Montour American., May 27, 1909, Image 3

■!' 'l* 'I 1 't' ■WT'T'H
1 The Town Fool, j
T By M. QUAD. 112
2 [Copyrtsrfct, 1908, by T. C. McClure.] J
It was a brutal way of putting it,
but everybody in the town of Graham
had come to speak of Jimmy I,andon
as the town fool. It was said that the
boy had beeu born bright enough, but
at the age of five a stroke of lightning
had worked the change in him. lie lost
the jiower of speech, and his mind
was weakened, and after the death of
his widowed norther he was an inmate
uf the poorhouse for two or three
years. Then be became a hanger-on
of the town, having no particular
bome. but lieing cared for as an ob
ject of charity. Not quite that either.
He was always willtng to do any work
he could to pay his way. He could
hear if he could not talk. and. though
he seemed to have no more mind than
a child of three, lie got along very
well. Two things the boys of the
town came to learn in time—Jimmy
had a streak of cuiinin,, - in him, and
he was revengeful.
Jimmy Landon was thirteen years
old and had been looked upon as the
town fool for several years when a
sort of event happened In the quiet
community. A stranger, who called
himself Colonel Rllfs and who was so
crippled up with wounds that he had
to use a pair of crutches, arrived in
town and delivered a series of lectures
on war. It came to be understood
that be had been the colonel of a gal
lant Illinois regiment and that owing
to his wounds and other misfortunes
he was in bad financial shape. He did
fairly well with hI.T lectures, and he
made many friends, and when he pro
posed to open a singing and writing
school he received much encourage
ment Hp eonld sing, and he wrote a
beautiful hand.
The colonel took up his quarters at
one of the two inns in tbe town, where
be had the use of the hall used for
HAD lIEKN CAUOHT IIY A X,E3 IN A BEAK
TRAP.
dancing. He could have had the bet,:
room in the house, but be did not want j
St. He wanted one with a back 1.
stead of a front view. Just beneat i
bis windows was the roof of the kltci
en, and below that was the roof of
shtid. From thence it was a drop <>
only six feet to the alley in the rear i
tbe hotel. These things were not taken J
notice of by outsiders until later ou. j
The town fool took a liking to Colonel
Bliss at once. He was drawn toward j
taim by his crippled condition. The
iad had never seen anything like it in
bis life. The colonel could manage to
cet up and down stairs, but no more.
If he left tile hotel it had lie be In a
■carriage. Jimmy I.andon started out
to attach himself to the stranger as a
body servant, but his unusual curiosity
brought about bis downfall. He had
served for two weeks when the colo
nel found bim rummaging his trunk
and sent him to the right about. Not
only that, but he whacked him over)
the back with one of his crutches. J
Those whacks destroyed the boy's 11 ■
luslons. The colonel was no longer a j
god to him. Jimmy had reasoned it ■
out in his silly mind tlmt the trunk j
was a partnership concern and thnt he i
had a perfect right to examine its;
contents, and to lie whacked for doing j
it and then to be driven away in dis-;
grace aroused a thirst for revenge.
The schools had just got 112 lirly sti'.r'-
ed when more events came alon/.
One night the postoffice was molted <.l
cash and stamps to the value of S2O: \
It was a widow who held the office,
and everybody felt sorry 112. r her. It
was decided that the trick had been
done by two men who were seen loaf
ing about the streets at a late' hour
that night, and the sheriff failed to g>■;
any clew. The colonel hoard of the
robbery, of ourse, and seemed to t;ike
a deep Interest in It. In fact, his ad
vice was taken by the sheriff In seek
ing to solve the affair. Only ten days
later the leading dry goods store was
entered at night and S7O in cash tak- 1
en. As no goods were taken, the sheriff
reasoned that some one In the town
was the robber, but the colonel dlf- j
fered with him. In his opinion an or- j
tranized gang was at work and the'
fellows had been frightened away be- j
fore they could begin loading up their
wagon.
During the ue.it week there was,
nothing doing. Then a farmer who
had sold a lot of cattle and had the !
money in his house was neatly robbed !
of every dollar of it. He and his wife I
were sleeping in a bedroom off the !
sitting room, and the robber had ef. i
fected entrance by using a ladder and i
a second story window. The sum tak
en was S3OO, and now the sheriff and
his deputies began to move lively. By
the advice of Colonel Bliss, who hint
ed that he might add a detective agen
cy tn his schools, certain highways
wero watched at night. Nothing came
of that, but the postoffice in a village
ln_a_ contrary direction was robbed of !
STBfT worfli ~t cash and stamps,
i The town fool could hear, and he
heard all about the robberies. He
couldn't grasp the particulars the way
other folks did, but he absorbed
enough of them to make him net
queerly. lie went about with a grin
on liis face, and wher. spoken to about
the robin-ties he put on the most know
leg look his face had ever worn. The
sheriff bought the lad 10 cents' worth
of candy and tried for an hour to pet
something out of him, but Jimmy sim
j ply munched the sweets and grinned.
If he had anything up his sleeve he
wasn't going to bring It to light just
then. The robbery of the farmer was
still being talked of when a hardware
store in the town was entered and
robbed. In addition to $25 in cash,
the robber bundled up $".200 worth of
the choicest cutlery. There was no
clew nntil Colonel Bliss furnished one.
He directed suspicion toward the town
fool. Jimmy I.andon was brought to
the hotel by the sheriff, and the colo
nel and others set ail sorts of traps
for hlui, but were no wiser ::t the end
of three honrs. The boy would grin
and giggle and lie down on the floor
and laugh, but no one else could see
where the Joke earns In—if there was
a joke.
For two weeks after the robbery of
the hardware store there was nothing
doing. The colonel held to It that the
boy, fool though he was, had become
frightened. Then the grand climax
came, and if was a hair raiser. There
was a private bank i:i town, and the
owner had < uietly put on a watchman,
one night this wat linmn heaul sue
i picious sounds at the back door and
[ raised an alarm and beard some one
running away. Fifteen minutes later
there was tito nwfulest kind of a row
in the rear of the hotel. None of thos"
who rushed out were prepared for the
slglits that greeted them. Colonel
Bliss, without his crutches, had been
caught by a leg in a bear trap, the
town fool was rolling on the ground
in laughter, a man's trail over the
roofs could lie traced In the thin snow,
and there were tracks leading from the
trap back to the bank. Jimmy I.nndon
had suspected th? man that whacked
lliru with ;; crutch and set a trap for
and caught him. There was no getting
out cif It for the colonel. First, it
was shown that he was no more a
cripple than auy one else. and. sec
ond. the plunder of his various rob
berles was right there In hi.-', trunk.
! He simply stood on bis dignity and
went to prison for ten years, and the
town fool is still today welcome to
make his home with any family in the
community. The doctors say that his
mind will never be any brighter, and
other folks say there Is no need for It
to be
Hi* Wonderful Method.
"You haren't been married very
long, have you?" said a guide at the
ntate capital to a young man who was
siguing "Mr. and Mrs." in the register
for visitors at the desk at the en
trance.
"How did you know?" demanded the
young man.
"Oh, we get used to such people here
and can tell them every time," was
| the response. "You haven't written
that name with "Mrs." very long, havu
you? I believe I can tell how long you
have been married fri'tn the signa
ture," the guide continued.
"Well, we haven't been married very
long, but I don't see how you can tell
from the signature. How long has it
been?"
"Well, let me see." The guide picked
up the book and scanned the name
closely.
"Toil have been married five days
today," he said with an air of cer
tainty.
"That's right. It's five days, but 1
don't see how you can tell."
The young wife had been sitting on
the marble bench during the colloquy,
and not until the couple went out of
the building did she tell "hubby" that
the guide had accosted iter in the same
way and that she had told when they
had beeu married.—St. I'aul Pioneer
Press.
Bavarian Distances.
In the Bavarian highlands signpost?
along the roads, instead of stating the
number of miles or kilome'ers tn the
vnrlous villages, give th amonnt of
time which the average p testriau will
supposedly take to tra> rse the dis
tance. This is merely a official ex
pression of the very general custom «>f
the peasants in the region, who invari
ably tell inquirers on the roads not
how far it is to a place, but how long
It takes to get there. Not only that,
but they make the system still more
unsatisfactory to the stranger by a lit
fie additional eccentricity of their own.
For Instance, one asks, "How far Is
it to Obexammerg.au?"
"A small half hour," will be the an
swer, or perhaps "A good half hour"
or "A big half hour."
Which is puzzling until the stranger
learns that a "small half hour" means
twenty-five minutes, "a good half
hour" thirty minutes, "a big half hour"
thirty-five minutes, "a small three
quarters of an hour" forty minutes,
and so on.
His Advice.
A young genius named McCarthy
went to Commodore Vanderbilt and
gave him a suggestion which led the
commod' !-> to organize all the little
railroads between New York and Chi
cago Into one. Before McCarthy went
to Vanderbilt he went to a friend for 1
advice. Here is what his friend told
him about the commodore:
"Don't let him scare ye. He's as
full of power as a turbine. Has r
good deal o* whir in him. Likes re
slstance; so does every great force.
He's fought a thousand difficulties.
He'll take you for another an' pitch
into ye, like as not. Don't let him
scare ye. If he jumps on ye, jump on
him. He'll enjoy it an' begin tori
spect ye. It's like puttln' a belt on
the turbine—you'll take off a bit of his
power and ease him down."—Denver i
News.
Rubber ac Health Guard.
With the approval of Secretary of
the Treasury MacVeagh and of Di
rector Ilaiph of the bureau of engrav
ing and printing the women of the j
bureau will be furnished with rubber
aprons, while their shoes will be fitted
with rubber heels. This is the result
of the inspection of the bureau by a
committee of women representing the
National CPy Federation of Women,
who recently recommended the changes
In dress.
SIMM Hi; TO MJRS.
Flammarion Considers Picker
ing's Plan Feasible.
APPROVES OF GIANT MIRRORS
French Astronomer, However, Sug
gests Use of Electric Light Reflectors \
at Night—Says Martians May Have
Tried to Speak to Earth's Inhabitants
Ages Ago.
Professor W. H. Pickering's plan of j
signaling Mars by a series of gigantic
mirrors was submitted to M. Camilla ;
Flammarion. The proposition has the
full approval of the eminent French
astronomer, who said:
"The project certainly is quite feasl- j
bio. Signaling with light reflectors, of i
course. Is the only practical method of |
attempting to communicate with other j
worlds, and Professor Pickering has
very wisely suggested July as the best
time for making the experiment, be
cause, although Mars will be nearest |
to the earth in September, the two
planets at that epoch are in apposition
so obviously that it would he impossi- i
ble to reflect the sun's rays from the
latter to the former.
"In July, however, while only U0.000,.
000 kilometers, roughly, will separate j
the two worlds, they will be so placed
that if lines were drawn from one to '
the other and from each to the suu
they would form a triangle and sig
naling would become theoretically a
very simple affair.
"Naturally the practical details of
the scheme present difficulties of exe
cution. but none should be insurmount
able, especially If the $10,000,000 pro
posed by Professor Pickering be placed
at bis disposal. This is not the first ;
time the plan of communicating with j
Mars by means of mirrors has been
evolved. Forty years ago M. Charles
Gros, a friend of mine, made the sug- 1
gestlon, which aroused a great deal of
discussion in scientific circles.
"Other savants from time to time
have studied the possibilities of such a
scheme, lust personally 1 think a still 1
better way of putting a system of
mighty reflectors in practice would bo j
by electric light reflectors at night, ns
the luminous projections thus thrown
from the dark surface of the earth j
would be seen much more easily than
a reflected light intense enough in It- j
self, but neutralized to a certain extent
by the bright surface of the' sunlit
earth.
"In either case the signals could cer
tainly be seen by the Martians, pro
% ided they possess instruments and
other means of perception equivalent
to our telescopes. The experiment
might be made In any part of the
world. Supposing the signals were
seen and answered, the rest would be
easy.
"First primitive calls exchanged
would be juKt the interplanetary tele
graphic 'Are you there?' Once commu
nication is established the invention
of a code of thought transmission and ,
intelligible for both worlds would be a
comparatively easy matter.
"The fact Is there is no doubt that |
the Martians, if they exist, have al- j
ready attempted to get into communi- j
cation with our planet It must not be :
forgotten that the telescope was un
known 300 years ago. and only within
the Inst hundred years have astrono
mers studied Mars seriously, so it may
be that, unpercelved by the Inhabit- ;
ants of the earth. Mars signaled to us .
thousands of years ago and, obtaining {
no response, abandoned the efforts,
concluding that our planet was unin
habited.
"The luminous phenomena observed '
recently on the surface of Mars were :
not signals; they are satisfactorily ex
plained by natural causes.
"I should add tlmt the signaling sug- j
gestrd by Professor Pickering need not j
be discontinued even if no immediate j
results be obtained. But a period of !
fifteen years must elapse before Mars ;
comes so near the earth as in Septem- '
ber. It will come near enough every
two years for light reflectors covering
an area of a quarter of a mile to be j
visible to the sister planet." Paris;
Cor. New York Herald.
Cobless Corn Experiment.
E. P. House of Greeley, Colo., the j
dry farm plant experimenter, has re
ceived from H. J. Sconce of Sitlell, j
111., oue seed of cobless corn grown j
by the Illinois man. House asked for j
three seeds to plant in a hill, but only
one could be spared, and it will be j
carefully tended. The cobless corn s
grown by the Illinois man resembles >
very closely the "primitive husk" corn. \
Each kernel grows on a parent stem, i
and ea>'h kernel is Inclosed in its own !
husk, all being enveloped in one large ;
husk. The Illinois man has succeeded j
In eliminating the stem and by taking
the very tiptop kernel of the present j
variety expects ultimately to evolve a j
perfect cobless corn. The Illinois Agri
cultural college is fostering the experi !
ment and believes In Its success.
New Way to Forecast Weather.
To test the water of I.ake Michigan
and thereby get the information tieces- j
sar.v to forecast the weather Is the {
plan of Major 11. B. Hersey. the j
weather bureau inspector at Milwau
kee. He says that to obtain the neces
sary data will be a work which will
require nt least three years' experi
ment. and then there will lie every
reason to expect successful long dis
tance forecasts can be made. He says
there Is no doubt thsit the water of the
lake controls the temperature of Mil
waukee, and the proposition is to as
certain the temperature of the water
at the surf,ice and (it twenty-five and
fifty feet below It under varying con
ditions for three successive seasons.
German Prizes For Operas.
Publisher Curt of Berlin, Germany,
offers two prizes of $2,500 and two \
consolation prizes of SSOO for the best
operas and librettos, which must bo in !
German and sent in by May 15, 1010. j
The winning works will be performed ! :
at the Municipal theater, Hamburg.
Highly Flattered.
"Your glasses," she said, "have made ' .
a great difference in your appearance." ' '
"Do you thiuk so?"" he asked. j \
es. \ou look so Intelligent with I ]
them on."—Chicago Record-Herald.
BIGBOWLINGTOURNEY
Gigantic Task Involved In Pre
paring For National Contest.
FINEST ALLEYS TO BE BUILT.
Builders Will Have Only Six Days and
Nights to Construct Twenty-four.
Will Use 226,000 Feet of Lumber and
254,000 Nails In the Work.
Few persons who are interested in
i the coining tournament of the National
Bowling association have any idea of
; the vast amount of work involved iu
getting the big Madison Square Gar
den at New York in shape for the
| 4,000 or more bowlers from all over
i fhe United States who are to compete
there for the large purses. Not many
' nf the champion bowlers even can
i make a rough guess at the task that is
to be undertaken.
From the first the problem has been
: a difficult one to solve. Experts on
| file building of bowling alleys studied
' and figured for weeks on the question
before it was solved, and even now,
1 although the committee in charge of
the preparations is confident that ev
erything will be in shipshape order on
May 24, the opening day of tlie tour
nament, many who profess to know
| shake their heads negatively and de
clare that this will not be possible.
The whole trouble lay in the fact
j that the builders of the alleys will
have only six days and nights In which
ito do tlie work. In that time they
must put down twenty-four alleys that
will bo so perfect that no competitor
will have the slightest cause for com
plaint.
The contract for the work lias been
I given to a firm in New York city
which has assured the committee that
the alleys will lie the finest ever built
and that no bowler will tie able to de
! Clare that he failed to roll a high score
I or win his match because of the alleys,
i Should any easy spares bo missed, they
say, It will be the fault of the bowler
; and not because the alleys "run off"
or "carry over."
Because the rent of the Madison
i Square Garden is SI,OOO a night, and
the National Bowling association will
be compelled to pay that amount even
I while building the alleys, it became
necessary to limit ihe time for the
work to not more than six days. This,
it was admitted, would necessitate the
building of twenty-four alleys in faster
time than even less than half that
number were ever built In the history
of bowling. The proposal was put up
to the officials of the New York linn,
and they without hesitation accepted
! the contract.
Almost immediately after receiving
the contract arrangements for the enor
mous work were begun. Vast supplies
had to be ordered, so that the work on
the alleys could be started exactly on
1 time, and. equally important, the con
tractors had to engage men to do the
work.
Contrary to tlie general belief, ordi
j nary carpenters are not competent to
build bowling alleys. They must be
: built by men skilled in the work—men
who make a business of building al
| leys alone. There is not a continual
i demand for this class of labor, and
consequently men of this kind are few
and scattered about the United States.
So iu order to prepare for this the
New York firm has ordered about 100
;of their men. who arc located in the
various cities of the United States, to
plan their work so as to be able to
come to New York city in time togo
to work in the Garden.
The figures of the materials to be
used in building the alleys bave been
given out and are as follows:
in the first place it will be necessary
to use at least 200,000 lineal feet of
1 yellow pine and maple for tlie beds of
the alleys. 20,000 board feet of maple
for the divisions, return ways and
kickbacks and 0,000 board feet of
spruce and hemlock for the founda
tions.
For holding all this together 11,100
screws and 254,000 nails will be used.
Tlie castings on the return ways will
require 7,500 pounds of nickeled" steel,
and the pit cushions will be made from
4,000 pounds of leather. For finishing
the beds two barrels of shellac mixed
with one barrel of alcohol will be used.
Then the beds will be covered with
enamel polish, which will require at
least one barre!.
Trial Trip of the George Washington.
The trial trip of the North German
Lloyd's new steamship George Wash
ington, the Jargest German vessel
afloat, will take place over a meas
ured course on June 2. The Atnericai
ambassador to Germany, Dr. David
Jayne Iliil, who christened the George
Washington at the time of the launch
ing, has signified his intention to be on
board during the trial trip.
The Summer Capital.
A wonderful city
lias sprung in the night
Upon the map, blotting
All others from eight.
New York. London. Paris,
Are not in Its class.
They'll bave to take liats ofT
To Beverly, Mass.
Reporters and sage 3
Will swarm to its door.
Tlie cranks nnd the statesmen
Upon tt will pour.
All capitals other
Will please goto Brass.
The whole nation centers
In Beverly, Mass.
Old landmarks historic
In interest will fade.
Old shrines tie as nothing
Before tho new made.
The shades of tho pilgrims
Will mutter, "Alas,
We ought to have landed
At Beverly, Mass.!"
—McLandburgh WUson in New York
Sun.
The Dilemma.
"How can I over learn to understand
that girl?"
"You can marry her, but when you
have done that it will be too late for
your understanding of her to be of any
benefit to you."—Exchange.
Too Late Now.
Mother—l hope you aro nice to that
young man who has been colling, dear.
Daughter—l don't have to be now,
mamma, for he's in love with me.—
Exchange.
NOISELESS AIRSHIP;
Features of Craft Being Built by
Captain T. S. Baldwin.
OVERCOMES A BIG HANDICAP.
One of the Most Serious Drawbacks
Has Beon Clatter of Dirigible Craft's
Machinery Californian Claims to
Have Solved Intricate Problem.
Captain Thomas S. Baldwin, the Cal
ifornia aeronaut, whose dirigible air
ship was accepted by the United
States government lust year, recently
made the interesting statement that
the new dirigible now being built for
him at Hammondsport, N. Y„ will be
a noiseless machine.
"1 will make my new machine so de
void of noise when in operation," said
Captain Baldwin, "that two men In
the machine will be able to carry on a
conversation if necessary in a whisper.
This will be done by muflllng the en
gine and using ball and roller hearings
for the propellers. There ought to be
no great difficulty in preventing ex
cessive noise in a dirigible while in
the air. The solution is one of Im
proved construction.
"Up to the present time the main
effort has ljeen directed toward get
ting in the air. Now that this has
been accomplished refinements in me
chanical work will follow, and the
next few years, I predict, will see
scores of improvements which will
make airships highly practicable for
a number of purposes."
Added interest in the future practi
cability of airships has recently been
aroused from the criticisms made by
Trince Henry of Prussia in a lecture
which lie recently gave at the Marine
academy at Kiel, describing his trip in
the Immense Zeppelin nirshlp. Among
I other things he regarded the noise of
the propellers as a serious disadvan
tage, being calculated to betray the
approach of the ship in wartime. To
: send orders from the bridge to men in
other parts of the ship it is necessary
| to write them and send tlicm iu a car
rier attached to an endless wire, as It
, is impossible to hear a voice above the
1 din of the motors. This difficulty has
; been experienced in all similar ma-'
j chines.
, To permit the man at the motor to |
1 give quick orders to the man steering
at the rear of the machine Lieutenant
' I/ahm advised the equipment of the
I government airship with speaking
; tubes, and this will probably be in use
when the military dirigible resumes its
aerial flight this year.
I Trince Henry in summing up the re
sults of the Zeppelin invention said
; that the problem of reaching a fixed
1 and not too distant point in not too
1 unfavorable weather conditions was
! solved, bat he thought that the ques-)
j tion whether steerable airships were
I at present suitable as regular means
! of* communication or could be ern
j ployed for purposes of war must be
regarded skeptically.
A steerable airship, he added, could
not make headway against wind nbove
a certain velocity, and. further, the In
ternal combustion engine is not yet ca
pable of undertaking a long distance
| Journey. Moreover, the altitude that
can be attained is limited by the fact !
that above a certain height, owing to
the decreasing density of the atmos- ;
phere, the propellers met with less re- '
slstance, while the motors give unsatls j
factory results owing to the decrease
of oxygen.
; "An airship will always, more or
less, be at the mercy of the wind," snid
Captain Baldwin. "A steamship can
not make its best headway in a storm !
or against adverse head winds, and !
the same is true when one tries to sail !
. in changing air currents. My new ma- j
chine will be built for a speed of twen- j
ty-two miles an hour. Going against a
ten mile wind, therefore, the machine i
will go only about twelve miles an i
hour, nnd if the wind is greater than
twenty-two miles It will lie at Its mer
cy to Just that extent. But this is the
least of the evils, and 1 believe all the
difficulties enumerated by I'rlnce Hen
ry will be overcome in time through j
Improved methods of construction. j
"Take the noise difficulty, for in
stauce. No effort has thus far been
made to lessen it. Muffling an engine
naturally curtails some of its power
The airship people have pursued the
policy that they needed the maximum I
power of their engiues. That isu't al- !
ways necessary, for the Zeppelin "air- !
ship while buffeted by the winds kept
afloat although one engine had ceased
to work. In the trials with the govern
ment machine we frequently found it
advisable to throttle the engine, as we
were getting more power than wc
needed. The Improvement iu gasoline 1
engine building no longer requires that
the maximum power be used to attain
satisfactory results under ordinary
conditions. It Is there, however, if
needed."—New York Cor. Philadelphia
Public Ledger.
Uses For Perfumed Salt.
Perfumed salt is coming to be recog- j
nlzed as just the thing for the teeth, j
Another sort is recommended for the ;
bath, and there are scores of other j
ways In which it is used as a toilet ar- i
tide. Mixed with cornmeol, it Is plac
ed in the tepid bath, and Its use thus is j
said to improve the complexion. Phy- j
slcians now advise n liberal use of salt
on fruit and in food generally, espe
cially In the spring. One time salt was
regarded as drying In its effects and
injurious to health and to the com
plexion. Now this theory is displaced.
The hot water drinkers put a good tea
spoonful of salt Into their morning
beverage.
Chance For Aeronauts.
King Leopold of Belgium has offered j
a $5,000 prize for the best treatise on j
aeronautics to be brought out this I
year.
New Speed Record For Typewriting.
A new speed record for typewriting
was made at Kansas City, Mo., the
other night by E. A. Trefzger of New
York, when he wrote an average of 109
words from copy '•afh minute for fif-1
teen minutes. Trefzger was second in
the international contest recently,
when Hose L. Fritz won the hour con
test
a •$»«(♦ H 4 *•"1* *s* • *♦* *l* ** 4 ♦♦♦ *•* *•* v *T*v •!* 1
| Won Through S
I a Dream.
t - %
* By GR. ACE GO WEN. <,
♦
T Copyrighted, 1009, by Associated •>
J Literary l'ress. *
•m* *t- •»* v ■> -t*-;* -!• •;» •;• ->*:• *>•> ■. •;
In a lonely shack on a North Dakota
quarter section Edith Allen was faeln",
the problem that comes to all of Eve's
daughters.
A man great in his strength nv.C
mightier in his love bad asked her stir
render—had almost demanded it win-::
he passionately tore aside convention
nl conversation and bared ids heart
and his hopes.
That she had sent him away without
an answer was not a negative reply t .
his wooing. She had begged for ti: •
to think, a space in which to analyz
the emotions surging in her breast.
Moreover, she half thought she loved
him, and because she was a product o!
the city and had dug deep in the print
ed philosophy of life she wanted her
brain to sit in Judgment on her heart.
"I know what you would say," In
perlously declared Jim, the lover. "1
am nearer the animal than you. Who:
fatigue follows a satiated Joy of work
ing my recreation is rest—physical
comfort and sleep. I liud nothing t<
grip me in books written by men
whose lives have been cramped and
narrow, by men with water in their
veins instead of strong, red blood."
"No, no, Jim; it is not tha^" inter
rupted Edith.
"But it is. It is Just that. Yti'.i
know. lum a college man. Not fro";
one of yow famous casern institu
tions, true, but I fancy our North Da
kota brand of education will be found
the equal of its older relations of New-
England. I went to please father. He
was a poor man and felt that he had
missed much liecause his school days
had been few. That his son need not
suffer this handicap In life he made
many sacrifices.
"I am grateful to him for the love
that prompted this self denial, and 1
am glad that I have what learning !
"LEAVE Ml. At.oyr, JIM. SOT ANOTfTI.;
WOKU."
brought back with mo, but I resign
Interest In morbid, fleshly decadent.
for God's gootl out of doors."
And Stuart looked at the girl bet.
htm wouderingiy, with his eyes glow
Ing wiih love of her.
"Leave me alone, Jim. No, not a
otlior word. I must think; 1 n-.ti ;
think. Good night. Jim." And sL
watched him go out of the door nr.!
across the prairie.
Years before a palmist had t Id 112
girl that her head would ml" he
heart. He lmd called attention tot:
peculiar formation of the lines of her
left hand and had pointed out the lieaO
line that ran straight across the palm,
obscuring and domluatiug the less
line that represented the heart.
In a measure she believed it..M:
her life she had been Intensely tr.c
tal and had plunged far Into the wr:'
ings of men and women whose apes
tolic missions are of discontent.
When she collapsed physically u::d>'r
the strain «>f her labors as teacher In r
city school the physician had Uup< r
tively ordered her to get to the open
country if she longed to live.
Alone In the world, she could not
dulge in ldl.'iiej's. and. being exi!
from the schoolroom, she was a.: a 1
which path to take. A friend suggesl
ed that sh» enter a homestead in t'l
west, and it had appealed to h?r.
Her savln-.'s were sufficient to pa;
for necessary labor la clearing nn
breaking the land until the crops wer
ready for harvest, and she had con
dent assurance that her work won.
some day repay her. As an invei-t
tnent, both financial and physical. !'
delighted her.
Stuart met her In the office of ,tl:
locator in the little town which w
the railroad station nearest to her do
tlnatlon. One learns to read men a- r
women at first sight In the big, puis
ing west, and no half trust is given.
She was i.i need of guidance,
her new found acquaintance bet-am
ber counselor and friend. When sh.-
ppoko of getting men to help her ImiV
the two room frame house that wast
be her home he came himself.
When she offered him the currcm
wage he accepted It. because he nr. I
derstood how impossible It was to d
otherwise, but afterward he sent othet
men and contented himself with su?
pest lons that in reality amounted t>
superintendence.
Thus two years had slipped away.
Her health had returned, the glow in
her cheeks told that, nnd the life In
the open had re-enforced her for her
old vocation—lf she cared for it
She believed It was her career,
though the glamour of existence close
to the heart of nature held a charm
she could not deny, and there was
conflict In her mind ns to the better
choice.
Then came Stuart's love. She had
grown to like him much, but with a
reservation, that he dld_not jneastire
lip to t!io i< '.l .-•lit i i ' !'6i'i.'bed. She
believed s'u eeimtuded mental sym
pathy no I - ; t!i;'n physlt al caresses.
To make a perfect union the iuau
must npprci Sate with her the books
that held her, and they would pene
trate togqiher the mysterious paths of
learning to wisdom. Therein was
Stuart lacking.
Slumber would not come at bidding
the night Stuart told his love. She
tossed fretfully as she tried to evade
the problem before her. Like memo
ries of pain, il rei.: ;ed banishment.
"Do I love him? Is he necessary to
me? lie is dear as a friend. I know,
but beyond that—what?" she said t >
herself.
When sleep came it was troubled
dreams intruded, and she thought sho
saw herself and Stuart galloping side
by side over the prairies to the west
ward. Behind them was an ocean of
tire; the crackling of flames sotr '
in her ears; she could feel the Inr.
wind, born in the heart of the bur :i
grass, blister her neck.
On and on, with the margin < : ,ife
ty growing narrower until within a
dozen Jumps of the furrow thit w"".!i
balk the tire. Iler horse : tumbled in «t
gopher hole, regained his ;» Ise. blun
dered again, ar.d she was thrown to t:i.j
prairie.
"Jim!" she crle l.
The flames wet • \:, u:i 1 r t"W. I'o
slid from hi: horse, . ' her i :
t arms, boldiur her i' u .' t > i
I breast to shi : . her ■ i
| and staggered across tho safety li:.»
| with the gry flames timing t■ x
; sullen, den . r d, as ii ct-l;ig 'it nt k--
dietions on her rescuer 112 r i >;tr!rlagj
I them of their prey.
j "Jim, Jim!" she shrie! : ' • \ v de*
| irium. "Suppose I had 10. t you!
! There was a rapping nt the door.
: Consciousness slowly returned t»> her;
I she shook recollections of the night -
j mare from her.
; "What's the matter, Edith? Are you
| hurt?"
"No; I'll be out In a minute. Wait."
And she hastily dressed.
"You're ill," lie exclaimed when sht»
appeared. "You are ghostly pale."
"Oh, Jim, I've had such a dream!"
she said.
"Dreams are silly things, Edith.
Surely you would not let one frighten
you!" he soothingly said.
"But this one did. And, Jim. I know
now," and her head dropped to hide
the flush of her cheeks.
"Yes?" said Jim, not comprehending,
i "What you asked me yesterday."
j "Sweetheart! And your answer?" He
I eagerly ran to her.
I "Yes, Jim, I love you." And in tho
; embrace that followed disappeared t'ae
| artificialities of troublesome phlloso
| phies in the depth of an emotion priml*
I tive and elemental.
Guarding a Nail,
j A gentleman in Jerusalem told mo
i that he found a Turkish soldier on
guard In some part of the Church of
the Holy Sepulcher, where It was not
usual for a sentry to be, and inquired
of him why he was there.
He pointed to a nail in the wall and
replied, "It Is my duty to watch that
nail."
Asked why, he explained that t!»>
Latins or the Greeks—l forget which—
hrid driven the nail with the view of
hanging a picture; that a rival sect
had furiously objected, saying that it
was an Interference with their prop
erty and wanted to pull out the nail;
that thereupon the Turkish govern
ment had Intervened and set him t»»
watch the nail and see that no picture
was hung upon it and that it was not
I pulled out.
To allow the picture to be hung
would have been to admit the claims
of those who drove In the nail. To al
low it to be pulled out would have
been to admit the claims of those who
objected to the driving in of the null.
Therefore the nail must be preserved
and the picture must not be liung. and
i to see that this was so an armed sen
[ try must watch day and night. For
anght 1 know he may be watching
still.—ltider Haggard's "A Winter Pil
grimage."
Ths Amateur Gr.rdmer.
I've planted the peas In the rose bed.
I've set out some slips In the sun.
I'm wondering now with a care furrowed
brow
What the job will be like when It's done.
The names that are written in I«\ttn
I've studied with scrupulous care.
I've mixed up the seeds of all kinds of
breeds
And scattered 'ein everywhere.
riie scheme will work out beyond question!
In a highly original way
The humble string liean side by sldo will
be seen
With the pink and the poppy so pay,
But I tremble to think of the finish
As over the garden I pare
Will they call me to eat the petunias so.
sweet
Wlille tomato plants stand In a vaset
—Washington Star.
Realistic.
She fit the iitus!." Mi 1 - Schre
er sings v !i wonderful reali- ::i. 1;
you think He-Yes; you .an
most see Ihe tia !: in her voice.—)
trolt Saturday Night.
A Restless Era..;.
Mr. Slckham—No, strrco,
wouldn't buy that dog. lie's ■
between a St. Bernard and— Mr. .'
vey (who is not enthusiastic)— And i
St. Vitus?—Puck.
.viMCHMMoma «K
SOUS 11!
A. Reliable
TO SHOP
for all kind of Tin Rooflno,
Spoutlne nnd Csneral
Job Work.
Stoves, Heaters, Ran««i.
Furnaces, eto.
PRICES THE LOWEST!
QUALITY TDE BEST,'
.-Ot
JOHNIIIXSON
SO. ll» fi, FEONT 3T,