Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1902-09-27
SHas Norris
Brave Start.

tad left her the farm, 120 acres, and
she had done her best with it. She
had kept her boy Silas a. school, She
lad planted berries, trimmed vines,
cared for the orchard. MIXED her own
cow and tended the chickens, but
somehow she didn't get ahead much.
She had watched her boy grow from
weazen. freckle-faced child into d
great. hulking, stoop-shouldered man"
Of 20. Year after year she had seen
mis- patrimony diminished till the 129-
acres were reduced TO fifty. He could
read. write and figure ana he was
handy" with machinery. Sometimes
she believed that the farm was hold
ing him back" and that she should
send him to the city TO make his
way"
But she loved him now even as she
Tad loved him when he was all that
was lett to her of company, Of affec-
ton, OF hope. He looked as his father
loked when they were married. He
had been born in the cottage in which
his father had been born. The berry
patches, the orchard, the fivc-acre
meadow. the rickety henhouse. the
river which ran past the pasture lo..
we're III her eyes TRANSPORTED by the
knowledge that they were his, that
some day her boy would own them il
lis cwn right and make his home there
for all his days. And so she strus-
gled along. doing her own work. max
ing. mending. planting. herself the
foremost and the swiftest of the berry
rickers, the first in the field in the
morning. the last to bed at night.
She was thin now, with whitening
hair and sallow cheeks, hands Drowned
and hardened with the work. shout
iers stopped with bending over the
earth and the wash-tub. Silas, the
hoy, was big and red. There were
Freckles and pimples on mis- wide. ex-
pectant face and he had been shaved
4 dozen times. He was commencing
to take on the ways of man, for he
went to the Saturday night dances 1T
Kings Landing, bought an occasional
pint of beer from the steward of the
his cigar with the confident assurance
Of person Of aHairs. When he went
down 70 the landing with his load of
berries he hailed Captain Fykes as
Cap" and called the aniable clerk
Charlie" He had personal ac-
puaintance with john Egan. the first
mate, and had no hesitation in slap
ping him on the back and asking.
-How's traffic, John?' The widow had
seen and admired these evidences
Of broadening character. and deep in
the fond recesses of her heart she
knew that her hoy Silas was cut cut"
for a man of business. that he had a
future before him and that the narrow
environments OF q small fruit farm
were holding him back"
Silas had been 10 st. Joe and Ben
ton Harbor more than 20 times. He
had done heap of trading" ami the
town atmosphere was the breath of in
spiration to his rostrils. He had
seen each year the incursion of smart
'resorters" from Chicago, and seeing.
yearned to look. to feel. TO act as they
did. Full OF this ambition he talked
20 his mother about taking boarders."
II was easier than farming. he said.
and more profitable. The JoEeses had
done it and made money enough 10
buy twenty acres OF the Norris farm.
II would give him a chance to get &C.
quainted, who knows but ii might give
him IAN opening" an opportunity to
settle in Chicago? The boys eyes
wijened at the very thought, and Mrs.
Norris, eager to help her boy along,
yet dreading the prospect of losing
him, stifed her selfish hopes of having
him "all 10 herself and advertised
for summer boarders.
The widening hopes of the possibili-
ties Of converting the little farm INFO
a popular resort" they planted only
enough for the maintenance CT few
boarders. They figured on cutting
the empty barn into halves and MAX
ing cottages of it. June. July and half
of August came and went, and they
had many letters OF inquiry about the
place, the water, the mosquitoes. the
bathing, the terms, the reads. the
fruit. the beds, AMI the general ac-
commodations." but only one bcarder
disembarked from the Wheeling steam
er and the widows heart was down
cast in spite of the happy smile she
gave him, and the thrill of pride she
felt when she heard him call Silas. her
ST. Mister Norris
He was bookkeeper for the COM
mission firm which had handled their
berries, and showed all the hall marks
of the strenuous anc cultivated life
of a great city. He had drcp-stitched
stockings and patent leather low
quarters" He wore singular sort
of muller, which he called "a stock.
and when he saw the wheat stacks
looming brown upon the yellow hills
ne said he supposed those were bee
hives" When he saw Silas milking
the COW he wondered why somebody
hadn't invented an automatic COW
mixer: he didn't know beans from
wheat in the fields. and he could
ait his own fish hook because, he
the worm made him feel
"" But he took a marked liz
IT Silas, and the widow began TO
that he was very capable and
hrili' sSonng man. In ex-