Chapter XXV

A FEARFUL RESPONSIBILITY AND OTHER STORIES

BY WILLIAM D. HOWELLS CONTENTS.

A Fearful Responsibility
At the Sign of the Savage
Tonelli's Marriage

THE FLIGHT
OF PONY BAKER
A Boy’s Town Story

By
W.D. HOWELLS

author of

“A BOY’S TOWN”
“CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY” ETC.

ILLUSTRATED
Contents
CHAP. PAGE
I Pony’s Mother, and why he had a Right to run off 3
II The Right that Pony had to run off, from the way his Father acted 15
III Jim Leonard’s Hair-breadth Escape 32
IV The Scrape that Jim Leonard got the Boys into 52
V About running away to the Indian Reservation on a Canal-boat, and how the Plan failed 77
VI How the Indians came to the Boy’s Town and Jim Leonard acted the Coward 89
VII How Frank Baker spent the Fourth at Pawpaw Bottom, and saw the Fourth of July Boy 105
VIII How Pony Baker came pretty near running off with a Circus 141
IX How Pony did not quite get off with the Circus 152
X The Adventures that Pony’s cousin, Frank Baker, had with a Pocketful of Money 165
XI How Jim Leonard planned for Pony Baker to run off on a Raft 192
XII How Jim Leonard backed out, and Pony had to give it up 208
Illustrations

“ALL THE FELLOWS CAME ROUND AND ASKED HIM WHAT HE WAS GOING TO DO NOW” Frontispiece

“BEING DRESSED SO WELL WAS ONE OF THE WORST THINGS THAT WAS DONE TO HIM BY HIS MOTHER”4

“‘I’LL LEARN THAT LIMB TO SLEEP IN A COW-BARN!’” 50

“REAL INDIANS, IN BLANKETS, WITH BOWS AND ARROWS” 90

“VERY SMILING-LOOKING” 124

“HE BEGAN BEING COLD AND STIFF WITH HER THE VERY NEXT MORNING” 144

“FRANK BAKER WAS ONE OF THOSE FELLOWS THAT EVERY MOTHER WOULD FEEL HER BOY WAS SAFE WITH” 166

“‘WHY, YOU AIN’T AFRAID, ARE YOU, PONY?’” 204

THE COAST OF BOHEMIA
By

W. D. Howells
Biographical Edition

1899

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter

I. XXI.
II. XXII.
III. XXIII.
IV. XXIV.
V. XXV.
VI. XXVI.
VII. XXVII.
VIII. XXVIII.
IX. XXIX.
X. XXX.
XI. XXXI.
XII. XXXII.
XIII. XXXIII.
XIV. XXXIV.
XV. XXXV.
XVI. XXXVI.
XVII. XXXVII.
XVIII. XXXVIII.
XIX. XXXIX.
XX.

CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY
AND OTHER STORIES
TOLD FOR CHILDREN
By W. D. Howells
CONTENTS
CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY 3
TURKEYS TURNING THE TABLES 25
THE PONY ENGINE AND THE PACIFIC EXPRESS 51
THE PUMPKIN-GLORY 71
BUTTERFLYFLUTTERBY AND FLUTTERBYBUTTERFLY 111
ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
“Having Bonfires in the Back Yard of the Palace” Frontispiece
“The Old Gobbler ‘First Premium’ said They were Going to Turn the Tables Now” 35
Two Little Pumpkin Seeds 75
Took the First Premium at the County Fair 83
“‘Here's that little fool pumpkin,’ said the farmer” 85
“Caught His Trousers on a Shingle-nail, and Stuck” 93
“‘My sakes! it's comin' to life!’” 103
Tail-piece 107
“‘Fix dusters! Make ready! Aim! Dust!’” 121
“The General-in-Chief used to go behind the Church and Cry” 125
“The Young Khan and Khant entered the Kingdom with a Magnificent Retinue” 131
“She was Going to Take the Case into Her own Hands” 135
“The Imam put His Head to the Floor” 139
“They began to scream, ‘Oh, the cow! the cow!’” 143

BOY LIFE
STORIES AND READINGS SELECTED FROM THE WORKS OF
WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS
AND ARRANGED FOR SUPPLEMENTARY
READING IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS BY
PERCIVAL CHUBB
DIRECTOR OF ENGLISH IN THE
ETHICAL CULTURE SCHOOL, NEW YORK
ILLUSTRATED
CONTENTS
PAGE
Introduction ix
I. Adventures in a Boy's Town
HOW PONY BAKER CAME PRETTY NEAR RUNNING OFF WITH A CIRCUS 3
THE CIRCUS MAGICIAN 13
JIM LEONARD'S HAIR-BREADTH ESCAPE 23
II. Life in a Boy's Town
THE TOWN 41
EARLIEST MEMORIES 45
HOME LIFE 47
THE RIVER 51
SWIMMING 55
SKATING 61
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS 64
GIRLS 68
MOTHERS 69
A BROTHER 73
A FRIEND 79
III. Games and Pastimes
MARBLES 89
RACES 91
A MEAN TRICK 93
TOPS 96
KITES 98
THE BUTLER GUARDS 103
PETS 108
INDIANS 124
GUNS 129
NUTTING 138
THE FIRE-ENGINES 145
IV. Glimpses of the Larger World
THE TRAVELLING CIRCUS 151
PASSING SHOWS 163
THE THEATRE COMES TO TOWN 168
THE WORLD OPENED BY BOOKS 171
V. The Last of a Boy's Town 183
ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
KITE-TIME Frontispiece
HE BEGAN BEING COLD AND STIFF WITH HER THE VERY NEXT MORNING 5
THE FIRST LOCK 43
THE BUTLER GUARDS 105
ALL AT ONCE THERE THE INDIANS WERE 127
NUTTING 141

A LIKELY STORY

Farce

BY
W. D. HOWELLS

ILLUSTRATED
CONTENTS
Page
MR. AND MRS. WILLIS CAMPBELL 7
MR. WELLING; MR. CAMPBELL 29
MRS. CAMPBELL; MR. WELLING; MR. CAMPBELL 34
JANE; MRS. CAMPBELL; WELLING; CAMPBELL 39
MRS. CAMPBELL; WELLING; CAMPBELL 41
JANE; MRS. CAMPBELL; WELLING; CAMPBELL 43
MRS. CAMPBELL; WELLING; CAMPBELL 44
MISS RICE, MISS GREENWAY, and the OTHERS 48
MISS GREENWAY; MR. WELLING 50
MISS RICE; then MR. and MRS. CAMPBELL, and the OTHERS 53
ILLUSTRATIONS
"THE MOST EXCITING PART OF IT" Frontispiece
MR. WELLING EXPLAINS Facing page 52

A BOY'S TOWN
DESCRIBED FOR "HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE"
BY
W. D. HOWELLS
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER PAGE
I. Earliest Experiences 1
II. Home and Kindred 10
III. The River 24
IV. The Canal and its Basin 36
V. The Hydraulic and its Reservoirs.—Old River 45
VI. Schools and Teachers 53
VII. Manners and Customs 67
VIII. Plays and Pastimes 80
IX. Circuses and Shows 93
X. Highdays and Holidays 110
XI. Musters and Elections 121
XII. Pets 133
XIII. Guns and Gunning 148
XIV. Foraging 161
XV. My Boy 171
XVI. Other Boys 183
XVII. Fantasies and Superstitions 197
XVIII. The Nature of Boys 205
XIX. The Town Itself 215
XX. Traits and Characters 228
XXI. Last Days 237
ILLUSTRATIONS.
"ONE DAY HE CAME UP TO MY BOY WHERE HE SAT FISHING"
Frontispiece.
THE "FIRST LOCK"
Facing p. 2
"THE PASSENGER IS A ONE-LEGGED MAN"
" 8
"RUN, RUN! THE CONSTABLE WILL CATCH YOU!"
" 18
"HE TOLD THEM THAT HE HAD GOT THEM NOW"
" 44
"THAT HONOR WAS RESERVED FOR MEN OF THE KIND I HAVE MENTIONED"
" 50
"A CITIZEN'S CHARACTER FOR CLEVERNESS OR MEANNESS WAS FIXED BY HIS WALKING ROUND OR OVER THE RINGS"
" 82
KITE TIME
" 92
"THE BOYS BEGAN TO CELEBRATE IT WITH GUNS AND PISTOLS"
" 110
THE "BUTLER GUARDS"
" 122
"ALL AT ONCE THERE THE INDIANS WERE"
" 150
FORAGING
" 168
"THE BEACON OF DEATH "
" 180
"HE ALWAYS RAN BY THE PLACE AS FAST AS HE COULD"
" 198
"THE ARTIST SEEMED SATISFIED HIMSELF"
" 220
"MY BOY REMEMBERS COMING FROM CINCINNATI IN THE STAGE"
" 224

IMAGINARY INTERVIEWS
BY
W.D. HOWELLS
1910
CONTENTS
IMAGINARY INTERVIEWS
The Restoration of the Easy Chair by Way of Introduction
A Year of Spring and a Life of Youth
Sclerosis of the Tastes
The Practices and Precepts of Vaudeville
Intimations of Italian Opera
The Superiority of Our Inferiors
Unimportance of Women in Republics
Having Just Got Home
New York To the Home-comer's Eye
Cheapness of the Costliest City on Earth
Ways and Means of Living in New York
The Quality of Boston and the Quantity of New York
The Whirl of Life in Our First Circles
The Magazine Muse
Comparative Luxuries of Travel
Qualities Without Defects
A Wasted Opportunity
A Niece's Literary Advice To Her Uncle
A Search for Celebrity
Practical Immortality on Earth
Around a Rainy-day Fire
The Advantages of Quotational Criticism
Reading for a Grandfather
Some Moments With the Muse
A Normal Hero and Heroine Out of Work
OTHER ESSAYS
Autumn in the Country and City
Personal and Epistolary Addresses
Dressing for Hotel Dinner
The Counsel of Literary Age to Literary Youth
The Unsatisfactoriness of Unfriendly Criticism
The Fickleness of Age
The Renewal of Inspiration
The Summer Sojourn of Florindo and Lindora
To Have the Honor of Meeting
A Day at Bronx Park
ILLUSTRATIONS

AT THE OPERA

FIFTH AVENUE AT THIRTY-FOURTH STREET

FIFTH AVENUE FROM THE TOP OF A MOTOR-BUS

CHARLES EMBANKMENT, BELOW HARVARD BRIDGE

THE MALL, CENTRAL PARK

BROADWAY AT NIGHT

ELECTION-NIGHT CROWDS

ZOÖLOGICAL GARDENS, BRONX PARK

THE DAUGHTER OF THE STORAGE
WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS
THE DAUGHTER
OF THE STORAGE
AND OTHER THINGS
IN PROSE AND VERSE

W. D. HOWELLS

HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS
NEW YORK AND LONDON
CONTENTS
PAGE
I The Daughter of the Storage 3
II A Presentiment 45
III Captain Dunlevy's Last Trip 67
IV The Return to Favor 81
V Somebody's Mother 93
VI The Face at the Window 107
VII An Experience 117
VIII The Boarders 127
IX Breakfast Is My Best Meal 141
X The Mother-Bird 151
XI The Amigo 161
XII Black Cross Farm 173
XIII The Critical Bookstore 185
XIV A Feast of Reason 227
XV City and Country in the Fall 243
XVI Table Talk 253
XVII The Escapade of a Grandfather 269
XVIII Self-Sacrifice: A Farce-tragedy 285
XIX The Night before Christmas 319

THE QUALITY OF MERCY
A NOVEL
BY W. D. HOWELLS
1892
CONTENTS

PART FIRST.

I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.
XII.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
XVI.
XVII.
XVIII.
XIX.
XX.
XXI.
XXII.
XXIII.
XXIV.

PART SECOND.

I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.
XII.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
XVI.
XVII.
XVIII.
XIX.
XX.
XXI.

PART THIRD.

I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.

BY WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS.
BY CHARLES DUDLEY WARNER.
BY CONSTANCE F. WOOLSON.
BY MARY E. WILKINS.
BY LEW. WALLACE

A COUNTERFEIT
PRESENTMENT

AND
THE PARLOUR CAR

BY

WILLIAM D. HOWELLS
CONTENTS
PAGE
I. An Extraordinary Resemblance, 7
II. Distinctions and Differences, 61
III. Dissolving Views, 99
IV. Not at All Like, 141

THE PARLOUR CAR, a Farce, 191

YEARS OF MY YOUTH

BY
W. D. HOWELLS

WITH INTRODUCTION AND ILLUSTRATIONS
FROM PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN EXPRESSLY
FOR THIS BOOK BY CLIFTON JOHNSON

(In certain versions of this etext, in certain browsers, clicking on this symbol will bring up a larger version of the illustration.)
Preface by the Illustrator
Illustrations
Chapters: I, II, III, IV.

Some typographical errors have been corrected; a list follows the text. (etext transcriber's note)
ILLUSTRATIONS

The waterside at Martin's Ferry

Frontispiece

The Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia

Facing p. 10

Hamilton, Ohio, the "Boy's Town" of Mr. Howells's youth

" 16

The Miami Canal at Hamilton

" 22

The now abandoned canal at Dayton as it appears on the borders of the city

" 40

The Little Miami River at Eureka Mills, twelve miles east of Dayton

" 44

Overlooking the island which the Howells family cultivated

" 54

The vicinity where Mr. Howells lived his "Year in a Log Cabin"

" 60

One of the last log houses to survive in the vicinity of Jefferson

" 82

The four-story office erected by Mr. Howells's father

" 116

The Ohio State House at Columbus viewed from High Street

" 138

The State House yard on the State Street side

" 158

Old-time dwellings on one of the Columbus streets that Mr. Howells used to frequent

" 170

The Medical College at Columbus

" 184

The quaint doorway of the Medical College through which Mr. Howells passed daily while he roomed in the building

" 224

Looking into the State House grounds toward the broad flight of steps before the west front of the building

" 236

MRS. FARRELL

A NOVEL BY

WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS

With an Introduction by
Mildred Howells

Chapter I II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII, XIV, XV.

MY YEAR IN A LOG CABIN

BY
W. D. HOWELLS
A BIT OF AUTOBIOGRAPHY

ILLUSTRATED
I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII.

THE RISE OF SILAS LAPHAM

by
William Dean Howells

CONTENTS