The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-10-20

Wn0O 10 WANT ALLOW ~ Wascfn'esvts
Chilled There Beyond Cempare-Peda
Atlutions That CouIdn't He Avoided.
Around the corner from my. house.
observed the rotund, comfortable looking
man who lives in that old section Of New
York called Greenwich Village. there's
one of those ancient artesian wells. htted
with a pump, that's recently been con-
demned by the Board fof Health. Pres
emily the pump will be taken away and the
well covered over, and that old corner mark.
that probably still lives windy in the youth
full memories Of many widely scattered
men and women. will be no more. With the
departure of that ancient pump a lot OF that
corners suggestiveness will pass for me
too. I was born and brought up some
thing more than a thousand miles from
that pump; but I hardly ever catch. sight
Of il in walking by. especially on fine. mel
low mornings when I'm trudging to my
Office. that the pump doesn't fetch up be-
fore me the picture Of another we'll around
which many Of my ~pleasantest youthful
memories cluster. This well was in the
yard Of the home in the little Western
town in which I was raised.
1T was a deep well OF mason work. housed
by . pagodalike structure with a peaked
roof and with it, three sides Of dim green
lattice work. A very old and gnarled peach
tree. growing at the rear Of the well house.
spread ito branches completely over the top
Of it. In the spring the roof Of the well
house used to be covered with the fallen
pinkish white blossoms from this aged
peach tree. and at night. when I was a tyke,
I used late in summer to hear the huge
peaches falling in the night breeze from the
tree to the roof Of the well house with padded
little thumps that caused me TO imagine,
az 1 remember. that some brownie or gnome
in climbing around the well house. had
slipped and fallen.
The well was one Of those old fashioned
affairs in which two buckets attached TO
the ends Of a chain were used On a swell
tering day. coming in from some predatory
excursion in the deep woods after birds
nests or something Of that sort. the first
thing we youngsters would do would be to
hop to the we'll and draw q bucket Of water,
and tipping the bottom of the bucket up on
the edge of the top board drink our fill from
It, messy rim. ] can close my eyes any
time and hear again the curious. mildly
complaining creak Of hat bucket chain as
1t slid over the pulley. When I was quite a
little shaver I was forbidden to draw water
from the well. for the Job required no little
strength and a mite Of a youngster was in
considerable danger Of being yanked of
his feet by the chain and pulled into the
we'll. But when the old folks weren't
around I used surreptitiously to draw
buckets of water from the well to prove
my strength to my own satisfaction. and /
recall how immensely proud I was when the
time gradually drew around when I was
allowed TO draw water from the well with
ut any sneaking. This feeling Of elation
didn't last long. by the way. for when the
time oame that I could draw water without
any danger Of going into the we'll they were
after me ill tho time 70 draw the water
needed to run the house. When the washing
was to be done on Monday mornings I was