The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-07-09
HOW THEY CALLED THE ENGINE

Fred, Sophie, Jack, Teddy, Emma,
and Sally Whitley were cousins, and
lived with their fathers, who were broth
ers, on three separate farms in the val
ley of the Delaware.
Fred and Sophie lived with their
father and mother on the east side of
the valley, high up on the mountains
Their home was called the Chill
Farm
From the lawn in front of the house
there was wide view for miles up and
down the magnificent valley. Directly
opposite, about four miles away, were
the wooded mountains that bounded the
valley on the west.
In little cross valley could be seen a
small white house, so far off that it
looked merely like a white speck. This
was called Beechwood," the home of
Emma and Sally.
Far away to the southwest could be
seen the spires and chimneys of town,
and on a hill just above the town could
be seen another white speck. This was
Hazeldell," the home of Jack and
Teddy.
Between these three houses were
miles and miles of woods and fields,
farms and orchards. There was river
flowing down through the valley, canal
and turnpike, and several country
roads.
Beechwood and Hazeldell could be
seen from the Hill Farm, and, of course,
the boy-cousins near the town, and the
girl-cousins in the side valley, could see
the white house high on the mountains to
the east. AT the same time, Beechwood
could not be seen from the town, be-
cause there was projecting spur on
the mountain range that cut off the view.
To get from the Hill Farm to Beech
wood, Fred and Sophie took the road
down the mountain-side toward the
northwest, till they met the valley road,
when they turned to the left and went
over the river and canal till they struck
the turnpike, when they turned to the
right and went up the valley beside the
canal for some distance, and then turned
to the left into the lane that led to
Beechwood Farm.
In all, it was about four miles and a
half, though in an airline it was less
than four miles. To 90 to the town and
TO Hazeldell they took the same road till
they struck the turnpike, when they
kept to the left and followed the canal
and the river to the town.
In passing along Main Street they saw
the post-otfice and the steam fire engine
house, and Hazeldell was about quar-
ter of mile out of the town. This ride
was over ten miles, and the trip there
and back made a good days journey.
These things are all very important,
if you wish to understand the wonder
full way in which these boys and girls
used, every sunny day, to talk to each
other over this wide and beautiful
valley.
They had telegraph No. Or a
telephoneP Not at all. These things
would need u wire from one farm to
the other, and would cost a great deal
of money.
Every pleasant day Fred and Sophie
would talk to the girls at Beechwood. or
the boys at Hazeldell, and they in turn
would talk to the cousins in the Hill
Farm.
But if Emma and Sally wished to say
anything to their boy-cousins at Hazel
dell, they had first to say it to Sophie or
Fred, and they in turn repeated it to the
boys.
The mountain spur rather interfered
with conversation between Hazeldell and
Beechwood, and the talk had to 90 way
round nearly thirteen miles by the way
of the Hill Farm.
1t all came from something they read
in the newspaper, one morning in May
while all the cousins were spending the
day at the Hill Farm.
Fred thought he could make the ma
chimes, and every one said he or she
would learn the alphabet. The alpha
bet? Yes. The Morse alphabet, of dot.
and dashes. You know it. - mean.
A, - means B, - means G, -,
means d, means E, - means F, etc
The things Fred said he would make
were certainly very curious.
First, there was piece of wood two
feet long, five inches wide, and one incl
thick. At one end was fastened thir
piece of pine, nine inches square, anC
having in the center round hole, two
inches in diameter. About three inche