Morris tribune., 1904-02-20
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put on lis coat. swept out the clos
little entry and left the sanctum TO
ile bright June afternoon
He chose the way to the west, stroll
ing thcuyhtfully out of town by thu
white. hot. deserted Main street anC
thence onward by the country road into
which its proud half mile of old bricl
store buildings. tumbledown frame
shops and thinly painted cottages de
generated. The sun was in his race
where the road ran between the sum
nler fields. lying waveless, low. gra
cious in promise; but. coming to 8
wood of hickory and beech and wal
nut that stood beyond, he might turn
his down bent hat brim up and hold
Ills head erect. Here the shade fell
deep and cool on the green tangle of
rag and iron weed and long grass in
She corners of the snake fence, al
tllough Tie sun beat upon the road so
Rose beside. There was no movement
sF the crisp young leaves overhead.
1ltGh in tie bOughs there was a quick
firt of crimson where two robins hop
I,.Hl noiselessly. The late afternoon,
E.'lscn the air is quite still, had come.
---eE there rested somewhere on the
quiet day faint, pleasant. woody
gn1cll. 1t came to the editor Of the
Herald as he climbed to the top rail
Of the fe"ce for seat, and he drew
q song breath to get the elusive odor
more luxufiously. and then it was gone
altogether.
"A habit of delicacies," he said aloud.
addressing the wide silence complain
Sngly. Zone taste and they quit" he
~Anished. gazing solemnly upon the
shining little town down the road.
If was place of which it's inhabit-
ants sometimes remarked easily that
taeir city had population OF from
1900 to 5000 souls, but it should be
aasy to forgive them for such state
Haents. Civic pride is a virtue. The
Aown lay in the heart of that fertile
stretch of fat lands in Indiana where
eastern travellers. glancing from car
WiadOws. sliudder and return their eyes
% interior upholstery, preferring even
the swaying caparisons of Pullman to
runs on Unfortunately level iines-bleak
in winter, a desolate plain of mud and
snow; hot and dusty in summer, miles
ON miles of fiat lOnesomeness, with not
one cool hill slope away from the sun.
The persistent tourist who seeks for
signs of Iil;tn in this sad eXpanse per-
-ceives reckless amount of rail fence,
Sy,tn lie, !.,po hoy md bnr II
there man himself. Injurious. patient.
slow. looking up from the fields apa-
theticaIly as the limited flies by. Now
and then the train passes a village
built scattcringly about courthouse,
with a mill or two humming near the
tracks. THIS is county seat. and the
inhabitants and the local papers refer
to it confidently as ''Our city"
Such county seat was PiattviIle.
capital of Carlow county. The social
ana business energy of the town con-
eentrated on the square. and here in
summer time the gentlemen were wont
to lounge from store to store in their
shirt sleeves. and in the center of
the square stood the old red brick
courthouse. loosely fenced in shady
grove Of maple and elm slipp'ry
elaum"-caIl;d the courthouse yard"
When the sun grew too hot for the dry
goods box whittlers in front of the
stores around the square and the occu-
pants Of the chairs in front of the Pal
ace hotel OF. the corner they would go
aecOSS and drape themselves over the
fence and carve their initials on the
top board From the position of the
suH tl,e editor of the Herald judged
that these operations were now in !
PROCESS. aud he was not deeply elated I
by 7tc knowledge that whatever desu-
Sory conversation might pass from man |
% MAN on the fence would probably be ,
AmSfsired 10y his own convictions ex-
pressed editorially in the Herald. !
He drew faded tobacco. bag and
sbrier pipe from his pocket and. after.
'aissng and lighting the pipe. twirled the
poN:is mechanically about his finger.
then. suddenly regarding it, patted it
eaEessingiy. 1t had been a gddy little
bag long ago. gay with embroidery in
Saae eOiOfB Of the EDITORS university,
ana. although now it was frayed to the
Werge OF tatters. it still bore an air Of
pristine jauntiness. an air Of which it's
DsgAer in nowise partook He looked
&zDI1 it toward the village in the clear
&istance and sighed softly as he put
1Gse pouch back in his pocket and. rest
Eng his arm on his knee aud his chin on
mis- hand. sat blowing clouds of smoke
sEt of the shade into the sunshine alb
neaiIy watching the gliostly shadow on
fAe white dust Of the road.
A little garter snake crept under the
9ence beneath him and disappeared in
hhe underI,r,isIi: rabbit. progressing
On its travels by series Of brilliant
assI,cs and terror srnittcn halts. came
within few yards of him, sat up with
auiYering nose and eyes alight with
fearful imaginings and vanished. a flash
Of fluffy brown and white. Shadows
grew longer: q cricket cliirppd and heard
answers; there was woodland stir of
bTeezes. and fine pair of robins left the