Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1878-07-04
BILL ARP
He DwelIs a Season Among the
Patriarehs,
RecollectIolls of Old Folks
Home.
THE GARND RUSH TO PLEASE
THE CHILDREN.
The Chief End and Glory of Han
a Few Questions of an Embarrass-
ing Nature.
Tsnecisl Correspondence Constitution

Especial Correspondence Conslltutloii.J
Mr.. ED1TUa This is most bless
ed land-where everything grows
that man is obleeged to have, and 8
power of good things throw'd in just
to minister to his pleasure. The sum-
mer sun is now ripening the fruits o.
the earth, and when I see Children
and grand Children and nefews and
neeses rejoicin in their wanderin s
over the field and orchards, it carries
me back to the blessed days OF child
hood. The old field plums and the
wild Strawberries and cherries, null
berries and blacllberries were worth
more then than gold, and it made no
difference who was aspriest CT president,
or how rich was Astor or Girard or
any of the Majors, or whether Sal
Jackson's bonnet was purifier than
Melyann Tompson's or not. What a
glorious luxury it was to go barefoot
ed and wade in the branch and go a
saiuing and climb trees and hunt
birds nests and carry the corn to
mill and leave it, just to get to run a
hoss race home again. I know now
that those days were the happiest,
and so I wont rob my posterity OF
the same sort, if can hep 1t. l
want EN- to love the old homestead,
and l want childerns Children to
gather about it and cherish its memo
ry. What burlesque on childhood 5
Joy it must be to visit grandma and
grandpa in crowded. city, penned
up in brick walls with a few sickly
flowers in front and garden in the
rear about as big as wagon sheet.
But that's the way the thing is drift
ing. Them ca;culatin yankees have
long ago done away with the odd
back log and the blazing hearthstone
and substituted furnace in the
the basement and few iron pipes
running around the walls and hole
in the floor to let the heat in. All
that may be economy, but in my
opinion man cant raise good stock
in no such way. They'll be picay-
unish and nice and sharp featured
and gimlety, but they wont do to bet
on like them Children that's been
bro't up round Ere place on a
hundred-acre fam and had plenty Of
fresh air aad latitude.
Mr.. Editur, pieasin' the Children
is about all the majority OF mankind
are livin' for, though they don't
know it; and if they did they
wouldent acknowledge it. 1t is en-
phatically the great business of life,
We look on with wonder and amaze
onent at the busy crowds in great
city that are ever goin' to and fro
like fiddler's elbow, and eight out
of ten of EN- are workin' and strug-
gin to please and maintain The chill
dren. It's the excuse for all the mad
rush of business that hurries man
kind through the world. It's the
apology for nearly all the cheatin'
and stealth and lyin' in the land,
and IN heap of such cases | have
thought the good angels would DROP
tears enuf on the big book to blot
'em out forever. The trouble ia, Mr..
Elj.ur, that most people are ways
Twin on strain, tryin' to DO little
100 much for their children. and
s,uflin against wind and tide to q
Jus, a little ahead Of their nabors.
Some of EN- wont let ten year old
boy 20 to m eta or to Sunday school
if he can't fix up rs fine as other
boys. They won't let him 60 bare
footed nor wear patch behind nor
before nor ride bareback nor go dirty,
and SO the domestic pressure for fine
ry be ONES tremendous. Jesse with
bonnets and parasols and kid gloves
and silk dresses and chanywarc and
carpets and winder curtins-and q
thousand things that cost money and
nm, up the outgo leap bigger than
abe IN cum. Generally speakin this
home pre.:sure amt noisy one, but
ON the contrary, is very silent and
.sad-so sad thai s body would think
there was sumbody dead in The house
AMI 50 ..f,e. awhile sumhov Or sun
how e.se the frery comes and thai
10. awhile al is screen. But the
collapse is shore 10 cum sooner ol
later. and the children aia't to tlam'
for it. Sumtines when | ra@'iaatF
upon the meaness of mankind | wi.i
the children never got grown for they
don't get mean or foolish until ttey
do. Just think what sweet tl@e o
e old mother Eve md Mrs. Con mo
dore Nash and aunt Msthusalpr iiat
with SO or 40 of em wearln bios ant
aperns until they were so years Old
toggin. along alter their dadies until
they were hundred. dont thini
ald Father Woodruff could have
stood that. When man wAo am
no ysarlin gifts married, ana ten or :
dozen of EN- cum right stralgAta onl
ia a row, and by the tine he gets Of
piazza, tired and grupty, the,
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