Nelson Family Juvenilia
Box 1 Folder 9
Chit Chat - n.d.

[cover page]
Chit-Chat

For our good boys
For our good girls

Published by Ethan Allen and William Little
Picnic City Maine Street
Brassington
BC

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Indian Wars
Mr. Allen and Mr. Little owned a large tract of land in the great plains in which the[y] fed their cattle which they sold monthly to the troopers whitch passed quite frequent. 2000 were stationed thare all the year Indians made frequent and hostile [rages?] on the ranch men. And they found it nesserry to be watchfull. I will tell it to you as one of the soldiers told it to me, one day we sighted a body of Indians moveng along the tract of land so William Little mustering a thousand men started out after a long race William came up with the Indians but his horces had gone were pretty well tuckered and after about 300 miles followeling, gave it up for the Indians cleared off their and so William Little went back but some days after the Indians put in their apearence now the whites made it their home on a mountain named Ascutney the only mountain above two feet with in a tract of land five hundred miles long and 300 wide, this mountain was 1000 feet high. And so from this hight, they could with their spy glasses see a good ways. The Indians came along about twenty five miles of Ascutney Fort. So William Little put out 1000 men and heaped them off and a big battle insued in whitch Will had to retreat a little for the Indians had one thousand five hundred but he signneled to Eathan Allen, and the next day, he came up the Indians tried to skip them they whirled of[f] to[w]ards the lake, they chaised the Indians, clear to the shore, and thought then they had caught them but the Indians grabbed sticks and any thing and swam out, horses and all then Eathan Allen put seven hundred of his men to follow and the rest went round the lake They came in just a little a head and then came volley after volley from the whites and the Indians were compelled to give up and were sent back for the Indians liked to get hold of some cattle when crossing, another time we saw Indians crossing the [potent?] William Little as usual put out after a long chase the Indians were headed off Eathan Allen men came up after Wills men thought thy should have to give up, Ethan Allen made a bold dash for the front, and gained it without getting hit then after a big battle. The Indians were drove off the Indians made one more raid but not any more successful than the other so [?] the next year the whole tribe was captured and put in an Indian reservation.
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Tom and the King
Tom was a boy about eleven years of age he lived with his mother in one of the out places of the city and this good mother was striveing to keep her boy at school and pay for her wretched home by takeing in washing. Tom was meerly a picture of forlorn with his jacket and pants all patched, he had not been to school before, and as he came up the road the children all pointed their fingers at him and one very ugly boy shouted holow rag bag, and that was the name he went by all the rest of the time. But the poor fellow tried to sta[n]d it by thinking better times would come some time as his mother had said often did he cry gowing and comeing from school but he never told his troubles to his mother, whoom he thought, had enough trouble without his own day as he was comeing out of the school house a boy pushed him and he ran against another boy the boy whirled around and struck him that nocked him down then they laughed at him one boy sung out holow rag muffin, another said whare did you git that hat while another said why don’t you mend your shoes, when his cheery little mother asked him what made him look so sober, he replied Oh nothing and jumping up went to work bringing in wood but soon thare came a change in affairs at school, A new scholar came one whoom t[h]ey all thought off and he ameadiatly became their king. He was the son of a milonair. He was jolly good natured and kind active and spry. As well as as stout. He was their base ball captain, and also foot ball. He took a fancy to the solom folorn little Tom and told the boys if they called him rag bag again he would give them a thrashing. We don’t know whether he did or not but we will hope he didn’t the second day after his arrival he heard Tom’s pitiful story and Tom went home with twenty five dollars in his pocket the next night all the school boys not including Tom had a little talk now boys said Joe (we will call him King the same the other boys did) I will give five hundred dollars to[w]ards a present for Tom and his mother how much will you boys give. A boy that usually had ten dollars in his pocket to play cards with spoke up I will give seventy dollars that only means a week without spending mutch for Uncle gives me ten dollars every day and I have got twenty five hundred dollars in the bank after all the boys signed the amount was seven hundred dollars
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The morning was clear and bright when Tom jumped out of bead [sic] and said I wish you a merry Christmas mother, I wish you the same said she kissing him. [In] a few minutes thare came a wrap at the door Mrs Newton hurried to the door and thair lay two small gold boxes beautifully chaised one for Mrs Newton and the other for Tom they were quickly opened Toms had 300 dollars and Mrs Newtons 400 dollars I knew said Mrs Newton better times would come yes I knew it. And it has come hasn’t it yess yess my boy it has.
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Now Mrs Newton lives in [100 Maine?] Street, in a verry pretty house and is a dress maker and Tom goes to the grammer school, without any nicknames and times are better for mother and son
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A Visit to Mrs. Hutchensons
Mrs Jackson one day went to call on her new friend who had just arived at Spruce Bluff two days before and was now occuping the next door to Mrs. Jacksons. Mrs. Hutchenson was an Irish woman of about thirty five years a widow she had two children both boys Mrs Jackson took her youngest child about [ten?] they wrapped and a big clomsey stout built woman opened the door, [ho da?] friends how do you do we thought we would make our neighbors a visit shure enough thats kind in yar repeated she take a seat. Mrs Jackson and her child came in and sat down the child found a good book and the women found a good subject to talk about.