Page:Samantha on Children's Rights.djvu/143

 Bowery Boy" and the "Beatious Ballet Girl," which she pronounced "beauchieus ballet."

If she had a spark of talent I should have approved of her ambition, but she couldn't sing no more than a horse can make fried cakes. And I told Tamer that if her Ma had gin the cow music lessons and mortgaged Arabeller to pay for them, she would have got better returns for her money, though who would take the mortgage wuz more than I knew, unless it was Cicero.

Well, as I told Tamer Ann, I couldn't have such a girl in my house overnight, bold, boastin', insolent, lyin', nasty inside and outside, leerin', brazen, and altogether worthless. But Tamer said she got her real cheap, and she thought by havin' her instead of a better girl she could save money enough to git a new sealskin cloak and a bracelet out of the hosuehold money, so she hired her for a song almost.

"Not one of her songs, I hope," sez I.

"No," Tamer said, she said it in a parable way. Well, as nigh as I could make out from what I see myself and from what I hearn, Cicero thought it would be kinder manly and like one of his Bandit Heroes to fall in love with her, and pay her attentions, not in the good open hullsome way of comrades and playmates, in her few hours of leisure, but in the dime novel, pirate way, brigand and burglar, romantick, sentimental way.

There wuz a cave in the woods back of Hamenses, and he used to retire there quite a good deal. And he tried time and agin to run away with her. She wuzn't likely, so Tamer said, and she knew she would have to watch her when she hired her, but she said she thought she could, with her family's help. She seemed to specially