How Hieronimus finished his studies, and how | Also some sighs would start, quite ominous

And meanwhile, Mrs. Jobs was making a
pother

In the kitchen about something or other,
And nobody dreaming of any harm,
All on a sudden there rose an alarm;

For a stately rider, booted and spurry,
Came riding up the street in a hurry,
And straight at the house they heard, slam-
bang,

Somebody dismount with a terrible clang.

Like a knell in the family's ears it sounded,
Old Jobs let fall his paper astounded,

And the pipe itself came near to break;
And Mrs. Jobs was too frightened to speak.

But soon from this panic in which they were
taken,

The rider did their senses 'waken,

As, in full traveling costume,

He came at once right into the room.

The old folks apparently neither of them knew him,

But he kept quiet and let them view him, Till at last the old man jumped from his chair

To see his dear Hieronimus there.

I have not the qualifications in any measure,
To sing the exceeding and mighty pleasure

Of the good old Senator at seeing his boy.
He almost went out of his head for joy.

The mother, too, could hardly contain herself,
Nor from kissing his hands and feet restrain
herself,

As soon as she saw that it must needs be
Hieronimus, and none but he.

They almost cried, in the overmeasure
Of their very great and distressing pleasure,
And the Welcome home! and the God be
praised!

Held on till a stranger had been half-crazed.

And Senator Jobs's remaining children
Were also at hand, till it became quite bewil-
derin',

They all of them seemed in a perfect bother,
For not a soul of them knew their brother.

'Twas really exceeding curious

One held him to be a distinguished guest Who had just arrived from the East or West; Another, on account of his sword and dangerous dress and equipment, considered the stranger

As one who bags up children small;
This thought did the youngest particularly
appall.

But very funny was it with Esther,
Our Hieronimus's youngest sister,

For she kept up a continual clack

About her strange uncle from Gengenbach.
In the three years he had spent at college,
His person had quite outgrown their knowl-
edge,

His belly had waxed exceedingly thick

And there was a deal of hair on chin and

cheek.

It was not, therefore, a matter of wonder
That they at first should make such a blunder,
Especially as his student-dress

Made it difficult, who he was, to guess.

A very tall hat with a very tall feather,
Breeches and waistcoat of yellow buck's
leather,

With a short cravat of some gray stuff,
Disguised Hieronimus well enough.

Add to this a mighty great sword, suspended
From his left side, with which he defended
His person from any sudden attack,
Fit alike for a thrust or a thwack.

And then his look, so martial and bloody,
That seemed to threaten death to everybody;

His hair hanging down in great masses too,
And behind, a great pig-tail of a queue.
These and other arrangements I might men-
tion

Soon attracted his father's attention,
For a simple, decorous black dress
Would better have suited his parents, I
guess.

Nor did Hieronimus's general behavior
Recommend him to old father Jobs's favor,
Especially when he Hieronimus heard
Venting curses at every word.

To hear what the children made of Hieroni- He gave him, therefore, to understand clearly

mus;

VOL. IV.-W. H.

That he must alter all this entirely,

16

For surely a young Theologus

Must never be heard to swear or cuss.

That thy style of raiment hitherto
Will for the future hardly do.

When a few moments after he asked for the And first and foremost must thou hasten

coffer,

Hieronimus did the information proffer,

And swore to it most lustily:

It was stolen from the post-wagon, said he.

This disagreeable information
Threw the father into great agitation,

And he would immediately have begun
To scold, but the mother excused her son;

She stepped between Hieronimus and his fa-
ther,

Saying, 'tis surely the misfortune rather

Than any fault of our dear son;

So the old man submitted and was mum.

Meanwhile the neighbors were rapidly learning

The news of Hieronimus's returning,

From house to house the rumor flew

Till it was known the whole town through.

It seemed a weighty public matter,
It kept the streets in a constant clatter,

And at every casual neighborly meeting
"Hieronimus is here," was the very first
greeting.

In universal congratulation,
At Senator Jobs's habitation,

The rest of the remaining day did wag
And nothing more was thought of the bag.

Hieronimus feasted away quite cheery,

That terrible sword from thy side to unfasten
Because a servant of the Lord
Don't never fight except with the word.

Likewise the gray collar and waistcoat of lea-
ther

And breeches and boots must be laid aside altogether,

As also the mighty feather hat,

For no clergyman is allowed to wear that.

For if this rig should be seen by anybody,
They would certainly cry out, "O Luddy!
We've surely got a cuirassier

Instead of our future parson, here."

Know also that a round peruke is fitter
For a clerical head and looks much better,
And a great deal more respectable, too,
Than ropy hair and pig-tail queue!

It is therefore thy father's pleasure
That the tailor should come and take thy mea-
sure,

That he may make thee this very day
A suit of black without delay.

The peruke-maker has also had warning,
To come, if you please, this very morning,
To make thee a wig that thou mayst wear
Over thy frowzy 1 head of hair.

For his journey had made him faint and It will make thee look respectable, very,

weary,

And he smoked till he emptied, as I can vouch,

His daddy's great tobacco pouch.

How Hieronimus now began to be clerical, and how he got a black dress and a peruke, and how he preached for the first time in the pulpit, &c.

The day after that to which we've been refer-
ring,

When all in the house were up and stirring,
And round the breakfast table they sat,
Sipping their coffee in social chat,

The father began to call attention

As follows: Dear Son, it is proper to mention,

But it is also necessary

That thou shouldst leave off swearing to

day

And endeavor to live in a clerical way.
Hieronimus listened, reluctantly rather,
To the rational counsel of his father,

But concluded to fulfil the desire
Of his grave and venerable sire.

Behold him, therefore, ere the day had ex-
pired,

In full black dress and peruke attired,

He was also in a white cravat arrayed
By his mother's manu propriâ made.

1 This word is not frouzy, which has a different meaning. Our word is found only in an old Dictionary in the Jobs family.