Lakeland Evening Telegram Newspaper, April 6, 1915, Page 6

ACTING THE STORY By GEORGE MUNSON. “Looking for local color, you say, ! miss? 1 guess you can find it here all right. We've had lots of authors from ! New York in these parts, studying our ; peculiar ways and writing about the simple habits of us unsophisticated rustics. But we didn’t know it until Mr. Peter Polhemus woke us up to that fact. “That was the Mr. Peter Polhemus who made such a stir with his book on New England folks last year. Sold i @ hundred thousand copies, they Bay, and must have made three or four hun- dred dollars out of it, I reckon. Jane Topas, who come here to milk the cows when I had rheumatics in my hands was the heroine, Mr. Polhemus himself was the hero—you could tell that the minute you set eyes on the book; and Jim Bowers, who's now edit- | ing and printing the Pottsfield Gazette, : was the rustic villain. i\ “He was a nice man we thought then—Mr. Polhemus, 1 mean, always fussing and fuming around to learn our unsophisticated ways. He'd stop me in the middle of the street to ask the meaning of some common expres- sion he'd heard, which everybody uses, although them city folks don't know them, in their ignorance. And after he'd spent three weeks at Cy Brown’s, taking up Jane Topaz's time—she’s his niece—and aggravating Jim Bowers until he talked of fighting him, Mr. Polhemus took his departure. “Next thing we heard about him, ' he'd written ‘Jane’s Honeymooners.’ Everybody was saying it was as good as Shakespeare. Cy Brown ain’t much of a hand at reading, but he sald it was as plain as a pikestaff, the things he'd written, and how in thunder did Wanted to Know Where He Worked. he know 'em? Cy Brown raised Cain with Jane for the things she'd done in the-book.The.hero was Ar, Polhemys, under anotier name. He was an au- thor seeking local color, and in the end he married Jane, in spite of Jim Bow- ers, who was the villain, only he'd given him a mustache. As for me and Cy Brown, we was just ignorant old country people who used strange words, and I'd told him the meaning of ‘em all myself. “Jim was so mad when he heard about it that he got a copy, and when he'd rcad it he wouldn't speak to Jane. It seems that the hero had used to kiss Jane behind the barn, and Jim thought Mr. Polhemus had done it. It took Jane the best part of & week to persuade Jim that she hadn’t kissed Mr. Polhemus, and as soon as she had convince¢ him that she hadn't Jane started in and wanted to know why he'd robbed a bank in his youth and had to give her up to Mr. Polhemus so as he shouldn't tell on him, and why he'd won her simple rus- tic heart when he'd ought to have been in the penitentiary. “It got so bad that Hank Stevens, the policeman, called on Jim and want- ed to know where he had worked be- fore he came to Pottsfield, and if it was true that there was a reward of five thousand dollars on his head. “After that, when spring come, along come the busybodies and wanted to know which was the barn where the hero kissed Jane, and if the old ruined mill was the place where the villain went to his death amid the plunging cataracks. “And when summer came, who should arrive but Mr. Polhemus again. You'd think he wouldn't have had the nerve to have looked us in the face, but he thought us simple rustic people hadn’t read ‘Jane’s Honeymooners,’ and didn't know anything about it. Well, miss, nobody let on he knew, and meanwhile Jim and Cy Brown fixed up their plans. They was both feeling pretty sore about it, and they arranged that Jane was somehow to get Mr. Polhemus into the ruined mill and Jim was to come along and give him what was coming to him. “It was strange, the way we lived up to our reputations. Often I'd find my- self in the middle of a speech to think up some word I hadn’t used, and Jahe took to carrying her palls on a yoke, same as she'd done in the story book. Then come the day when Jane said to Mr. Polhemus: “‘My roses is a-fading.” “‘What's that? asked Mr. Polhemus, sort of puzzled. “‘My roses is fading in my cheeks,’ answered Jane Topaz, rather obsti: nate, like the girl in the book, Jane Merriwether. ‘And ocan't you guess what's took them away and what it is that makes my heart go pit-a-pat when We meet?” “‘No’ answered Mr. Polhemus, scratching his head. Jane noticed that he looked kind of thoughtful. “‘Then meet me in the ruined mill at eight o'clock, where I shall be safe from them that's persecuting me, and T'll tell you the secret of my life, says Jane. “‘All right,’ answered Mr. Polhemus, perking up a bit. “At the appointed hour Jane dressed up and set out for the mill. It was & dark night, and she'd have been a bit scared, only Jim was holding her round the waist until they got near the mill, and then he.let ber go and. crept ‘The ilson Hardware Co. Place of Business Is where you SHOULD GO at all times for HARDWARL Building Material Such as Lime, Cement, Brick, Wall Plaster, Sash, Paints, Stains | “‘Tut!’ fiundér the imbers, jUst Deneath where Mr. Polhemus was pacing to and fro, just as he'd done in the book. Presently Jane comes up to him. “‘Ha! BSo you've come,’ says Mr. | Polhemus. “‘Yes,’ answers Jane in a hollow “For once I give the slip to them that hates me and I've come to ! tell you the story of my life. I have ! been the tool of a man's sinister de- i signs, but luckily I've shook him off the track, and now—' “‘And now you're going to be mine,’ says Mr, Polhemus, and puts his arms round her; and before she knew what 1 he was doing Mr. Polhemus had kissed “Jane started to raise a rumpus, with Jim under the timbers, as you can suppose, but Jim was paralysed. You see, Jane had assured him that nothing like that had happened, and there it had bappened under his nose. ! He stays paralyzed a moment, and then he springs up and tries to land one on Mr. Polhemus' nose. Mr. Polhemus ducks and down goes Jim into the milirace. “He let out a yell that would have raised the dead, and just as he's com- ing up for the third time Mr. Polhe- mus strips off his coat and plunges in after him. He grabbed Jim by the hair, and Jim, with more water in his system than he’d ever put there of his own will, was hauled out on the bank. “Pretty soon he come to. ‘I saw to Jane Topaz, who was standing by {like a woman in a dream. “‘Yes. What of it?" asks Mr. Polhe- mus, none too dry. ‘Weren't we re- hearsing the novel?” “‘We was, but you weren't In on it answered Jim. ‘Anyway, I saw it, so it's all over, Jane. You may as well understand that.’ says Mr. Polhemus. ‘It | was all a joke, wasn't it, and I believe in having a variety of endings. You | see, I'm & married man and so it don't ldo no harm. And my wife's on her | way up to Pottsfield, and between you i and me Fd like to forget about that { more than you would. Miss Topaz is s0 irresistible, you see,’ he adds, ‘that’s why I put her into the book, not mean- ing any harm. Come along, Mr. Bow- ers, and if you don’t drink I can in- troduce you to a good brand of cigars at Mr. Brown's’ “That's how it ended, Miss, and Jane's married to Jim now, but it would be best not to look for too people is tired of it. And if there's any words you want to know, ask me.” (Copyright, 1915, by W. G. Chapman.) 'HARD TO DEFINE BEAUTY | Bubject on Which Races and Nations Have Never Been Able to Agree. That which is beautiful is always pretty in the broad sense of the term, but much that the world In general counts as pretty is anything but beau- titul to the esthetic eye. Prettiness is of the face and obvi- ous, but beauty is of the soul and, therefore, more subtle. Some very crudely colored calendars will appeal to many as being beautiful, though to the cultured eye they are far from suggestive of grace in either tone or form. There have been many attempts to I(lallna beauty, yet it cannot be said that any definttion has thrown much light upon the subject. It manifests forms, though there is a general agree- ment that its highest expression is in the female form divine. Even here the diversity is 8o extensive that the peo- ples of no two races, let alone nations, have ever agreed upon the same type. are striking instances of the different grace. This much is certain; mere pretti- ness, whether in woman, painting, sculpture, music, poetry or literature, is either a primal or artificial harmony | in nowise pleasing to those who have come to know the best. And much of The Price of a Week'iBoard By RUTH GRAHAM Boy's P istol Tom Burps, a farmers boy. wlm; This happened some thirty years ago. didn’t like farm work. went from Hl-T a0 the far west are bcllcrl nois out into the wild west. Tlhere be sow thap they were then. l“de«"l ‘wandered about, making a Il)'lup; as they are us ivilized there as 'ny'. best he could. but there was little for » where else. bim to do. escept kill the anim:is of A stagecoach drew up In front of s the wilderuess either for thelr u v i small town where gun law or their skins. During bis wander ":::""he““‘l'.b_ ok eorsast oty Tom warried the dauzliter of a setticl| But even that was un unwritten law, who had come from Ohio. She wished for there ws 1o statutg_books to Bl to get back to that state as much :ns; e Noung map, dressed In_the ber husband wanted to return to 1l | ordinary business costume of phices saw you kiss her,’ he cried, pointing . much local color, in Pottsfield, because | | itselt in such an infinite variety of ' The Madonna of the world's artists ' conceptions of the utmost spiritual ! nols. But instead of drifting eastward they drifted farther westward, for ax civilization encroached upon thew the wild animals. by which Tom made a ‘ living, became scarce, and they were - obliged to find new hunting grounds. S0 at last they found themselvex in a gulch where game was plenty and neighbors were few. It was a deso- late life. especially for the woman Tom offered to take bis wife east. but ‘ she knew he had vever fitted himself for the work to be done there. nnd she preferred to remain where they were rather than run the risk of starving in her former home. o One day a man came trudging np the . gulch and. stopping at the Burns cab 'in, asked Mrs. Burns if he could be accommodated for a short time. She told bim that ner hushand wonld be home soon and then she could give an answer. The stranger said he would pay well for his board. - When Tom returned it was agreed hetween bim and his wife that they would take the stranger in. though there was only one room in the eabin, and they were all obliged to sleep in the same room,; ¥ divided into two parte by a curtain, The man wenl vut evety noruing ¥ prospecting for something -he dido't say what--aud every night refurned to the cabin. He remalned with the ' Burns couple a week. then sald to them: l “I'm going away from here, and | ,can't pay you any board. | have been told that an article is to be found in this region that is very valuable. Had : 1 found It I could have paid you thou- sands of dollars for my keep. As it is I can't pay you anything™ “That's all right, stranger,” said John. *“We wouldn't have felt war- ranted In charging you over §4 any way, 80 it doesn't matter much." “It matters more to me than to you It may be that I've missed the deposit I've been looking for. and some day | you may stumble on it. But you won't | recognize it if you do. I'm going to | leave you some chemicals, and If yow ' ever come across the article I refer to and mix it with the chemicals and burn l the compound it will give a green ame.” He gave them some Idea of what the substance looked like in its crude form and. pouring the chemicals from his i stock into bottles, left them with him, i with his address, telling them if they ever found the article to write him and he would make them rich. A wmonth passed after the stranger’s departure and the Buruses would have almost forgotten his coming had It not been for the bottles he had left them that stood In the cupboard. One day John, instead of hunting in the gulch and the region therenbout, went down to its mouth and, rounding a mountain spur, entered a valley. He encounter- ed a trapper, who told him that noth- Ing could live there, not even animals, and there was no use for him to try to get any game there. So desolate was i the place tbat it was called Death valley. Johu had heard of it and con- cluded to have a look at it before go- ing home. So he wandered about in it. He hadn't gone far before he saw ' scattered about a substance that an- . swered the description his boarder had | given him. He gathered some of it and took It home with bim. After supper, while his wife was ; washing the dishes, he took a plece of the substance he had brought from York or Chicago or Philadelphia or any other eastern city. got out of the coach with the other passengers and went into the tavern. He asked if there were any letters for him. The landlord hunded him one. He read it and hunted tbrough his pockets for bis cigar case. Not finding it at once, he took out seven articles while maklog . the search, among them a small pistol. Severul men. denizens of the coun- try. were lounging about. among them | a red fuced man with a stubble beard | and as many scars on bis face as II German student member of a dnel(ng; corps. This man caught sight of the new arrival's pistol, and it at once ex- cited his interest. I “Lemme see that, stranger.” he said. The young man handed bim tbe pis- tol, and he looked it over with evident pleasure and amusement. “Purty. isn't it?" he remarked. He coutinued to examine it, cocking and uncocking 1it. Meanwhile the stranger found his cigar case and, lean ing a chair up on its hind legs against the wall, sat down on it, resting hls| heels on the front round and, lighting a cigar, smoked. “What do you do with ity" |uqu|red! | the red faced man. The stranger smoked on wlthout‘ making any reply. His sang froid ex- cited the attention of the bystanders, who commenced to move uneasiiy away. The man who asked the ques- tlon was Scur Joe, so called from the traces of his' many fights. He was not used to asking questions and re- celving no reply. He cast a single glance at the stranger and went on cocking and uncocking the revolver. “Goln' to make a birthday gift of it to your little boy?" he asked 8till no reply. “Will it shoot?" persisted Scar Joe. ’ This third question eliciting no reply. the westerner took a quick ailm at the | stranger's cigar and fired, and clnri and sparks left the smoker’s lips. | He didn’t turn pale. He didn't Ionkl at Scar Joe reproachfully or turtully‘ or any other way, He didn't look at bim at all He simply took out anoth- er cligar, lighted it and went on smok- ng. dx RO HE BE’s'r”ls GOOD A T Discontent _alone, and sh, L2 ehot- har. mouth and let soy quarrel not with Destiny Since Fate insists on secrecy, | have noa ts tobring- I quarrel no with Destiny, One only Knows our needs, and He Il of the distributing. m%rfl'elo’:lot with Des'tin%.- ADDY thought that all children were very young. afterward. He bad a story to “Yov must begin your swi “and Jack will help you, for he really is s fine swimmer.” Jack looked very much pleased to hear that, for be bad only i “Does shoot, don't it? Shoots purty ¢o swim the previous summer. straight, don’t 1t? 1 wonder if 1 wuldl do ¢ agnin!” : He fired » second shot with like re- sults. The stranger remained as im- perturbable as before, taking out a smaller sister because she could swim. j for wild strawberries. found a great many. “1 beard,” continwed daddy, “sbout & Nttle girl Who yesterdsy “This little girl's sister bad gone with amother small friesd of bs They bad wandered along through e flell The two children thought they would lke b other cigar and lghting it with as lit-| py the bank of the river where they had heard there were o g tle apparent ebjection to this waste of perries. cigars:as if he were Joaded down with | them amid a'shower of sparks. ‘“They found just as many as they thought they would and Again Scar Joe sent it ying g peautiful time when they decided that they would take off their stockings and go in wading. This they did and enjoyed the cool “Strager.” sald the smoker in a soft ' geunqing on the slippery stones. voice, “you're one of the best shots I ‘ ever saw. That pistol I've brought from the east as a present for my wife. | I've got another for my little girl that | I'll bet you can't hit a silver dollar with at ten yards.” | “Now, although this river was very narrow and looked very si 5 Were one or.two places where there were deep boles, and for that children had been forbidden to go in wading, but they thought it . right ‘Just for once. *‘Alas. one of them. the sister of the little girl | am going to tell’ NTife ke 16D ‘ slipped from oue of the stones and fell right into one of the deep hos The stranger thrust his right band into his trousers pocket and grasped something that he drew out so clutched i in his fist that it was not easy to dis- corn what It was. | One of thy leoers, BT little sister just as she was about to go down for the third time § on.. with better or quicker sight lhnnl the others. seemed to get om to lome-i thing about to happen, for he ducked | er's life “Luckily her sister was with another friend in the fleld of st When she heard her little sister's voice calling for belp she went bank 'in a Jiffy “Quickly she jumped into the river and with two good long strok “And back to the bank she swam with ber. Of course it was o strokes’ work, but still she was able to swim, and s0 she saved be The other little girl bad stood on the bank, screaming ander a table. The stranger reached | POt being able to do anything. the thing out to his tormenter. It ex- ward, at the same time putting his “Other eports are lots of fus, but mot much more fun than ploded. and Scar Joe staggered back-| It 18 ODe of the most useful of all sports because of the safety it “Yes,” sald Jack, “and we will teach Bvelyn to swim. We that best is not so very difficult to ap- hand to his hip. The something iu| t© 8care ber. so she may learn mere quickly. Ob, Bvelyn, you Doors, QOils & Varnishes Stoves, Ranges, Oil and Gasoline Boss Ovens Farming Implements, Plows, Cultivators { Garden Tools, Hoes, s Our highest Rakes, Hand Plows Ideals are | preciate. It is largely a matter of education and of habdit. Some people percelve harmony with readiness in certain forms and are yet oblivious to it in others. There are color-blind mu- siclans and stone-deaf sculptors. Dege and Boys. One wonders what must bave been the boyhood of the mam who raves ' about the “necessity of excluding dogs | from human sssociation.” A dog—it natters not its kind—is a necessary complement te & real boy, and there is something mere than priggishness the matter with the lad in knickerbockers who does not rejoice in the comrade- ship of Towser. The mam who has had that treasure of affection and no | longer regarde it has lost more than 18 youth. v xuard the 8,000,000 books i the New York library against the rav- ages of dookworms and other insects, which feed upon the paper, the glue on the backs, and the cloth and leath- er bindings, a constant care is ex ercised, and a keen watch kept for any evidence of their activities. One woman I8 assigned exclusively to this work. When treating the books, she wears & huge apron which completely covers her gown. A cheesecloth veil Death valley and, putting it in a tin pan, poured the chemicals over it and set fire to it. ' As he did so his wife , paused In wiping a dish and watched . bim. As the flame burst forth the two , looked at each other with surprise and | pleasure. It burned green. The couple talked that night over One would naturally suppose that those present would:be chiefly fnterest- ' ed in the fallen: man. till they were convinced that he had recelved bis last scar. sudden their minds-concentrated om the thing in the stranger hands that had 80 they were Then all of a 4440000000000 0 00004044 iJ.B. STREA various plans to ‘secure what val there might be in their find to them- selves. They thought of presenting a claim for the ground where they had done the work. All eyes turned teward bim curiously. He had returmed the explosive thing to his- pocket found the snbstance. but realized that they were iov poor and too ignmorant of the subject to bandle it themselves, 80 they wrote to their lodger that they thoughbt they had found what he had been looking for. He came to see them, and Jobhn showed him a specimen of lhl-lndnmlnl-othnltbnrmdtlnn The stranger uttered an exclamation | of delight. | “That is borax,” he said. “used for | washing purposes in every household | tn America.” | He told Jobn that if he would tell illm where it lay he would form a | company to take the ground, work it and would give John half of all he made out of it himself. John accept- ed bis proposition, and an agreement | was written out and signed by both ac- | cording to the terms. It turned out the stranger had a large protects her face against the germs | borax company behind him with un- which lurk in the musty documents, | limited capital. A company was form and even the air she breathes is ¢d. And he retained 20 per cent of the screened against contagion. Close S8tock. Of this he assigned one-half to touch is kept with the health depart- | Jobn. which gave him more woney ment, and books which have been re- ' than he and his wife cowld spend. Quality an0 Service Come to see us and let us supply your needs WILSON HARDWARE CO. turned from infected areas are fumi- gated before being restored to ecircu- i !‘ ls Susplcions. of an Atchison news paper sent the following to the editor: | that Ben Hurley took | I have been missing | and loaded several sticks with | it Sunday night; and 1 know | Hurley lives near me, and | early Monday morning he drove | edly to town and bought a mew | Fd g fEEYE £ 3 | i | ] i J “Landlord.” he sald, “I'd like seme- thing to eat before- | go. My wife writes me that she'll: send a team for me to be here at 2. It's mow 1. [I've Just time for dinner” “I say, stranger,” sald one present, “would you mind lettin' us see what that was you shot him with?* “l know what it 13, sald the man who had sought safety under the table “It's a bulidog. L seen 'em before. They're the ugliest weapea at short range they Is goin"" The stranger took out a short, thick pistol with a very stocky barrel and al- lowed the party to.examine it. “Was t'other one really a gift for your wife?" asked one. “Certainly. Whea | was called east she asked me to being her a revolver saitable for a woman.” l While the stranger was dining the body of his victim was being nm"dl When his team arrived and he was driving away ome of the crowd who had gathered te see him off cried out: “Much obleeged for gettin’ rid of Scar Joe. He was gittin' to be a nuisance.” On the Mentical spot where this I'.l'hey went back to the east. where episode happened there is now a hand- some hotel, lighted by electricity and baving all the modern improvements, they lived in comfort for the rest of thelr Tives. ™n a State of Doubt. “Your legal departmeént must be very expensive.” “It is,” sighed the eminent trust magnate. “Still, T sup- Dase you have to maintain it?” “Well, 1 don't know. Sometimes 1 think it would be cheaper to obey the la Birmingham Age-Herald. Did Service to Mumanity. Captain Hutchinson, the dockmaster at Liverpool, is credited with having | originated the reflecting lighthouse in | 1763, and another great improvement in the invention of a light for light- houses was made by Lieutenant Drum- mond, who was the first to suggest the using of oxyhydrogen light. To day there is no danger rock or polnt along any of the navigable coasta but has its modern lighthouse. the stranger’s Gst exploded again, and | Jove it!” added Jack, with great entbusiosm. the westerner fell dead. CONTRACTOR AND BUILD Having had twenty-one years’ experience in | and cortracting in Lakeland and vicinity, 1 feel corj to render the best services in this line. If comtem building, will be pleased to furnish estimates and all mation. All work guaranteed. : Phone 169. J. B. STREA COLELOL L0 I0L 4T+ 04000000 . [ oo s v v ev s o e e et WE SELL FOR CASH WL HAVE CUT THE PRICE W& SELL EVERYTHING FOR LESS Sugar, 16 pounds o Bacon, side, per pound . p\acun_ cut, per pound . [omatocs, S Vi s Fancy and Head Rice, pound . Meal, 10 pounds for .. . E_;’ig.] 10 pounds for v “lorida Symup, per quart .. Florida Syrup, y‘:r g‘allon ; Good Grade Corn, per can .. Good Grade Peas, per can . s\g:‘_Cre}im‘ per can 2% ite House Coffee, per can . Cracker Boy Coffee, pgrecan BOSAN Grated Sliced Pineapple, per can Roast Beef, per can Bulk Coffee, per pound . Flake White Lard, 10 pound pail . Flake White Lard, 4 pound pail . Catsup. Van Camp’s, per bottle . Trish Potatoes, per peck Sweet Potatoes, per peck . N_lvy Beans, per pound .. Lima Beans, per pound ... 5 Brookfield Butter, per pound ...