Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1895-07-05
A Farmers Pledge.

Hello. Bub, VIII are your exclaimed
one of Tom Mahcs's reapers as seven
year-old.ooy one noon appeared among
them
II am papas temperance pledge, arnl
papa piped oul the ily htlle chap
You are Well, then. | have "A good
mind to pitch You into The middle OF next
week, il 1t is You who a'e keeping Us from
having comlortiu' drop of whi,kcy aud
water said a reaper.
Yes. II is me, laughed Ittic Dick in
high plee. and if you want 10 know
where papa signed me, I'll show you " and
as proudly rs any old soldier displaying
his scars .the little boy pulled down the
collar Of his calico shirt and showed u
queer, white scar on the shoulder, reach.
Ing up toward his throat; ihen espyiug a
load of straw starting tor the barn he sped
oil to beg for ride.
"les, boys said Tom, that little fc
low is my pledge, and gned him,
thou IN he does not know what that really
means You know it isn't meanness that
makes me refuse you the liquor which
other farmers deal OUT, tor agree to pay
you more wages Il Is my hatred Of the
accurscd stuff, and my regard tor your
real good When bought ,his farm ten
years ago. did not know the taste Of rum
or whiskey Every body took little as |
found. in harvest times, ana wheu work
was pressing, SO fell into the same way
"a crop, if the weather was very hot: lii.
! if | was hard at work. Once in whlle
of Sunday, in the old meeting b. use
when the choir was singing hymn my
mother used TO sing, had an uneasy feel
ing that was slipping down hill al
ways kept hard cider in my cellar; AL my
work-hauds had il, ana some way tbs
farm began to run down. too Summer
before las. it was pretty hot, and | was
not very well; had been having chills
| When they came on | thought nothing
helped me more than "a little-uo. God
deal of whskey. one noon in the fields |
was rather hungry the dinner horn had
not sounded, and picked up my jug and
took long pull What With the heat
and taking II on an empty stomach, the
whiskey flew TO my head as never before
cut The grain every which way, the
ground rising up asd going down unJer
me, and the farm shifted until the points
! of the compass were all wrong You JUS
saw that boy Of mlney He Is my only
one his mothers idol, and-well, No. s..
die tor The boy any day. The little clap
had taken his puppy and wand,td III
where | was working II Was iui. lie
WAS only five years old, aud wuat dlu he
do but lie right down where the tai grain
would shade him, and 60 10 sleep with
the puppy doing the same Well the diz
zier got the more rccklts, swung around
and suddenly ,lashed out with that sharp
steel and-good heaven boys Just you
fancy it, The poor little puppy never
yelped histhroat was cut 50 clean: and
that boy Of nine One great cash down
ms soft, white tpsh. right up 10 his tender
little throat but escaping it for the puppy
nestled there don't know much about
the rest of that day, nor the time until
! heard the boy wouldn't die. But when
old DR.. kinlcy said he might live, just
held him up to God in my arms, and said :
Here, Lord, is my temperance pledge I'll
never touch one drop Of liquor while
live and this boy, whose lie has been
spared never shall either, If prayers and
example and teaching can prevent And
So boys. can't treat you, for have
signed nv pledge in b God
There was no more murmurlng on that
farm after that A l.. Noble IN the fem
perance Banner