Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-07-27
When Cloverdale Groaned

"sN piesSeuueSS TO the age of
torty-tve and was fairly well off and
had opinions Of her own.
Six o'clock supper had been eoten IN
Cloverdale, and the hens were thinking
or going to roost, and the village cows
were coming home to be milkcd. when
a SILVER suddenly ran through the burg
A tow headed boy Of ten years was re-
sponslble for the shiver. Aunt Sarah.
Us she was known to all, had been
away visiting her sister for a fort
night. She had now returned. She
had not only returned, but she had
come across the country from Greggs-
Vile on a bike, and at that very mo-
ment the said bike was leaning I'm
against the front Of her house in a way
to defy public opinion.
For some minutes the town was so
taken by surprise that no one knew
just what to do. 1t was Uncle Reuben
Phelps who soonest recovered from
the shock and called an Indignation
meeting on the steps of the postoftice.
For some time he was in doubt as to
whether to ring q fire alarm on the
church bells or build q bonfire to call
out the town, but finally compromised
Dy making Il speech in which he con-
WINGED every nearer that the bulwarks
Of morality We're in danger and that
every citizen with sentiment in his soul
must arise to do battle.
A committee of five had just been ap-
pointed to proceed to the house of Aunt
Sarah and Investigate, taking the tow
headed boy along as a hostage, when
the woman they were looking for ap-
peared. She was on her bike. She was
wearing a bicycle outfit, and she
Whizzed SO close to Uncle Reuben that
the wind caught his coat tails and
made them stream out like flags.
Gentlemen" he remarked as he tried
hard to crowd back his emotions, 1.-The
crisis has arrived, and the crisis has
got to be met. Let u meet it at any
cost Of blood and treasure"
Thereupon the committee let go Of
the tow headed boys hair and returned
to the postoftice. Aunt Sarah was
there before them and cavorting up
and down and around on her bike.
Fifty men and boys looked on, but she
was not abashed. The silence Of the
crowd was ominous of ~displeasure, but
she smiled and giggled as she rode. 1t
was Deacon Nottingham who reached
the limit first and stepped out into the
street and burst forth with:
"Woman, I never expected to see this
day! If you have gone crazy 1 pity
you, but if you are here in your sober
senses-if this shameless exhibition
But at that moment the front wheel
of the bike struck his knees and Slowed
him into the ditch and caused him to
forget the remainder of his peroration.
Then Josiah Green, on whose land
the annual camp meetings had been
held for the last twenty-five years and
who had always held that a woman
who climbed over a rail fence instead
Of through it was q menace to founda-
ton principles, called for the cyclist
to stop her gambols and uttered a
groan and began:
"When my wife died two years age
I thought 1 could never be reconciled
to her loss, but when l now behold one
ble'-
81 don't wobble," interrupted Aunt
Sarah rs she headed for him and drove
him out of the street.
"When I see one Of her own sex
wobblin' around on a wobble'- contin.
ued Josiah from the sidewalk. But he
had only got that far when Aunt Sar.
all dismounted and faced the crowd
and said:
"This is Il woman's wheel. 1 have
learned to ride. I shall ride every
day. / shall ride up and down every
street, and such of you as don't like il
can lump it."
Groans Of anguish followed her as
she mounted and rode away, and then
Uncle Reuben was called upon for an
other speech. He made one. He pref.
aced it by saying that he was tifty-siS
years old and had passed through sew
eral epochs, but never before had he
been called upon to face such an epocl
as this. AS he stood there he coulC
feel the bulwarks Of morality and re
s%pectability tottering to their fall.
1t had been predicted that the time
would come when women would climl
trees and turn somersaults off the tor
Of haystacks, but he had refused to be,
lieve it. Now. however, he must be
lieve. He must believe that unless
something were done they would &C
further.
Uncle Reuben wanted to close his re
marks with a few words on Washing
ton crossing the Delaware. but the
crowd had decided to appeal to Aunt
Sarah's pastor to bring her to book and
began to move off. \. dozen Of them
were ready to make charges and de
mand that she be tried by the church
but the smiling pastor waved then
aside and quietly said:
"In the first place, brethren, it may
not be unknown to you. though tenn
porarily forgotten, that Aunt Saral
holds a mortgage on church FOL