The Wahpeton times. [volume], June 21, 1917, Image 7

About The Wahpeton times. [volume] (Wahpeton, Richland County, Dakota [N.D.]) 1879-1919

Image provided by: State Historical Society of North Dakota

                
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A FORGOTTEN LETTER
By 8U8AN K. CLAQQETT.
The morning was dismal. In that It
was no different from the other morn
ings that had preceded It for six
weeks but day after day of dull
weather had at last had its effect upon
Patience Winthrop, and she was tin,
denlably depressed. This was strange,
because, as girl and woman, she had
spent her life in a Tillage that was
more or less enveloped by fog. But
today she hated the fog, the sea, every*
thing pertaining to the place die had
called home for thirty-odd years.
She had been watching night after
night with an old friend who for long
had promised herself, and her ac
quaintances, that her life would go out
"when the sun crossed the line."
Mrs. Walnwrlght took to her bed
twice a year about ten days before the
first equinoxlal storm, and there she
would stay until the day following the
twenty-first, when she would get up
feeling as spry as sparrows. Her
neighbors had heard her demands for
so long they had no other thought than
that she would be about as usual after
her ten days' rest. And then the un
usual happened. Her life went quietly
out as Patience Winthrop watched
with her alone.
This was two days before, and is
only pertinent to the story In so far as
it shows one of the causes of the de
pression that was pressing her down,
like a great hand choking the breath
out of her. The other was the finding
of the letter.
In the gray dawn of the September
morning as she was turning the leaves
of the Bible lying upon Mrs. Wain
wright's bedside table, she came upon
It, her own name staring up at her
from the yellowing envelope. Mrs.
Walnwrlght saw it in her hand and
gave a little gasp.
"I forgot it, Patience. When I re
membered I did not see you and then
I forgot it. John gave it to me long
ego, but I forgot. He hadn't ought to
have given it to me. He knew old
people's mem'ry ain't good. But he
did an' I jes* plain forgot It." She lay
quiet for a little while, then asked the
time. Patience told her.
"Four o'clock an' the tide's runnta'
out an' It's most time for the sun to
cross the line." Her breath came halt
ingly. "I'm—going—out—this—time—
Patience, an'—I'm—sorry—'bout—the
—letter—for—you've been—real—
good—to—me." She ended with a
sigh. That was all.
All through that day and the next
Patience had felt that life was not
worth the living. She had not read
the letter. For some reason she was
afraid, but as die stood by the win
dow peering out Into the grayness of
the. fog and listening to the ceaseless
rush of waters agalast the headland
whereon stood her home, She held it
tightly clasped within her hand.
It was ten years since she had
beard John Wainwrlght's name.
She heard the bell booming Its warn
ing from the lighthouse across the har
bor and faintly, afar off, the whistle
of a siren. A steamer was In distress
off the shoals.
The rubbing of her cat agalast her
brought her back to the warmth of the
tidy room as a knock sounded upon her
door. It was late, too late for visitors,
and she paused an Instant before open
ing it. She heard a Gambling against
the panel as If a hand was searching
for tbe latch, and she reached the door
as it fell open. A man staggered In,
lurched forward and sprawled upon
the flow.
He had fallen face downward and it
took all of Patienee's strength to turn
the heavy figure and draw it toward
the stove. Then she went systematical
ly to work to restore consciousness.
It took long. Not until he opened
his eyes and looked full into her face
did she know him, and then all she
said was, "Why, John!" But she
dropped on the floor beside him, lift
ed the heavy head onto her lap and
began crooning over him with unaccus
tomed words that sounded strange
coming from lips that had never be
fore used them.
He was ill for weeks, and in his
delirium, he talked much about a let
ter. His Insistent demand brought
again to Patience's mind the one she
had found in his mother's Bible, and
she read it. It was short.
"Dear Patience," she read. "I ship
tonight on the Prince George, which
sails at daybreak. This is sudden, but
tbe mate was took sick an* Cap Baker
come after me. Write me a line to
Kingston, Jamaica. Cap don't know
when he'll be home, as he's trampln'.lt
an' may go roun' the world. I love
you, my girl, and want you to marry
me when I get back. John."
For a time she struggled with her
self, then said huskily:
"John, I have just read your letter,
tiie one you left with your mother."
She held it before him. "When you
are well there will be time enough to
talk this out between us. What I
want to know now is, do you still mean
what you put down there?" pointing to
tbe letter.
"Mean it?" he whispered faintly.
Tm not the man to change," his voice
trailed off.
(Copyright. 1917. by the McClure Newspa
per Syndicate.)
Getting Experience.
"Is your boy Josh doing well?"
"Of course," replied Farmer Corn
tossel. "Josh has managed to be so pa
tient with his last boss that I'm kind o'
hopeful he'll be able to come back to
the farm and get along with
im."
By EARL REBD SILVERS,
The canoe swept gracefully down the
:ast of the rapids and was guided eas
ily to die wooded bank.
"That Is Hankin8ville,M remarked
Vincent Rossell, indicating a cluster of
white houses about half a mile down
the river. "I have a letter of Introduc
tion to a girl who lives there. She's
ft fourth or fifth cousin of mine."
Austin Livingstone smiled.
"You seem to have a cousin in every
port," he remarked. "But this time
you haven't anything on me. I once
snew a girl from Hankinsville myself."
"Where did you meet her?"
Down at Atlantic City two years
ago. It was during a Paul Jones at a
hotel ball. We had a wonderful dance
together, but she refused to tell me her
name until we were properly Intro
duced. She said, however, that she
came from Hankinsville. I expected
to look her up the next day, but I was
called away suddenly and haven't seen
her since."
Vincent looked interested.
"Perhaps she is the same girl Tm
looking for," he suggested. "What was
•he like?"
"Light hair, blue eyes and red
cheeks," Austin answered.
"She may be the same one," Vincent
glanced at his watch. "The girl Tm
hunting for is Doris Osborn, but we'll
never find her if we don't hurry up.
Let's get to work."
For a few minutes they busted them
selves with pots and pans and other
Implements of camp life.
Supper was eaten and the dishes
washed and stowed away before an
other thirty minutes had passed. Then,
togged out in all the finery of their
best camping-trip clothes, the two men
made their way to Hankinsville.
The village was situated on the bank
of the Delaware river—a group of spot
lessly clean houses clustered together
on tha-top of a hill. In the very cen
ter, facing the river, stood a typical
summer hotel, with the village store
and post office opposite.
"We'll step In and ask the postmas
ter where the Osborns live," Vincent
announced. "He'll probably be able to
tell us better than anyone else."
They stood for a moment on the steps
leading to the store. From the hotel
opposite came the sound of merry
voices, and as they watched a bevy of
summer girls strolled arm In arm down
the broad steps of the veranda. As
they passed the two strangers one ol
them looked coyly over her shoulder
and smiled Into their eyes.
Austin touched his companion's arm.
"Why bother looking up your friend
Doris?" he asked. "It seems to me we'd
have a better time If we spent the
night at the hotel."
"Well, we'll see."
Vincent's eyes were turned Interest
edly down the road leading away from
the river and Austin's glance followed
the direction of his gaze. Coming
toward them he spied a girl dressed In
some sort of shimmering green. Her
hair was the color of golden rod in the
late autumn and her arms and neck
had been tinted with the deepest tan
by the summer sun.
"I have a presentiment," said Vin
cent suddenly, ~that that girl Is Doris
Osborn."
"If it is," Austin answered, "I don'l
think we'll bother about the hotel,
after all."
They moved to one side as the girl
reached tbe steps. She glanced at them
as she passed, and nodded pleasantly.
Vincent entered the store.
"I'd like tbe Osborn mail,* he heard
her say.
Without waiting for the postmaster's
answer, he hurried out to the porch.
"Ifs her,"" he announced wtth the
careless disregard of the rules of gram
mar.
The girl reappeared, batch of tat
ters in her hand. The two men watched
as she sorted them eagerly, selecting
three which she placed in a small satin
handbag on her arm. She walked lei
surely down the road.
"I'm going to speak to her," Vincent
announced. "Come on."
He seized the unprotestlng Austin by
the arm. and hurried after the girl.
"I beg your pardon," he said when
he had reached her side, "but my name
is Vincent RosseiL"
She looked at him inquiringly, with
the hint of a twinkle In her eye.
"I'm very pleased to know It," she
answered In just tbe kind of voice Vin
cent knew she would have. "Are yon
trying to flirt with me?"
He flushed ever so slightly.
"No, Indeed," he protested earnestly,
"I believe that I have something for
you."
He fished hastily into the Inner
pocket of his coat and drew forth a tat
tered letter addressed to Miss Doris
Osborn.
"Will you please read this?" he
asked.
She took the envelope and looked at
It curiously. For a moment she hesi
tated.
"It seems to have gone through the
war," she remarked.
•I know," he laughed lightly, "but
we've been canoeing for the past two
weeks, and it's been wet."
It didn't take very long for Doris
to remember Kitty Dale and to read
her letter of introduction. She greeted
Vincent pleasantly, but when she
turned to Austin her eyes opened wide.
"I believe we have met before," she
remarked.
Austin was grinning from ear to ear.
"We surely have," he answered.
"You're the girl from Hankinsville."
(Copyright, llfo b^UyMcClure Newapa.
Tha common seamussel existsln al
most Inexhaustible numbers along
much of the Atlantic seaboard. An ar
ticle in a recent issue of the American
Museum journal calls attention to the
fact that the sea mussel is a source of
much nutritious food, for Its flesh is
the most valuable In nutritive ele
ments of any of the shellfish, and In
palatabllity and digestibility is second
to none. The mussel occurs In masses,
literally hundreds to the square yard,
adhering to rocks, to sand and to one
another. The ability of the sea mus
sel to exist in such crowded masses de
pends upon Its power of movement, its
means of anchoring itself firmly, and
the wonderful efficiency with which it
can collect food, of which It finds an
unlimited supply in the form of minute
particles of decaying vegetable matter
and In the group of microscopic organ
isms known as diatoms. Although the
mussel has a host of enemies, it has
also unlimited powers of reproduction,
for each female lays from 10,000,000
to 15,000,000 eggs a year. Probably
the competition for food between the
members-of the community, itself re
sults in a greater mortality than ail
Its enemies cause, for enormous num
bers of mussels are smothered every
day by their offspring, which, in the
struggle for existence, bury their par
ents beneath them. The United States
bureau of fisheries has Issued a bul
letin that describes the food value of
sea mussels, and tells how to cook
tbem.—Youth's Companion.
rHE REFRESHMENT SCHEDULE
Wlfey—Come, Henry, It is time fot
you to get out and work the lawn
mower.
Hubby—All right, Marie, and it is
time for you to go in the pantry and
work the lemon squeezer.
Humming.
Human beings are the only crea
tures born with the ability to hum ex
cept, of course, the humming birds.
Humming birds, however, have to hum
for a living, while the average human
only hums at odd moments us sort
of relaxation. It seems probable thai
most men could not shave or tie their
ties if they weren't able to hum a few
burs while thus employed. Very often
at such times you find that you are
improvising pretty little snatches of
song that the world should not willing
ly see die. You feel that If you had
taken the thing up when younger you
might have made a first-rate composer.
You try the thing over and it seems
to want Its first charm. Lots of little
musical gems are lost to the world In
this way. The man who does not hum
or yodel while busy about the bath
room is as unnatural a creature as the
woman who is not beguiled by a bar
gain.—Exchange.
Hard to Get Home.
The adventures of a Russian In at
tempting to reach his country to re
port for military service were related
before a London court. The man had
previously served tn the Russian army,
and on being discharged had gone to
Egypt where he carried on business as
a tobacconist at Alexandria. In No
vember, 1916, the Russian consul at
Alexandria circulated a notice culling
upon all Russian subjects to report
themselves. He immediately gave up
his business and proceeded to his na
tive country. The ship on which he
sailed was torpedoed off the Island of
Crete. Later be reached Malta, and
from there he proceeded to England,
where be enlisted.
Stone Forecasts Weather.
There is said to be a kind of stone
In Finland which, like barometer,
forecasts the weather. This stone,
cording to report, turns black or
ish gray when rain or bad
approaching, yet becomes covered
small white spots at the
clear weather. Many attribute
ac­
hi
si elf­
weather
is
with
approach
of
the
changes to tlie stone's fossil mixed
with clay and containing rock salt,
nitre or ammonia, which, in proportion
to the amount of water vapor which
the air contains, attracts the dampness
or gives Its own off. When It attracts
It becomes black when It gives off
moisture and the salt gets dry the
"nsr
the air contains UtUe moisture. bushels of seed per acta.
.FINE EARLY. SQUASHES
Difficulty Experienced In North Where
8sason Is Short—Wise to Start
Under Glass in Pots.
In many localities it has been a dif
ficult matter in recent years to grow
fine squashes and have them fully
ripened before frost came. This Is es
pecially true at the north where the
season Is short, and difficulty Is ex
perienced In getting the seed to grow
when planted in the spring.
It is a wise plan to start pumpkins
cucumbers and squashes In flower pots
under glass, so that the plants will
have a good start and will be ready for
blooming much sooner than those
planted in the open ground.
A three or four-inch pot will hold
from one to three seeds and the plants
may be allowed to become nice size
before being transplanted. The trans
planting Is easily done, and there
should be no Injury to the roots.
Simply turn the pot over and strike
the edge on a box or board. The ball
of earth holding the well-formed mnss
of roots will drop from the pot, and
can be placed In the cavity made to re
ceive it the plants will scarcely show
they were disturbed, and long before
other squash or pumpkin vines are in
bloom, the pot plants will have blos
somed. They will not need any protec
tion from pollen from other plants
causing danger of mixing, which is so
detrimental In recent years.
ELIMINATION OF ALL WASTE
Methods Which Have Been Discovered
for Developing By-Products—Use
Cull Potatoes.
Every farmer and fruit grower
should secure a copy of the annual re
port for 1915 of Chief Chemist Als
berg of the department of agriculture,
Washington, D. C., which tells, in
a most interesting and Instructive way,
of the research work done during the
past year and of the methods which
have been discovered for making new
uses of by-products and preventing
waste which is the bane of Amerlcun
life.
Successful experiments were con
ducted in drying potatoes on a com
mercial scale for stock feed. In or
der to provide an outlet for cull po
tatoes, better methods were discov
ered for making potato starch, glucose
and dextrine.
It was demonstrated that a number
of valuable by-products can be ob
tained from the waste of canning fac
tories. Oil, closely resembling the oil
of bitter ulinonds, was found in cherry
pits. The other waste products of
the canning fuctorles produced valu
able sirups, jellies and alcohol.
What farmers need most these days
is an outlet for surplus crops. .The
law of supply and demand usually
takes care of the main crops.
SOY BEANS ARE LEGUMINOUS
Common Practice to Drill Them To
gether With Corn—Hogs Do Well
on 8uch a Ration.
(By E. PENCE.)
Like corn, the soy bean is a hot
weather plant and does best where the
season and soil are favorable to corn
growing. The soli should be prepured
the same as for corn, plowing deep
and working down to a fine, firm seed
bed. It is a common practice to drill
soybeans and corn together, hogging
off In the fall. This Is a fine combina
tion and bogs do well on such a ration.
Three or four beans to tbe foot In a
row is proper distance to sow when
drilling with corn. When drilled alone
it would be better to sow a little more
thickly.
As a forage crop the soy beans are
about equal to alfalfa in protein value
and as palatable and digestible. They
belong to the leguminous family such
as clovers, vetches, cow peas, etc., hav
ing the power of extracting the most
expensive plant food from the uir and
storing it in the soil.
Wheg sowing to a fleld where they
have never been grown, the seed or
soil should be inoculated. This cun
be done by tuking soil from afield pre
viously planted with soy beans and
scattering it over the fleld you intend
to sow, and harrow immed!ately, or
mix with the seed and drill.
There are a number of varieties,
early, medium and late. The medium
will ripen in about 110 days. They
are great soil builders and often yield
sssr jtsjissss
Western Lambs on Soy Beans and
Corn Pasture.
Assured meat values of the future, the
need of greater economy In the use of
farm labor, and the full utilization of
pastures place sheep raising In an en
tirely new light.
"Some agricultural journals and
other authorities have been inclined to
question the safety of enguging in
sheep raising and base their ideas upon
statistical facts of decline In popular
ity of sheep in eastern states. Such
statistical deductions are entirely mis
leading, as nowhere is there an in
stance in the TMted States of a decline
in a well-established sheep husbandry
based on the production of both meat
and wool.
"The farm flocks that have disap
peared In the' past were raised- pri
marily and almost entirely for wool
production and beyond the fact that
they were pheep had little In common
For the Blue-Jackets
BIG PROFIT IN SHEEP
As Safe and Attractive as Any
Other Line of Stock.
Nowhere Is There an Instance of Do*
dine in Weil-Established Hus
bandry Based on Production
of Meat and Wool.
Raise sheep! This was the advice
of F. R. Marshall of the bureau of ani
mal industry, {Jnlted States depart
ment of agriculture in an address be
fore the members of the Kansas Sheep
Breeders' association at the agricul
tural college In connection with farm
and home work.
"It is now time for the live-stock
farmer to make sheep raising one of
his regular lines of production," said
Mr. Marshall. "Putting aside the ef
fects of war conditions, prospective
values of lambs and wool render sheep
raising fully as safe and attractive, to
the man who will study and under
stand the business, as is the raising of
cattle, horses or swine.
"Prior to 1914 such a statement as
this would not have been justifiable.
A E A E
triumph in soft drinks, by allowing it
to be sold and served on all naval
vessels.
Ashore or afloat, you will find in Bevo
a palate-pleasing, refreshing and nu
tritious beverage.
Just the thing to take along for sail
or cruise—auto trip or camp and for
the ice-box at home.
Bevo—the all-year-'round
soft drink
Bevo is sold in bottles only and is bottled
exclusively by
ANHEUSER-BUSCH—ST.
Louis
WARD-OWSLEY CO.
Wholesale Dealers FARGO, N. D.
14L
wfth" the kfhd of sheep that are now
being placed upon American farms and
which will he found in the near future
on nearly all farms.
"An Important feature in starting
the sheep business is to quickly work
Into a flock of about 100 ewes, or as
Is recommended by the University of
Illinois, a ewe for each two acres of
the farm. The small flock which has
heretofore been recommended for
using weeds and waste feed, and inci
dentally as a small source of profit, Is
the flock that becomes diseased and, be
cause of its Insignificance in the farm
business, is certain to be neglected."
CABBAGE REQUIRES RICH SOIL
Early Varieties Most Acceptable as
They Come When Such Food la
Needed—Grow Quickly.
Cabbage is easily grown if the soil
Is rich enough, and the very early va
rieties are most acceptable, as they
come at a time when such food is most
needed. The style of head varies so
much that every taste should be grati
fied. Round head or pointed head,
flat head or drum head, stone head
and sure head, all have their vir
tues.
Grow them quickly and feed the
soil, and almost any of the standard
varieties will give satisfaction. One
year one kind will seem to excel and
another year this same variety will be
a disappointment. Much depends on
the soil and the season.
Cauliflower Is almost as easily grown
as cabbage, but more apt to be in
fested with worms, and for this rea
son is not a favorite with the ordi
nary gardener.
Locates Well Trouble.
When a 1,400-foot well in a west
ern town was yielding impure water,
the superintendent of the water works
wondered how he could locate the trou
ble. Finally he decided to lower a
cluster of electric lights Into the well,
and to follow them by the aid of a
fleldglass. The trouble was located
at a depth of 110 feet, where loose
packing permitted surface water to
enter.
Education.
It Is, no doubt, a very laudable ef
fort, in modern teaching, to render as
much as possible of what the young
are required to learn easy and Interest
ing. But when this principle Is pushed
to the length of not requiring them to
iearn anything but what has been made
easy and Interesting, one of the chief
»bjects of education is sacrificed.^
John Stuart MMl.
Tit
Naturally.
Delivering an address at a Sunday
school recently, a visitor spoke on the
moral development of children. "There
Is a boy here," he said, "and girl
there. What will they become when
they grow up?" In a loud whisper
one of the scholars, turning to his
teacher, supplied an answer.—"Sweet
hearts I"
The Curs for Grief.
The only core for grief Is action.-*
George Henry Lewis. 1