On Bad Handwriting

One of the most important things for joys or girls to learn to do is to write plainly, so that tlKse who have to read what they write ,re left in no doubt as to their meaning. Several amusing stories of the erabarrassment which has lollowed not learning to write legibly are told. One of these Is of a Massa:husetts clergyman who nearly got himeelf into a peck of troutle because of the bad quality of his handwriting. It was more than a century ago that this clergyman had .occasion to address a letter to the general court of Massachusetts upon some subject of great interest at that time. When the letter was received the court ordered the clerk to read it, and was filled with wrath it what to be these words in Dpening: "I address you not as magistraten, out as Indian devils." "What!" they cried. "Read that over again. How does he address us?" "Not as magistrates, but as Indian devils," repeated the clerk. "That's wJiat he says." The letter was passed around, and the ludges were by no means pleased to see that the clerk had apparently made no mistake. Very angry at what they be(ieved to be an insult, the judges passed i vote of censure upon the clergyman, md wrote to him demanding an ipology. He carne before them in person, when it turned out that where the ludges had read Indian devils he had written individuals - which, of course, made an apology unnecessary; but the reverend gentleman was admonished to improve his handwriting if he wished to keep mt ni trouble.