The Washburn leader. [volume], March 17, 1911, Image 2

About The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986

Image provided by: State Historical Society of North Dakota

                
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The Old Man
of Oragua
A Story of Life In the Wed
Copyright by American Press Asso
elation, l!lll.
Ralph Freeman lilted buck hi his
chair against tlio whitewashed wall 1
the long building and stared at the
glory of the setting sun beyond lhe
Caribbean sea. The magazine he 1J .1
been refilling slipped through his list
less fingers and clattered to the floor.
It was the close of a hot day in
Porto iiico, one of those steaming
tropical days that is so like its pred
ecessor in every detail of climate hnil
occupation that all perception of time
is lost and one lives in a dreamy haze
of unreality.
Ralph Freeman had lived that way
for a year, ever since he had fallen
heir to a small banana plantation and
left the States to carve a fortune for
himself. There had come to him abun
dant health, very little money and less
happiness than he had
4
*JTtA
FOUND HIMSELF HOLDING IIKB HANDS.
a
bound he bad reached the wooden
stairs, raced down tliem to the water's
edge and then, impatient of delay,
dashed knee high into the wares and
rescued the bobbing bottle.
,A" nuULIinur 111' 1 IJlfR^ »VVmillJ UdULU inwirm pro.-«.•-..»•„
Indies.
By MARY D. PARKE.
i-Npeeted.
I1k
lie
had left behind him a broken engage
ment. lie had been liercly jealous of
Lillian, and she liaii appeared to ac
cept. the attentions of that rich cotlon
broker
witlicojnplaeciicy.
When Ralph
reproached her matters had come so
swiftly to a head that it was uoj until
he \v :s on tli.- steamer bound for I'm--j
to Rico that he realized be must in:
reality begin all over again.
Now he had been reading a lnaga
zinc story of a man in the tropics, a
man who was separated front the girl
be loved: bow- the girl, passing on a
jatclit, had tossed a bottle overboard, a
bottle containing a letter to 1lu man.
It was a pretty story, a clever story,
but a very unlikely tiling to happen,
thought Freeman moodily, lie was
situated much as that other man was,
but there would never be any bottle
or message for him! If Lillian had
married
cotton broker it would not
be strange if she was cruising in tiie
Caribbean waters, but that she cared
enough' to send him a message of any
sort he did not believe. Such things
might happen in stories—
"There were giants in the earth in
those days," he quoted cynically, just
as his eye was arrested by the glitter
of sunlight oa a bottle dancing on the
wavi'-s close to the white beach. Willi
Empty it was now, aud he tossed it
down on the pebbles with an angry
laugh.
He was tired of his solitary exist
ence
ho longed inexpressibly for the
ha\uit&
of
men.
Days passed and
weeks slipped away
in the dreamy
ex­
istence on Ibis tropic Isle. Tlie work
on bis plantation required little super
vision, and the negro hands appeared
to idle the long days through, and yet
somehow the crops were harvested
and shipped by mule team to the near
est port where the fruit steamers
touched. His one story office building
was a tiny affair, and one hour a day
was ample to keep his business cor
respondence and accounts in perfect
order. His field hands lived in scat
tered huts somewhere about, and in
this isolated region he was often call
ed upon to act as physician to the suf
fering bodies of his childlike neigh
bors when the voodoo doctors failed
to work a cure.
Suddenly he was seized with a de
sire for home—to see cities full of
white men, to feel the hard pavement
under his feet, to be hemmed in by
cliffs of brick and stone, to hear the
din of traffic and to participate In the
light aad gayety of scenes of pleasure.
By traveling all night he could catch
the fruit s.teamer that In passing might
dro&hiin at Sap Juan. From there be
couM take a steamer for HOME. Now
-to thought of home In capital letters.
Rodriguez, his Portuguese foreman,
might harvest the next crop. He would
see to things later. Now he must go
borne.
He rushed Into his bedroom, locked
up bis books and few personal belong
ings and tossed some clothing Into a
bag. Servants rushed hither and thlth
«r at
bl««
ass*,
commands. Rodriguez has-
**tened from bis abode and received his
orders In stolid acquiescence. A mule
team clattered before the door in the
.Moonlight, and bis traps were bundled
•M-.
&
Into the wagon, and he took bis 6eal
beside the driver.
The
long whitewashed building
gleamed while
in
the
north were calling
They plunged into the forest road,
the messenger running beside the cart,
one hand r,-.- ing on the shaft. Free
man sank into moody reflection. He
regarded this interruption as an au
gury lli.it he I. 1 be.: 'r.'ic behind.
Among these souerstilious people ho
was growing to Relieve in all sorts of
signs «::il rr:V.v aivsrs
of it. It did not -cur to liiui now to
turn away from the sick man. Go he
must, if only tu 'f his scanty but
practical hum, :gc of medicine to
soothe pain or pel haps effect a cure.
His remedies were mo fly the simple
old fashioned ones he had learned
from his mother.
Oragua lay over to the south, a tiny
scattering of huts near the beach a
few miles away from his plantation.
In going there he could not catch the
fruil steamer. Missing that, ii would be
days before he might get another, un
less he traversed many miles :r rough
roads (o roach a railroad line. He set
tled despondently in his seat, his mo
mentary enthusiasm smothered by the
pressing necessity of the moment.
lie discovered the old man sunk in a
state of coma. He had suffered a
stroke of apoplexy, and there was
nothing the young American could do,
save to apply simple remedies thai
would at least satisfy the wailing rel
atives that he was doing something.
In fact, his presence was needless, his
sacrifice in vain.
Morning found him closing the eyes
of the old nnin of Oragua. who had
al'ler all gone to the Groat Physician
to tie cured spiritually as well as bod
ily of his ailments. When he had
withdrawn from tli hut of mourning
and Dominique had thrust in the carl
a large basket of fruit that the grate
ful relatives of the old man of Oragua
had pressed upon Freeman the hitter
walked down to a little point of land
that jutted into the sea. When he
emerged from a grove of palms into
the full sunlight lie was startled by
the sight of a large steamer lying per
haps a quarter of a mile from shore.
Two small launches were putting off
from her. and another was almost UH
cler his very nose at the water's edge.
Wild with excitement, he rushed
away and called his servant to bring
his luggage. Then he intercepted the
lirst boat, which'had just landed a
dozen tourists, men and women, whe
looked at the sua browned American
with friendly eyes.
From the sailors Freeman learned
that the vessel was the Triposa, a
tourist steamer, cruisiiig among the
islands. Her steering gear had gone
wrong off Oragua, aud while it wa?
being repaired those passengers who
desired it bad gone ashore. The steam
er was outward bound from New York
and would make San Juan in the
course of her trip. They thought it
likely that the captain would take
Freeman as a passenger.
Delighted at this happy turn of fate
which seemed to have been brough:
about by the old man of Oragua, RalpL
found infinite satisfaction in seeing hit
luggage stowed in the boat. Then IH.
gave final directions to Dominique
and bade him farewell.
Now the other launches landed theb
tourists, and they, too, gazed at Free
man as they streamed past. Suddenly
his heart jumped madly and the blood
raced through his veins as it had not
done since he had last seen Lillian
Wade. For there she was, staring
back with wondering eyes, starry with,
happiness at seeing him.
Forgetful of the cotton broker and
bis possible relationship to Lillian,
Ralph Freeman found himself holding
her hands and trying to appear con
ventional before many curious eyes.
At a little distance he saw an aston
ished looking elderly woman who seem
ed to be waiting for Lillian.
"Oh, Ralph! To think you should
be here!" She was breathing quickly.
"I was going to you—I'll tell you all
about it later. Then you haven't for
gotten me, and. you have forgiven me
for being' such a brute?" be fairly
stammered in his baste.
"I've been punished, Ralph, for my
perversity," she said humbly. "I did
not care a bit for that man, only 1 was
vexed that you should doubt my loy
alty in the least. Come and be intro
duced to Mrs. Ford—I am traveling
with her. It Is all so wonderful!"
"You can thank the old man of Ora
gua for this, dear," he. said to her as
they went along. And to himself be
whispered softly, wonderlngly, "And
you can bet I believe tbere are giants
to these davstoo!"
.mr,^
v«. f. xu» *w* v* p*w
AH ABSTRACT OF TITLE is as necessary as a Deed to show you have good title to your land. Have yon got one? II not, order
the moonlight the
sea was an expanse
of
molten gold
sky showed stars dimmed by the
full moon riding high in the heavens
There was the heavy scent of luscious
fruits and flowers, the rank smoll -of
vegetation, the' peace of the land of
the palm, but
tbs
cold cities of the
to
him, and he was
going—going home!
Exhilarated, he tu.-ned and waved a
farewell to his survnnts. "Adins!
Adios!" he called, throwing silver
among them. Then there broke from
among the palms fringing the planta
tion a running dark form, a man
speeding in haste, and Freeman's heart
sank a little, because he knew the
signs. This messenger was from one
in trouble. Some one sick or dying
needed him.
"I will not go," he told himself fierce
ly, but when the native had thrown
himself at his feet and begged him to
come to hi^ Jnther Freeman found
hic. self relenting.
"\Vlio is your father?'' he asked to
gain time, not that it mattered, for
there was no caste among his people.
"The old man of Oragua!" cried the
man. "If the master comes not he
Will die!"
"Why, he is the voodoo man! Well,
no pli.vsi' ian can cur'e himself. I'll
go. Drive on, Dominique, to Oragua!"'
qf
•vS
arm
Garden
FIGHT THE WiLD CARROT.
This Weed Is a Great Spreader, but
Not Very Hard to Eradicate
The wild carrbt, familiarly known as
"bird's nest" or "Queen Anne's lace,"
is found on wild laud and along the
roads in the eastern half of the Unit
ed States and Canada. It came here
from England. it produces flower
stalks from one to three feet high aud
hiis tall, slender^ hollow stems and a
finely cut icaf. The flowers are white,
and the clusters with the stems re
sembie an umbrella. It has a very
strong^ suffocating odor when in bloom,
and tliis with its nocfar attracts score?
insects, it blwrns from June to
September. The large number of in
sects which visit it make polleuiza
tion almost sure, which partly ac
counts for the readiness with which it
spreads, says Farm and Fireside.
It is a biennial, and the first season
It produces rather a low vegetative
growth. The second season it sends up
long flower stems. The seeds are very
numerous, and if the flower stems are
cut down before seed has been form
ed new stems will come up.
This weed is a demon to spread* but
not very hard to eradicate. Good cul-
iv'sAXvY'
Fftotograph by Iowa State College of Ag
riculture.
WIIIT
CAIiltOT.
tivaiion will keep it out of cropped
fields, especially where there is a ro
tation including one or more cultivat
ed
crops.
lu permanent pastures,
along ads and in other places not
cultivated it should be cut down with
the scythe. This must be done repeat
edly to keep the new flower stems that
spring up from carrying their seeds to
maturity, but persistent cutting will
kill the weed out, generally in two
years. If the weeds are not too nu
merous they carivbe killed off individ
ually once and for all by cutting the
root underground with a spud, sharp
spade or other handy implement.
Recent tests have indicated that the
wild carrot is vulnerable to several
weed killing sprays. One solution that
is recommended is sodium arsenite,
one pound to twenty-six gallons of wa
ter, sprayed on when the plants are
dry.
When we have repaired the
buildings'where our live stock is
kept through the winter would it
not be well to visit the "cchool
house on the hill" and loo'. over
the buildings where the children
spend the winter days?
Tobacco Stem* For Fertilizer.
Tobacco stems are sometimes sold
as a fertilizer. If comparatively dry
they contain something over 2 per cent
of nitrogen, a trace of phosphoric qcid
and 5 or ti per cent of potash. Tbey
usually retail around $14 a ton and
are well worth the money.—American
Agriculturist.
Advice to Corn Growers.
Unless there is an experienced and
successful corn breeder in the vicinity
who makes a specialty of growing first
class seed corn every farmer had bet
ter make his own selection from bis
own field or from the best fields of
neighboring farms.
Try Peppers For- Profit.
Peppers may be easily grown in all
parts of the country, and market prices
are generally quite, good. Foreigners
consume them in large quantities, and
Americans are using them more ex
tensively than a few years ago.
N
Currants and gooseberries may be
pruned as soon as the leaves fall, or
the work may be left untii early
spring Cut back one-third of last
year's growth and thin out surplus,
diseased or unthrifty shoots.
There are thousands of dollars
lost every year by sowing poor
seeds. Do not expect a good
crap when poor seed* are sown.
8sasons, good cultivation and
proper fertilization will not
compensate for sssd from in-'
ferio» plants.
gPBWP TWW
l-
and
A Self Confessed
Criminal
Showing How Superior the De
tective Is to the Open
Court Method.
By EDWARD BLAKE.
Copyright by American Press Asso
ciation, 1911.
A lawyer, especially a criminal law
yer, has often great difficulty in learn
ing from bis client the true facts in a
case for which be is retained. The
lawyer should know whetber or no his
client, if accused of a crime, is guilty
or innocent. Soon after
I
practice my profession
I
INTO EACH OTHER'S All IIS.
reason for her voluntary confession
she said she was induced to make it
on account of a guilty conscience.
I entered
a
plea of not guilty for my
client and called in two experts in chi
rography to pass upon the writing.
The body of the check
was
BOW
began to
I
was retained
by a woman accused of forgery. 1
asked her if she was .innocent, and
she confessed that she was guilty. 1
submitted a similar hypothetical case
to the judge before whom the woman
was to be tried and asked him wheth
er it was my duty, knowing her to be
guilty, to defend ber or refuse to do
so.
His reply was that it was my duty
to defend her that it was the business
of the jury, not the attorney nor the
judge, to determine the matter of guilt
or innocence.
Mrs. Rebecca Irwin, my self con
fessed client, was a very feminine per
son, but back of her femininity was
evidently a certain peculiar strength.
I would take her rather for one to
give away what she had than to take
money from another, especially dis
honestly. Slio v.-ns somewhere between
thirty a^u forty years old and a very
pretty woman—that is, as beauty is in
a .woman of that age. Above all,
ehe possessed a very melodious voice,
something in a woman always very
attractive to me. In short, I became
interested in my client at once.
The crime was forging check of
Edgar Jones, payable to himself. His
name was also forged on the back of
the check. The paying teller at the
bank had no remembrance to whom
the money was paid. When the for
gery was discovered and reported th»
oflicers of the bank, suspecting that
some one of .the bank's clerks had
something to do with the fraud, em
ployed a detective to investigate the
matter. He was at work on the case
when my client went to the president
of the bank and confessed that she
had made the forged check and had
drawn t.b»"money. When asked her
in one
band, while the signatures were in air
otber. My experts stated that the
writing in the body was something
similar to that of my client, but they
pronounced the signatures to have
been made by another person from the
filler of the paper and certainly no)
that of my client. The prosecuting at
torney's experts declared that my cli
ent had both filled in the check and
written the signatures.
What puzzled me was that Mrs. Ir
win- manifested no interest in secur
ing an acquittal. She said she felt
that she had committed a sin and could
never hope to obtain any mental (torn
fort In the matter till she had paid
the penalty. Her actions were so
strangely at variance with her confes5
alon that I was forced to the conclu
sion that she was laboring under a
hallucination. Without Intimating to
her my object 1 asked her for Infor
mation as to her family record, think
ing I might discover that' tliere was
Insanity in her family which bad crop
ped out in her. S&e resolutely declined
to assist me in the matter, but I bunt
ed up a cousin of hers, who informed
me that a maternal jgrandmother of bis
own and Mrs. Irwin's had in her old
Ige fanciedJierself to be troubled with
malignant spirits
Acting upon this, I called in alienists,
hoping- to prove by them an abnormal
mental condition on the part of my
client. The first alienist who exam
ined her pronounced her in perfect
health in every respect. .Including ber
mind. The second, after a great deal
•f cross questioning, In wblfch he was
endeavoring to fulfill a theory gave
It as his opinion that she bad received!
at some time a severe shock which
might have produced ism!4 aberra
tion.
Never did an attorney get l:o!d of a
more puzzling ust, snd both Judge
ind jury were similar'/ affected. As
for me. my sympathies were so far en
$ listed for my client tbat I could not tlx
my mind on any other subject. It she
I I a
y'l ..-I ferr*
r-
*v d®rx?*5rS**«**swr
crime there was something unusual,
something noble, in ber desire to ex
plate it. If she were
mind and not guilty the mystery of
the case was sufficient to enlist one's
deepest interest.
The result of all this was tliafl fell
in lbve with my client. She was fully
ten years my senior, a widow, aud liv
ing on the slenderest income. None of
these considerations was in itself suf
ficient to prevent my loving her or mar
rying ber, but to feel that my happi
ness was dependent upon a union with
a self confessed forger was suflSci^nt
to drive rne to insanity.
The theory of justice is tbat an ac
cused person is either innocent or
guilty—that he must be proved guilty
to be punished. Nevertheless com
promise, which enters into all other
matters of life, enters into law as well.
The jury was obliged to bring in a
verdict of guilty^ but recommended the
culprit to "mercy. The consequence
was that in sentencing her the judge
gave iier the lightest sentence, possi
ble within the law. He condemned
her to serve a term of six months in
the state penitentiary.
That a woman
I
had come to love
should spend one minute behind bars
was not only abhorrent to me, but it
unbalanced my equanimity.
I
Ge&lfhg from film the address of
'young Irwin, I eailttd a carriage and
xlrove to where he was employed and
told blm 1 wished him to go with me
to his mother. He did so. and 1 an
nounced to both that there was no ne
cessity for further mystery, since the
case had been worked out to a fin
ish. Their first act^ after the announce
ment was to spring into each other's,
arms. Mrs. Irwin bad persuaded her
sou to make no opposition to her
course, assuring blm that she would
never have to go to prison.
And so it was tbat I fell In love with
a confessed forger and married a no
ble woman. The case wbich comes
so near to me baa given me a realiza
tion of the imperfection of human jus
tice. While 1. in open court, was work
ing upon the surface with experts,
judge and Jury.. another, having no
connection whatever with the. court,
was silently milling upon a thread that
led him to the truth.
UU11
1
at once
4noved for a new trial, then when
alone with my client confessed my
love for her.
She was strangely moved by my ccon
fession. It seemed to give her both
happiness and misery. When I asked
her as to her feelings toward me she
broke down, weeping profusely, but
gave no answer. When she had quiet
ed she begged me to let the sentence
of tho court stand. She would serve
her term and the suspense would be
ended.
1 would not agree to this. I ob
tained a new trial, which coukl not be
brought to pass for several -months,
but the judge was willing to accept
bail, and I furnished the necessary
amount inyself, so that my client's
liberty until the case was finally closed
was not in question.
One morning the president of the
bank on which the forged check bad
been drawn sent for me. I went at
once to see him. He took me into his
pfivate office and sai€l to mo:
"This case of yours in the matter of
tho state against Mrs. Rebecca Irwin
is a very singular one. Do you know
that your client is not guilty?"
"I believe it, but I can't prove it.
And this fact is driving me mad."
"You don't need to ptove it. Wo
have the proof hero in the bank."
"What do you mean?"
"Listen. From the first we have had
a detective working on the case. When
Mrs. Irwin confessed I told him that
there was no further use for his serv
ices. He replied that the case would
prove to be a mystery and that he had
got hold of a clew which might lead
to its solution. Of course I told him
to go ahead, He claimed that Mrs.
Irwin's confession, turning suspicion
from the real culprit, would aid him
(the detective) greatly in prosecuting
his investigations.
"Well, he has just made a report.
It is this: One of our clerks named
Dixon, a youngster of twenty, is the
forger. He has been intimate with
Julian Irwin,, aged sixteen, the son of
the self accused woman."
"What!" I interrupted. "She never
told me she had a son."
"Young Irwin was one day scribbling
on some blank checks. Dixon got hold
of one of those checks, the body of
which was filled in. the name of the
drawer of the check and the person to
whom it was made payable alone be
ing wanting. Dixon filled in the name
and made the indorsement and a long
while afterward asked Irwin as a fa
vor to draw the money.
"When Irwin, though innocent, found
himself implicated in. the matter be
went to hi« mother and told her the
circumstances. An attorney was con
sulted, who told the mother and son
that if Dixon was prosecuted Irwin
must stand trial for forgery, with the
probability of conviction, for Dixon
would doubtless try to throw the
whole responsibility on the boy he had
made his tool."
"I see it all. But go on.'V
"To hush the matter up, thus saving
her son from a blighted Jlfe, bis moth
er confessed herself a forger."
"God bless hert" exclaimed. "She
tried to conceal her nobility from me,
but failed." S
"The experts were all at sea," re
marked the president.
"Mine were not. Tbey pronounce^
the writing in the body different from
that of the. signatures."
"My client bas not yet been informed
of this oiBttwery?* I assed presently.
"No. You are the oniy person thus
far, besides myself, to know it."
$*»*
Irom SECURITY ABSTRACT LOAW CO.. ffashbcra
Lot
of sound
arm
and
Garden
WATER
Good Trades In Bottle Product Possh
ble In. Many Localities.
Water as a crop bas not received the
attention from farmers which it de
serves, according to experts who have ,•
investigated the matter. In their opto
ion there are many districts in this,
country in' which profitable trades in?:
bottled water could be worked up at
little cost to the farmers, provided, of
course, they have never failing springs,
of
pure
water from which to supply
the demand.
A great many cities are complaining
of the inferior quality of the water fur
nished by the city waterworks, and
the coming of the "water wagon" la
den with bottles the contents of which
would be guaranteed pure and whole
some by chemical analysis would bo
a welcome- sight. A recent case in
which a good business in bottled water
has been established is that of a farm-
Photograph by C. M. Barnltz.
BOTTLING HOUSE FOli SPRING WATER.
er living within easy hauling dis
tance of a small Pennsylvania city.
The city is supplied with water from
the Susquehanna river, which at this
point is polluted by sewage and other v
offensive material. Although the wa
ter is filtered by the city many per
sons consider it not fit to drink.'
The
farmer has a spring of beautifully
clear, pure water. He bottles it and
convoys ft in crates to the city, many
of the people of which are glad to pay
the moderate price asked for the water.
The trade is profitable to the owner of --J
the spring, although he has gone
to
the expense of putting in a pump
to
draw the water into the house where
the bottles are filled and a sterilizer
for washing the bottles. The spring
itself is walled, boxed and guaranteed
dirt proof. The picture shows one
view of the bonse in which the water
is bottled.
The nights are long, and this
is a good time to call the mem
bers of tho family and hired
hands together after the even
ing meal and discuss the plans
for the year.
The Profitable.Cow.
A cow must produce about 4,000
pounds of milk and 100 pounds of but
ter fat to pay for -ber feed and labor.
This is the dead line: 5,000 pounds
milk. $10 profit 8,000 pounds milk, $40
profit—four times as much. Ten cows
averaging 8,000 pounds of milk are as
profitable as forty cows producing
6,000 pounds. The cost of keep In
creases but $35 per cow,, from 2,000 to
10,000 pounds of milk given, yet the
income increases $115, or over three
times as rapidly.—Professor. W. J.
Fraser, University of Illinois.
Ant Traps Are the Latest.
Trapping ants Is a new method of
elimination of insect pests which the
department of agriculture experts are
watching. In Louisiana and California
tbe Argentine ant, the most persistent
ever known by. tbe biologists of tbe
government, has been damaging bortl-:
culture by carrying scale Insects from
Infested to unlnfested trees and In
other ways, and all antl-ant cam
paigns have so fnr .failed as to this
species.
Your wife is your partner, and
when you buy a new farm im
rplement.^-tj»|Men your-Jabpr or
-enable, ypp lo produea better re
sults you Should always do as
much for her and her work. If
you can't do both, look after ths
partner first.
I
Dehorning Chute.
Chutes like the one shown In tbls
cut. taken from. Farm and Fireside,
can be constructed of two inch lumber
throughout, excepting for the two up*
per pieces on
the sides, which
are 1 by 18.
A
Criminal. tbe croespleces to Insure
w-,
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till
till
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1
A stanchion is
provided.at tbe,
frontend
*. loose pins at
bottom, which
can be remov-.
DEHOKMN0 CHUTE.
ed quickly and the animal driven nut^^
In front If desired. After the animal Is ,|||i 3a
fastened Into stanchion a rope 'run
It Is not every'man who Is given tbe. around Its neck and nose Is ffcWtoedJf*
opportunity to win such a woman as to tbe windlass and drawn
I won. phe being under tbe guise ^of should be used throughout and cllps oB
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t'mi
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