Evening journal., 1902-05-10
BillParSOn'S 'SCOlumn
Published Now and Then.
ne Ways of Spending a Vacation


country remarked the other day that
NOW that the weather is getting
warm;, and trout will soon be plenty,
the summer visitor may soon be ex-
pected to arrive" One never knows
how strong a tie lIindship really is till
he establishes himself in a snug coun-
try home, and then suddenly he will
become aware of the fact that his
relatives are both numerous and loyal;
and soon he may expect to see them
coming, representing collaterals that
greatly enlarge the family tree and
comprise list of names suggesting al
conglomeration Of nationalities.
| do not mean to intimate that these
relationships are discovered for a sell
iish purpose, oh, no, they represent
kinslhip right enough, but there are
certain things which are better for
gotten; and what a burden life will
become when the time arrives when
THE farmer has to grapple all his rela-
tives to his bosom with hooks of steel,
and keep his larder filled for them dur
ing the summer months.
This brings me 10 the consideration
OF grave question, which suggests a
problem of human psychology; why
will persons labor so hard year after
year to have a good time i'm vacation,
be disappointed every time, yet never
grow discouraged? After the summer
outing and the return to the home,
this sentiment has been uttered by the
rich and poor, high and low; how
good it is to be back home agaInl"
Will Carleton in one of his poems
says. that 'in order to enjoy heaven
well, it is only necessary to have some
fifteen minutes Of the other place"
Perhaps this is the real motive for so
many Of these discouraging outings
Frequently people in the cities close
up their comfortable, airy houses. pack
up various trunks and bags and flee to
the country or the shore.
1t is then, if they only knew it. that
they are leaving the oasis of peace and
comfort, and entering the bleak desert
where unpleasant things happen. The
train is hot, the atmosphere dusty, the
cars crowded. Arriving at their OBJ
jective point they haggle with the
opulent hotel or boarding house keep
er, who desires a months salary for
weeks accommodation. Now the
word accommodation is used in a COM
plimentary sense. and it is polite not
to haggle over terms. OF course our
rooms are next to the roof; only Car
negie or Rockefeller can approach the
ground floor II is hot up there, Of
course; we expected it, but we say
how fine it VIII be when the breeze
comes" But someway the mosquitoes
invariably get ahead of the breeze. and
as they sing to us, we catch a minor
note that makes us think of that cool
veranda in the city where there are no
mosquitoes, no crowds, but ample re-
freshments just around the corner.
Then we begin to count the days till
our return, for we will not go back till
our self-imposed sentence expires. and
when the time comes we do not miss
our train; we are there on time for
two reasons; we are anxious to get
back and our funds are exhausted
When we get back home we say
things right from the heart. Oh. how
cosey and comfortable the old house
looks. The chairs all beckon to us to
sit and rest; the great comfortable
beds long to embrace us. And now to
get ice in the refrigerator, and some
fOCd fit for human creatures on the
table, and to thank God we are no
longer exilesl Under normal con-
ditions within week we can recuper-
ate from our summers outing
@ 9 @
But let us go back and follow those
city people who have discovered a
relative living on a farm seven miles
from Smithville. A letter is written to
John, dear John. in the early spring.
relating a bit of family history, and
saying we shall be delighted to have
him stop and see us when he is in the
city.
This is a stroke of diplomacy, be-
cause at that season he is busy with
his crops. and should he leave them
the bugs, worms and other "horrid''
creatures would do the rest, so he
can't come, and he writes to tell his
city relatives that, and to thank them
for their proffered hospitality.
Now the chances are ten to one that
he will put something in that letter
which gives the excuse for an answer.
/ 1t is then that the city cousin gets in
his cunning, and if he doesn't succeed
in getting another letter inviting him
and his family down in June he is an
amatuer.
So June finds our friend and family
in the country, exchanging greetings
with that hard-isted relative Then
begins a succession of happy days,
when all are routed out in the morn
| ing to take breakfast by candle-light,
and sit in the kitchen while the old
wood stove does her best to fry the
eggs, and at the same time keep the
thermometer to 125 in the shade.
Then the long days with nothing to
do but watch the women cook for the
hands" while the sun scorches the
fields and willis the vegetation. There
is an eternity between BREAKFAST and
dinner, not that they are hungry. but
that there is such a horrible feeling OF
ennui.
The only exciting features of the
day are when hen down in the barn
cackles. or a COW gets out of the pas
ture. or load of hay arrives at the
barn.
1t is true that it is cool in the early
morn. and a stroll may be taken down
the path, while the weeds on either
side dripping with dew drenches our
garments. and the swarm of mosquitoes
overhead are engaging our full atten-