Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1902-08-14
Where the Man
with the HoeWOn
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TT doesn't often happen, and no one
save favored few knew why ii
happened this time. There is little
sunburn in this story, but no varnish.
and let those who like u lecqucred
tale turn the page. She was bud
last winter and this winter she was
married Most of the buds stay on
the stem little longer than that,
but considering how many there
were who wanted her, the quick
plucking and bearing away Is not to
be wondered at in anything save in
the personality of the flower lover
who did the picking
Frances Marvin's father had no
money, but he held a place in so
ciety by force of intellect and family.
There are not ms many of those
cases as there used to be. The girl
was beauty. II novel writer were
telling about her he would say she
was regal. James Parker, stock
broker, was not novel writer, but
he thought Frances was regal, never
theless. lie had thought of this
kind from the moment he saw her
Parker followed Miss Marvin's move
ments as closely as he did the tape
In the stock ticker. lie was mem
Der Of every club in sight, and he
drove and rode, and did all the other
things that man Of wealth in 30
siety does when he knows how.
James Parker was catch. Every
body said so, and the fact was pretty
strongly impressed upon the Marvin
family, bar Marvin pere, who didn't
care whether Parker was catch or
not, for Frances was to be allowed
to make her own choice. Parker be-
came the girls shadow. lie paid
court, however, unobtrusiyely and
with perfect tact. Frances was fiat
tered bit by the attentions Of this
man, for whom all the other girls
had made cast, to use piscatorial
simile, and had failed to get strike.
Now, there was as well as James
Parker one John Meadowcroft.
Meadowcroft had big truck farm
out beyond Bowmanville. Curious
thing, but Meadowcroft worked his
farm himself. lie was big fellow,
something more than trihe awk-
ward, but with n fine head and
good face, He had an education and
no capital except that which was
represented by some acres of onion,
carrot and potato beds and some
hundreds OF square feet Of glass, un-
der which the roses and carnations
reached perfection when the winter
blasts howl and the optimistic snow
bunting whistles in the fields. John
Mendowcroft was n garduate OF the
Amherst agricultural college. Just !
what had turned him to farming peo-
pie did not generally understand |
good guess would have made it that
Meadowcroft loved the country bet |
ter than the town and took to gar.
dening so that he could live at all |
times where he could smell the soil |
and see some clouds besides those Of |
smoke go urlttlnR by.
One summer day number Of
young people drove out beyond Bow
manville to see the masscd color and |
beauty Of great field Of flowers, |
which the newspapers had made pie
lures Of and written about II was
"the thing" to go out TO that spot OF |
loyeliness during that month Of bios
SONS. II was there that Frances |
Marvin first saw John Meadowcroft, |
farmer. lie had u pretty place for
home. IL was naturally pretty, and |
John Meadowcroft knew how to en-
hance its attrnctiycness. James
Parker was there that day, and he
ing u man Of acumen and worldly |
wisdom he saw that Mcndowcroft, |
the farmer, thought that Frances
Marvin was more to be admired than |
any flower Of his field; love them all
though he did, from the tiniest bios
som to the big Haunting pcony.
Meadowcroft had friends in the |
city They were Of some of the good
old New England stock who I'm their |
earlier days had known his father
and mother. Meadowcroft had way
OF overcoming obstacles. His friends
say that some day he will be growing
green chrysanthcmums, and will do
IL without feeding the earth with
dyes. At any rate, he met Miss Mar
vim again and then again She was
rather amused than otherwise at the
attentions Of this farmer man." as
her mother called him, There is some
thing in sincerity that wins IA way
in all kinds of things, and finally
Frances Marvin grew TO like John
Meadowcroft
One day Frances had been shopping
with her mother, They had no car
riage, and the street cars were luNur-
ious enough for them. They met