Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1884-09-10
THE LAWN-MOWER.
The Poet of the Sierras Hurls Defiance
in Its Iron Teeth.
How Nature Plays Hlde-and.Seek In
the DOOr.Yard Of the log
Cabin at Wash.
inSton.
joaquin Miller's letter.

Joaquin MIXERS Letter.
This is the season in which the suburban
lawn-mower rattles its iron teeth under every
mans window in the early morning, and reg
ularly breaks his rest And how the tramp
who has been caught up and harnesscd 70
this rafting nuisance seems to enjoy his
fendish work, Was not the grass short
enough. II was already cut SO close to the
earth we could count its roots The fact Is,
this lawn-mower is just about run into the
ground
Now have lawn; at least have q door
yard, but l have no lawn-mowcr. The
ground, which had been thrown I'D into
slight earthworks after the first battle of Bull
Run, found too rough for its use, and then,
being compelled to use economy, l have
struggled on thus far without the need Of
this nuisance, and the result, the discovery,
In fact, which was partly forced upon me,
seems 50 frutful that | am going to share il
with you.
In the first place, the cost Of preparing the
ground would have been great; then I should
have had to buy a lawn-mower; then should
have had to employ man to run it; and
then the nuisance OF it! And for what! In
order that l might have level. even, and
monotonous Patch of green. with gravel
walks and other orthodox denominations al
laid down in the books. SO / left everything
untouched; the half-leveled old earthworks
and all; left them To the weeds and wild
flowers, to grass and to God. At the very
first there came some tail and timid sl,irInish-
ers over the stony earthworks to tell me
spring was on the way They were wild
onions-thin, green. and not Extensively
fragrant If you do not take hold of them.
Then came suddenly, and as if in single
day, dash Of lowly growth over the highest
and diiest ridges II was a sort Of brown
velvet beautiful t. :e,, and soon turned to
field of old gold have seen nothing
prettier; and then SO early, too was very
grateful for it. But my neighbor one day
grew impatient at my admiration for this
delicate and timely dash of color.
THAT is sorrel, he cried, "and will cover
the whole country if you let it grow. 1t must
be destroyed. l will have my man cut Il
down for you, dig it up by the roots And,
then, see you are going to let those locust
bushes grow. They will drive You out; they
will spread all over, and your place will look
like widow woman's
"Neighbor," said l. "let me try nature this
first year, please. If shall want to look
upon a pretty and neat lawn l will have
yours to look upon. You have beautiful
flowers, aud love them all tenderly."
The hated sorrel has been hacked at and
hunted down for centuries and now il haa
come into my little stony lot and climbed up
on the barren old battleinents here, as if it
were afraid il was to be still hunted
down and wanted to escape and be
at peace. sympathize with it. 1t
reminds me Of myself Ii is doing its
level lest, don't you sect 1t doesn't ask
rluch only to be in the sun, even if it has to
take the rugged, barren place which no one
else wants. And then, it won't stay long.
Pretty soon it will pass away, and the grass
and clover, when the rains come, will cover
it, and hide all its dear old gold out of sight.
Come, let us give it a new name, baptize 1t
over, and adopt it into the family of flowers,
for il is very beautiful An now you are in
terested. Do you know, my neighbor that l
have seen at least twenty of the cherished
flowers and plants of your gardens growing
wild in Oregon, California, and Nicaragua!
They have only been adopted into the family |
of flowers within the last few years; baptized, |
rs il were. And SO, now, when this sorrel |
covers and softens the outlines Of this bald |
and barren spot without cost or care, let me |
call it my flower and let me keep it here till |
it please to go ard give place to something |
else that nature sends; for, De perfectly GER |
tain, nature will not for one moment, leave |
this spot unoccupied in season.
Nor did she The dandelion came, dashing |
the whole field with newly-coined gold,
down so coin to every two feet |
Of ground; paying me down in gold at my |
very doorstep for the liberation and mercy l |
had shown the prosecuted sorrel, and my
good neighbor had not single $40 piece
No, heard thu unmusical rattle of his lawn
mower and everything was levied to tho
ground. IL is true he had roses, beautiful
roses, too, and flowers, too, in abundance
But the season wore on | too had wild
lowers in profusion. And such variety. |
Great heaps of red clover with big yellow
Dreeched bumbe-b-es tumbling through them
and singing in rcstful monotone all the day
ong. Birds built on the ground in the tufts
IF grass, and in the great oak trees. They
AXE their delight in the tall grass about the
we'll. They know that no lawn-mower will
ay their secrets bare.
My good neghbor has the civilized flowers,
he baptized and accepted ones, all in book,
md he brings them up in the way they should
,row. As for the others, those whose names
ire not in the book, he cuts them everyone
Town.