Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1898-02-03


~ stopped at Urbanna
~ to leave her small
cargo of oysters,
and to take on her
live freight o f.
chickens for the city market, it was
quite an event If any traveller got off
at her wharf, and the colored folks,
with sprinkling of white people,
would gather about to find what the
stranger warted, and If they could
serve him by coaching him to Saluda,
which was over the softest, muddiest
sort of a road. Urbanna was simply
the boat landing, and could scarcely
make show at anything beyond a
half dozen houses, all told. But Salu-
da was the county town, where the
courts were held, and was somewhat
pretentious with its fifteen by eighteen
red brick court house, it's county Jail,
a small one-room structure; two coun-
try stores,two meeting houses and one
story dwellings scattered along two
streets at right angles. The times
were hard, and now having hunted up
a fairly good situation as shipping
clerk in dry goods establishment in
Chicago, Mr.. Enstrom moved his little
family there.
To Ralph, the oldest child, a boy OF
thirteen years, the change was one of
splendid opportunities.
He had outgrown Saluda. He had
tried every sort of way to turn
penny, at lemonade stands on court
days and raising chickens for the Balti-
more market; now his eyes grew big
with great expectation. Ralph wasn't
up to the standard of city schools; his
examination figures were discouraging-
ly low in everything but drawing; in
this he went as much ahead as in other
respects he bad fallen below He didn't
like the idea of being graded with boys
so much younger than he, but secretly
he determined to make his mark. Some
days after this, he came home from
school with the flattering report that
his drawing teacher had called him to
the blackboard to make an original
sketch. THAT amt fair" said Roger.
"My teacher never says anything about
my drawings" But you are younger,
my son, than Ralph, and you haven't
been so faithful in our practice" said
his mother. Ralph then went on to
tell: Teacher wanted 1 should make
drawing of something 1 had seen,
and made dandy sketch, you bet
of father on his bike; then 1 had Pixy
ahead of him! 1t was just fun, mother,
and good sight easier than answering
those examination questions.
Days and weeks passed, and Ralph
alternately grumbled that he was down
in such low class when he had been
expressed determination to stand at
the head in something or other.
II want to learn to make money, IA
ther, so I can help; and you and mother
won't have such a hard time," said
Ralph.
LET me tell you how it is, my son.
There are thousands in the city willing
to work and trying to get something
to do, but there is good deal of COM
petition in business Of all kinds, and
those men who are most exact in fig
ures, or in the technicalities of the
trade they have learned are the ones
who are going to be the successful ap-
plicants. The mark is high, Ralph, and
one must be able to reach up to that
high mark This is why they require
a great deal in the schools, that the
boys and girls be fitted for these high
places"
II know what I'd like to be- ex-
claimed Ralph. II just wish 1 could
make illustrations for the papers, and
1 can do it some day, I know"
What do you mean by 'illustrat-
ing?'" inquired Mr.. Enstrom.
Maybe know more about illustrat-
ing than you think 1 do" repeated
Ralph, eagerly.
Every we'll. If you are going to be
genius in that line, We will find it
out" said his father, with very wise
look. But a genius isn't born in a
day, and Ralph waited and waited for
his teacher to compliment him in some
way for his good work in drawing. But
he simply received only passing smile
of commecdation.
Joe Wildwood was an illustrator for
the New York World. The Millwoods
lived just across the street from
Ralph's, and the boy liked nothing
better than to get inside "Joe's den,"
as he called it. This was where Ralph
Enstrom got his first ideas about illus
terating. Joe Wildwood was twenty
one years old, and it had taken him
six years to reach his present success,
but he had done it by his own true
genius backed by will that would
bend to nothing. Through Joe's in
fluence, Mr.. Enstrom decided to enter
his son at the School of Design.
Now began life in earnest. Morning,
noon and night the boy was ever at
work. He talked of nothing else and
thought only of the great work he
would bring out some day, for he knew
it was in him. as he used to say.
Monsieur Gerano was very silent