Middletown transcript., 1891-08-20
LOVE VERSUS SCIENCE.

lime, tne early nlLles. Eiaces,
country scbool-house on a centra
Illinois prairie. Illinois was not th
greatest railway state in the UnioI
then. 1t was a state of magni6cen
distances of prairie, bottomless slough
everybody called them slood -
dense forests here and there, and wild.
expanses Of "fevernagur every
where. Vagrant herds Of deer still
found room to grow up with the
country, the howl of the wild "paint
er /" was heard occasionally in the
woods at nightfall.
1t was Friday afternoon and school
was out for the week. The young
sters had gathered their books, fed
out of the door with a whoop, and
were on their way home. Some Of
the older pnpils-there were no pupils
then, however, they were all scholars
had fingered to discuss the absur-
dity offs propositisn laid down by
the school. l.master in the little talk
with which he was accustomed to
wind up the exercises Friday after
moons, when the program Of
"speeches !" and {" compositions had
been finished. This proposition or
statement was to the effect that two
straight lines could approach each
other forever without coming quite
together. He had made this asser-
ton incidentsy, without stopping to
demonstrate it, and with all their
reverence for his superior knowledge,
they couldn't swallow it.
Hiram Walker, the young man
who for q consideration Of $S5 a
month and the privilege Of :" boarding
round among the families represent
ed in his school had been imported
from an Ohio college to teacha the
early central Illinois idea how TO
shoot, was apparently absorbed in the
work of arranging the books and
papers in his desk preparatory to
locking them up. Apparently he
had forgotten that he was to spend
the coming week with the family of
Farmer Sanford, whose eldest daugh-
ter, Marys was the brightest, smartest
and prettiest girl in the whole school,
and that it was his habit to begin his
week of boarding Friday evening.
He did not seem to notice that Miss
Mary was preparing to slip quietly
out of the door. Yet he was not so
deeply interested with his books and
papers that he did not hear the SUBJ
dued comments of the ineredulous
big boys and girls concerning the two
straight lines always getting nearer
and nearer each other and yet never
coming together. He listened with
faint suggestion of a smile on his face
to the words and 'fragmentary SEN
tences that reached his ear, and went
on arranging his desk.
Presently he took from its inmost
recesses big oblong ball of twine,
such us kite.hying boys are wont to
make by winding it criss-cross on a
stick of wood, put it in his pocket
and closed the desk with q slam.
i" By the way, Miss Mary" he said
to Farmer Sanford's daughter after
be had shut and locked the door Of
the school.house and found himself,
apparently by accident, overtaking
her, / am to be boarder at your
house for the next week, if / am not
mistaken"
Yes, sir" replied Miss Mary,
looking straight ahead
"You expect to board there right
along just the same as ever p
/" Yes, sir.
N.Going home now, are you not n
I" Yes, sir"
No other road there than this r.
"Not that know of.
"Then we cant help going there
together, can we ?"
i suppose not"
This fact being logically establish
ed, Mr.. Hiram Walker took from his
pocket the oblong ball Of twine.
Now, Miss Mary" he said. with
the manner of man bent wholly on
demonstrating proposition in mathe-
matics, if you doubt that two lines
can approximate each other forever
yet never coincide, / will prove it to
you"
"I didn't say l doubted it, Mr..
Walker"
But you do doubt it."
How do you know p
"By the twinkle in your eyes"
She looked straight ahead again.
alt may be all true according to
science aud the books" she said, /" but
it don't seem possible that it can be
60, actually and really"
This ball Of twine," the SCHOOL,
master went on, /" belongs to Tommy
Flanders. He was playing with it in
school and had to take it away from
him. He can have it again next
week, but in the meantime am going
to use it to establish scientific fact"
He picked up a bit of wood, tied
the loose end Of the kite string to it,
drove it into the ground at one side Of
the smooth road, and walked along
on the otherside, unrolling the string
as he went.
" Now, Miss Mary" he resumed,
q ,,a,, ,ralb ir, tho uapon fronk IN