Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1893-08-01
MONEY FOR A cocoANur.
Philips Rec uest Reminds MT. Gratebar o
HfG Own Youthful DAYS,

Philips Rec uest Reminds Mr.. Gratebar Of
Hi Own Youthful Days.
"My son Philip" said Mr. Gratebar,
asked me this morning for 10 cents to buy
cocoanut with, and that reminded me OF
the fact that some years ago asked my ia
ther for 10 &C nts to buy a cocoanut with.
Indeed don't believe there has been a
time since oocoanuts were invented that
boys have not asked their fathers for mon
ey to buy them with. Up to a certain age
boy may look upon the cocoanut with in
difference, but there comes time in every
boys life when the cocoanut becomes an
object of interest to him, and then he goes
home and asks for money to buy one
He goes back to the Nocer's and looks
over the cocoanuts and selGSts, of course, a
big one. He holds it up to his ear and
shakes it carefully. To be good cocoanut
must have plenty of milk in it. Then he
takes it home and borrows hammer from
his mother. He goes into the kitchen and
sits down near the hearth. He takes out
his jackknife, and with the blade that has
been worn down nearly to point he bores
out one of tie cocoanut's eyes. He tries
the milk in it with evident enjoyment, and,
when all the other children have tested it,
if any remains it is poured into teacup,
drunk at leisure, but / suspect, as matter
of fact, that this is finally thrown away.
Then, in the natural order of things, the
boy takes the hammer and lays the cocoa
nut on the he arth and cracks it, and when
the cocoanut is cracked he breaks it into
still smaller pieces Then with knife he
proceeds to pick 1t out, sampling it mean
while and putting the pieces in dish filled
with cold water Pieces as nearly alike as
possible in size, so that there shall be no
unfair advantage, are distributed among
the other children, and the rest is saved.
For me, the cocoanut age had passed
/ had seen cocoanuts, of course, year after
year in baskeJs in front of the stores, but
they were to me no longer a living issue.
But when Philip brought back the cocoa
nut this morning and went into the
kitchen TO crack it / thought would go
and look on. He dug out one Of the eyes
quite in the usual way and sampled it, as
children have always done, and then he
handed it over to me. Try it, he said,
and did. Then Philip gave taste to the
other children, and then he poured the rest
of the milk into teacup just as l had
seen children do won't say exactly how
many years beforehand he set this cup on
the kitchen is BILE just as had done myself
done since cocoanuts were discovered and
since kitchen tables were first made. Then
Philip proceeded to crack the cocoanut, and
when he had broken it into pieces he picked
1t out just as / had done, Just as many
many children have done these many,
many years, aud it all seemed as fresh and
familiar to me as though it was only yes
terday that had bought a cocoanut my
self, and so / know now that my cocoanut
age has not passed, and ! hope that it
never will
And as for those who come after usi
Why, believe that the taste for cocoanuts
is implanted by nature in the human race
and that children will go on eating them as
long as cocosnuts grow, and have no
doubt that tie old formula will be pre-
served; that in due course of time a son
whom Philip will love as dearly as we love
Philip will come to him some day and say.
as Philip said to me this morning:
Pop, give me 10 cents to get cocoa
nut with New York Sun.