and that of her children, brought him a dol¬ 
lar bill to be added as her mite to the collection. Her 
pastor declined to take it, telling iter she ought not to 
give so much ; but the woman insisted, adding, “ We’ve 
had it in the house many weeks ; we can not spend it.” 
Seeing that the bill was much torn, and supposing that 
she had found difficulty in passing it, her pastor said, 
“ Oh, I’ll give you a good bill for it.”—“ No, that’s not It 
It was in brother Sam’s pocket when he was wounded 
He’s dead now, and we have his torn pocket-book; and 
mother said (the mother is a widow, and he was her only 
son), we wall give that dollar to the Sanitary Commis 
sion; we can not spend it.” The pastor redeemed tin 
bill for $2,00, and now sent it to be disposed of at th» 
Fair. Fifty dollars were at first offered for it, but 
this gift of two widows, of a ball-marked relic of theii 
son and brother, yielded to the soldier’s treasury double 
that sum, being purchased by Mrs. Astor. 
A noble Answer.— At a slave market In one of the 
southern States a smart, active colored boy was put up for 
sale. A kind master, who pitied his condition, not wishing 
him to have a cruel owner, went up to him and said: “ If I 
buy you, will you be honest ?” The boy, with a look that 
baffled description, replied, “ I will be honest, whether 
you buy me or not.”—Was not this a noble reply! 
