The Canton times., 1899-10-06
ARP RESTS HIS MIND.
Gives 1t a Change Of Food by Com
muning with Nature.
Says His Sweetest Rest Is FrOIic
with His Little Grandchildren
About Pigeons and Migrat-
ing Butterflies.

.
not rest, but it needs a change of men
tai food. We cannot at will stop think
ing, but we can give our thoughts a
more pleasing direction, and that is
rest. And so, when | get tired and
perpleXed reading and ruminating
about the war and the negroes and
political corruption, | take day off
and commune with nature and her
wonderful works, which are ever be-
fore us and around us. 1t is even a
rest to hear it thunder and to watch
tAe gathering of the clouds and wei
come the big drops of rain that fall
upon the steps. When the lightning is
flashing and the thunder stroke comes
quick and sharp and near, we retire
from the veranda and for little while
humble ourselves under the mighty
let us not worry and perpleX ourselves
all of our waking hours about things
which are afar off, but take shelter
and comfort at home. Let US change
the diet and it will rest us mentally and
physically. My good father was
philosopher and would say to me:
Now, my son, want you to hoe these
potatoes and when you get tired You
can weed the onions for rest Prof.
Mitchell, the great astronomer, told
men that when his mind was weared
with long and perpleXing calculations
and his eyes were tired of figures, moth
ing relieved him more than a game of
whist with his wife and children. 1t
was a delightful rest.
But my sweetest rest is frolic with
the little grandchildren and listening
to their innocent discourse. There are
two little girls of three and five years,
who visit me almost every day and
climb my knees and kiss my old rough
cheek, and say that | am not old nor
ugly and every night help their moth
er put them to bed and tell them the
same old stories about Jack the giant
killer and the bean vine and the wolf
and the pigs and little Red Riding
Hood and what l did when l was a
boy. BY and by the monotone of my
voice becomes their lullaby and the lit
tie eyes close and the little heads fall
over on my shoulder and they are off
for the land of dreams, When the fa-
ther has to go to his drug store every
night an old grandpa is help to tired
| I L II |
yet fit for that.
l saw a pair of old-fashioned blue
birds to-day and felt like the friends
of my youth had come back. Some
years ago they disappeared and have
wondered what became of them. A
! iaybird with only one leg comes every
day to the fountain to drink. | am
| trying to make a friend of him, but
he is very shy and suspicious. Some
cruel boy hit him with sling Shot
| reckon, for / see them sometimes il
the back alley trying to get shot al
my pigeons. Maybe that iaybird will
meet that boy in purgatory, Boys are
as mean about killing birds as our gov
ernment is about killing the Filipinos.
But this is a Christian country. and,
reckon, it is all right. These pigeons
that have a happy home at my houss
are an interesting study for the young
people. We have about a hundred OF
them, and some of them are ever be
fore us as we sit on the verauda. They
are of many colors, from almost black
to a pure snow white and at all hours
of the day they gather at the little
hydrant fountain in tine front yard
and drink and then fly away. The pi-
geon is the only bird that drinks by
draught or suction, as we do. All other
birds raise their heads and let the wa
ter run down by gravity and then dip
the bill down for another drop. Pi-
geons do not feed their young with
worms or bugs, but the old birds di-
gest their food in their own craws into
curd and eject it into the mouths
of their young. Hence it is that very
young pigeons or squads generally die
when they are given away. Pigeons
are not exactly polygamists, but the
males have no particular mate and they
will feed the young of any mother, In
deed, they do most of the feeding.
They are not gallinaceous nor razores.
Now let the young people hunt up those
big words. They can walk, but cannot
hop. Most all other birds can hop, but
cannot walk. OF course pigeons are
pigeon-toed, and so are some folks we
know. A pigeon-toed girl generally
wears long dresses. Then there is a
language called pigeon English. II is
really pidgen English, for pidgen is a
Chinese word and means business, and
pidgen English is mixture of Chinese
and English and of signs by which busi-
ness is transacted in the ports between
natives and foreigners.