The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1907-12-21

.hat ! had never known ny Uncle
!.lGer, that probably no ons had ever
known him as | l.Lew him no%
So1aeho" had taken him uaa"a!a5
Here was the grim Old man gentle -
d lamb. and touched, could see, By
ry cloQGence-prcof positive. told
myself, that under a hard exterior
may exist heart tender Is woman
and all undreamed Of because long
concealed, Ike lis in world OF bust
ness NJ heart Wcll, out TO him. |
! could have seized his hand, bat re
strained myself, tearing that BY too
much emotion | might arouse him 70
a sense Of his own disclosure, But |
loved him. for the first tine in all
mv life. | think, truly loved him;
and was touched. well-nigh to tears,
| b. this new knowledge Of the roelT!
hidden in M unc!e's soul
"Uncle Elder" / said shrewdly, n
your own youth you may have had
dream which YOU never realized
Most men have Now You look back
! upon it and say TO yourself, / might
have done thus and So II is TO avoid
| that that am determined TO stick 10
| this dream Of mine l am determined
| not to put il aside as something 10 be
! done when | have so much leisure or
money. Uncle Elder, l am going 10
| avoid regret | am going 10 live my
| life 50 tina, what her Successful or not
| in the worlds e@6s, can comfort
my old age with The reflection that
have lived my life-the life OF nay
heart delight
Jnc,a Elder lowered his eyes. and
when he raised taem avoided mine
Uncle Elder | said with feeling.
i has been given M, young "a am.
to see light hidden under bushels II
is that OF which The trues, literature
is made. sir | do not Judge men
merely b. their horny hands. o. their
scanned faces. or their pro:ane or in
different speech. Il is M joy-and
pain-to prove their hearts, and il
this novel which have il miNd |
| shall show the world net the imposs!-
bic. not the improbable. and not
| mercy ItttS Ia W stSt ~ VI ~
day. or tomorrow. but that lie which
vas human and common and every
day in the age OF Homer, as it is true
in YOUR time and mine, and will be
true in my children era. and IL that
Of my chiGren's children. Uncle
Elder. If l can make men pause in
their toll and notice the ant hill and
the dandelion they have just now
trodden tnoughtlessiE beneath their
feet-if can make them look UP. as
they mop tn sweat from thei. brows.
and SCI the exquisite haa OF Goa 5
blessed SKY, ucnoticed because per
re-uaIlv 2toye tnen--it l can call
their attention 20 the ioseate bea0rE
oil tnei- own l.t.a nta~5a t.'5E, end
20 the rich treasure, treasure winch
money cana3t hug aHd Wl-cA cannot
be measured il any human currency,
treasure OF love. | mean. Which shines
in the 1ace5 Q, little cai.drcl. however
RAGGED. and OF wives ana helpmeets,
however bent with toil-if | can do
that. Uncle Elder. will anything else
-matter-do yoa think?
lie gave me q look 50 kind. Sc
thou.htful. 50 conprahending, that
: ny heart G,ovca
. There are your acres, Unc!e
Elder" | said earnestly, pointing te
the wheat fields waving in the sum
mcr wind The world says, Elder
Ba1ter IS a farmer, bet say, 'E.del
Baxter hath fed MS Eind. I. too
, want 10 feed NY kind. Uncle Elder
' and with bread as white and sal
l isfyine as the leaves potential il
5 those fields OFT there, L. too. would
SOW ana reap those acres which have
= been allotted 20 rle-soil CT the sou
[ which may be as benaicanI as eve,
> earthly loan sir. have crop Ion:
planted and already tlourishins. here
t in my mind. It Is ny novel. j is IN.
J, first novel, Uncle Elder. and the plo
t is new. though it is the old, cid stor
e OF mans toll and love, I'll" frs
!, chapter is already written. haT
n read it 10 dozen persons. suDpos
n competent judges-and they al
: tell me that nothing like it was eve
: done before. Why. they laughed an
: cried, Sir. What better proof. in thi
age Of materia.ism, than to touc
: ones fellows TO smiles ar! t22Tso''
t Uncle Elder nodded He was hear
and soul with me- | could see. II
' rose suddenly and walked TO tn
window. and then comir5 back, 50
e down again.
e Imagine" said. "a man gra
l. with years, sitting in his doorEard. i
:, the sun His paper has slipped frol
is his hands to the garden path. wner
his little Srandchiid plays with to
soldiers and prattle5 warfare in tn
= shadow Of the l;iacs: and as he ST
e.-nNi Il I,