Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1901-03-09

Wen set-up men, than the sons of the
farmhouse of Drumquhat. Many a
morning ere Aleck rose from his bed i'm
the black dark To look to the sheep. be-
fore lighting his candle he brushed off
| from the coverlet a full armful of pow
derry snow. 1t was a sign of Walters
emancipation from boyhOod when he in-
| sisted on leaving his mothers cozy lit
| tie wall chamber and climbing nm
the ladder with the boys" tn their loft
under the caves. But il went with a,
sudden pang To his mothers heart
| TO think thai nevermore should she 20 to
Steep with her boy ciasped in her arms
Such times will come 10 mothers. and
they must abide them in silence. .Anofh-
err such occasion is when she realizes thar
an0tner woman Is before her in her sons
heart. She feels the Eden curse more at
| such times than even in the bitterness of
bringing her children into the world The
whole family of Saunders M'Ouhirr was
collected every Sabbath morning nj the
Bulk; 1t was Il solemn time. Ne one
was absent. or could be absent for any
purpose whatever. The great Bible.
rough-c0ated in the hairy hide of a calf.
was brought down from the press and
| laid at het able end Saunders sat down
before ii and bowed his head. There
was silence that could be felt. AT this
tlme every Sabbath morning Walter re-
solved TO be good boy for the whole
week The PSlam was reyereutly given
our, Two llheS at time
They in the Lord that firmly trust.
Shall be like Zion hill"
and sung TO the high. quavering strains
of C0leshill garniShed with endless quay
erS and grace-notes. The chapter was
| now read with simple trust and man
| fulneSS like that of an ancient patriarch
At this portion of the service the most
terrible thing that ever happened at
Drumquhat took place. Walter had Just
gone 10 school during the past year. and
had been placed in the ''sixpenny,' but
had promptly trapped his way to the
head Of the class, and so into the more
noble 'tenpenny,' which he entered be-
fore he was u. The operation of trap
ping was simply performed. When a
mistake was made in pronunciation. repe-
tltlon, or spelling, any pupil further
down the class held out his hand. snap
ping his finger and thumb like popgun
Nordenfeldt The masters pointer
skinned rapidly down the line, and if 10
enc in higher position answered. the
''trapper, providing that his ememdation
was accepted. was instantly promoted 10
the place Of the trapped" The masters
'taws' were a wholesome deterrent of
too persistent or mistaken trapping. and
in addition the trapped boys sometimes
rectihed matters at the back of the school
at the play-hour, when fists became
high court of appeal. Walter had many
tghts-'Can We fecht?' being the recog
nlzed greeting of a newcomer at Whin
Mitigate school. When this was asked
of Walter, he replied. mcdestly, that he
did not know, whereupon MS enemy
without provocation incOntinently smote
him on the nose. Him our boy from the
heather promptly charged. literally with
tooth and nail, overbOre to the dust. and
when he held him there, proceeded sum
marty to disable him for further conflict
as he had often seen Royal do when that
mild dog went forth to war. Walters
motto was also Defense. not Defiance. :
and he could MOI 1T all understand why
he was dragged off his assailant by the
assembled school, and soundly cuffed for
young savage who fought like the
beasts. Waite knew that his objection
was unreasonable, for whom else had ne
seen fight besides the beasts? In due
time he learned to fight legitimately
enough, and took his share Of the honors
Of war; hut the reputation of a reserve
Of Savagery did him DO harm. aud in
duced many an elder boy who had been
trapped to forego the pleasure OF warm
ing him after the schulz comes out.
which was the recognized challenge of
Whinnyliggate chiyalry.
But this morning at the Biuk when the
S0iemnity of the week has eliminated.
and the portion was being read, Walter
detected a quaint antiquity in the pronun
citation Of Bible name. His hand shct
out. cracking like a pistol, and while the
family waited for the heavens TO fall,
Walter boldly trapped" the priest of the
household at his own family altar
Saunders M'Quhirr stopped, glanced
one sharp, severe glance at the boy 5
eager face. But even as he looked his
face mellOwed into what his son Aleck to
this day thinks may have been the ghost
of smile. But this he mentions To no
one. for after all Saunders is his father
hn 5slD of
he said
The prayer was not one to he forgot
ten. There was a yearning refrain in Il,
the cry for more worthiness in those
whom God had so highly favored. Sim
pie, reyerent, direct-it was model
PRAYER. Saunders was allowed to be
highly gifted in intercesson. But he wa
also considered to have some strange no.
tons for a God-fcaring man.
For instance, he would not permit any
of his children TO be taught by heart any
prayer beside the Lords prayer. After
repeating that, they were encouraged %
ask from God whatever they wanted, and
We're never repToyed. however strange or
incongruous their supplications might be.
Saunders simply told them that il what
they asked was not for their good they
would not get ia fact which, he said. !
they had as lieve learn sumo as syne."
This excCflcul but unOrthodox theory Of
prayer was certainly productive of curl |
Gus results. Aleck is recorded in the
family archives 10 have interjected the
following petition into his devotions. |
While saying his own prayers he had
been keeping a keen fTaternal eye upon
Sundry delinquencies OF his younger
brother These having become too out |
ragedus. .Aleck continued without break |
in his upnlications-'And now, Lord, |
will you please excuse me till | gang an
kick thar loon Rab. for he'll no behave
himself SO the spiritual exercises were
interrupted. and il Alexis behalf the
universe waited till discipline allowed %
the petitionagy thread TO be taken mp.
The Bulk being over. the red cart
ratified % the door to convey such Of the
ahurch-goer as were not able to walk all
the weary miles 10 the Cameronian kirk |
in Carn Edward. The stalwart, long
legged sons had cut across shorter way
by the Big Hose and the Deeside kirk. |
Both The cart and the walkers passed on
the way good many churches, both Is |
tablished and Free. but they never so
much as looked the road they. were. on. |
This hardly applied 10 Aleck, whose |
sweetheart for the time being attended |
the Fee kirk at Whinnyliggate. He
s~hS "A ia