Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-09-24
THE BLUE AND WHITE COUNTRY

BY Edith Wyatt.
A blue town no bigger than but
ternut once stood in the bottom of a
blue Dutch bowl belonging to a little
girl named Hildegarde.
Around the town in thesbowl was q
sea of swirling blue ripples and white
rolling surf
Around the sea in the bowl was a
shore OF white-pebbied beaches and
spiky piers with heavy piling.
Around the shore In the bowl was
an open countryside OF brooks and
field and cobbled town, where little
darls,blue people were walking, run.
ming, dancing, drawing water clean.
ing fish, loading wagons, eating. drink
ing and driving little blue cattle over
the hills on a broad white road whirl-
ing down through ali the blue pas.
lures from the rim TO the bowl to the
coast. -
Around the country side IN the bowl
was rim Of great blue tulips.
Every night at supper as Hide
garde drank her sailed bread and
milk down from the tulips to the tow.l
| this whole country would come out
fresh like the earth after the flood.
The place was, however, far more
neatly arranged than the earth is. In
the plan Of that, OF course, there are
many things which seem unsatifac.
tory, while in the place Of the bowl
there was only one thing. 1t was
difficult for Hildegarde to see the
city clearly. This was both because
by the time she had drunk her way
to the sea she was always sleepy and
because 1t was hard to get out the
last drop of milk covering the little
| pinnacle and spires.
One night while she was scooping
and trying to dig the point of her
spoon into the bottom of the bowl
1t seemed to her she could hear q
faint. faint, faint, "Clink, clink
bobble, bobble, bobble" as though the
little COW bells were ringing on the
little blue hills.
You can imagine how Hildegarde
felt then. She threw her. head back
| and turned the bowl right upside
| down over her face to hear better;
and she remained in that position 50
long that the grandmother ran to her
in panic thinking the little girl had
suffocated herself. This story Is not
one of the kind written ito persuade
people to act or not to act like the
| leading characters.
| Just as the grandmother took the
| bowl off and set it down on the table
again, Hildegarde certainly heard a
| faint. faint "Clink, clink, clink; bob
bic. bobble, bobble."
| You can imagine how abe felt then
She put her face right down inside
the bowl to hear better and she
stayed in that position SO long that
the grandmother thought she had
gone to sleep; SO she went away to
| turn back the spread and to bounce
up the pillows.
Just as she left, saying, well. ]
never had a grandchild before that
went to sleep on the table," Hide
garde was sure she heard a faint
"Clink, clink, clink: bobble, bobble
bobble, bobble,! clink. clink clink.'
could into the bowl and shut up the
other.
Something seemed to be simmer
ing along by the shore line; and she
thought there must be a chink Of
light left where the rim came agains,
her hair. But when she pressed hel
cheek down close to the edge OF the
bowl she saw, just as before, some
thing cleaning and dancing deep IN
the hollow.
| It was the little waves running
along the little beach.
Not only that but the little sails or
. the sea were ballooning in the wind;
the little chimneys were nncurline
streamers of smoke; over the blue
hills little sheep we're browsing; on
the winding road gusty clouds OF
white dust were plainly stirred ur
by little wagons passing along and
little droves Of cattle. The wind
mills were whirring; the rivers were
ripping over the pebbles and the
whole countryside was alive with the
stir Of the little dark-blue people.
Not only that but, besides seeing
hearing and smelling all this, Hide
garde could step right out into the
opening of the whirling road.
Below her spread all the valley
white as ice, and blue as the sky
f1uttering treetops, flying river. wid4
blown field and cobbled town, scent
ed everywhere with fresh, cole
grassy odor-and all peopled. spark
| ling and moving as though 1t lived [,
the gay, hobbling time Of the COW
bells.
And standing as she did. with thu
way open into the whole new place
Hildegarde was happy-almost.
She jumped UP on rock by the
roadside, and looked down to the sea
Far, far across II she could just dis
| tinguish the little island city no big
i ger than a bi,fterni,t
She thought-yes, she was sure
she could even hear guns booming II
4 the harbor.
While she was wondering whether
she could get to the shore neares,
the harbor faster by following The
road or by cutting across country
she noticed, sitting at a little table
| two Dutchmen she had never seen be
| fore.
She plainly heard one Of them say
in loud breezy tone that came buoy
ing away up the hillside, "Holger, JUS
one schooner more and then we'll e.
| aboard and set sail for town.
At that the man pounded his fist
/ on the table, and out of the door of q
windmill near nv ran btp hInornir,e