around the house fur
a spell, and Elmira is working purty hard, and I thinks to myself:

"Well, these folks has kind o' brung you up, and you ain't never done
more'n Hank made you do. Mebby you orter stick to work a little more
when they's a job in the shop, even if Hank don't."

Which I tried it fur about two or three years, doing as much work around
the shop as Hank done and mebby more. But it wasn't no use. One day
when I'm about eighteen, I seen awful plain I'll have to light out from
there. They was a circus come to town that day. I says to Hank:

"Hank, they is a circus this afternoon and agin to-night."

"So I has hearn," says Hank.

"Are you going to it?" says I.

"I mout," says Hank, "and then agin I moutn't. I don't see as it's no
consarns of yourn, nohow." I knowed he was going, though. Hank, he never
missed a circus.

"Well," I says, "they wasn't no harm to ast, was they?"

"Well, you've asted, ain't you?" says Hank.

"Well, then," says I, "I'd like to go to that there circus myself."

"They ain't no use in me saying fur you not to go," says Hank, "fur you
would go anyhow. You always does go off when you is needed."

"But I ain't got no money," I says, "and I was going to ast you could
you spare me half a dollar?"

"Great Jehosephat!" says Hank, "but ain't you getting stuck up! What's
the matter of you crawling in under the tent like you always done? First
thing I know you'll be wanting a pair of these here yaller shoes and a
stove-pipe hat."

"No," says I, "I ain't no dude, Hank, and you know it. But they is
always things about a circus to spend money on besides jest the circus
herself. They is the side show, fur instance, and they is the grand
concert afterward. I calkelated I'd take 'em all in this year--the hull
dern thing, jest fur oncet."

Hank, he looks at me like I'd asted fur a house 'n' lot, or a million
dollars, or something like that. But he don't say nothing. He jest
snorts.

"Hank," I says, "I been doing right smart work around the shop fur two,
three years now. If you wasn't loafing so much you'd a noticed it more.
And I ain't never ast fur a cent of pay fur it, nor--"

"You ain't wuth no pay," says Hank. "You ain't wuth nothing but to eat
vittles and wear out clothes."

"Well," I says, "I figger I earn my vittles and a good 'eal more. And as
fur as clothes goes, I never had none but what Elmira made out'n yourn."

"Who brung you up?" asts Hank.

"You done it," says I,