The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1908-07-29
EXPERIMENTING
ON A TRAMP.
[conrrIrht. lpo,. hr 3. 9. Moclure.l

ing" At 4 o'clock, when she returned
and drove into the yard, strange
spectacle greeted her What might be
called the north end OF a man was pro-
truding from a kitchen window. The
case was plain. His trousers and shoes
showed him TO belong 10 the genus
tramp. He had called and, finding tho
house alone, had forced up the sash
OF the window and started to climb in.
At the halfway point the sash had
come down on the small Of his back.
and he was held as securely as II be
had been handcuffed and shackled. e
The widows face beamed with sat-
isfaction as she entered the house to
take look at hlslphiz. Yes, 1t was a
tramp. and a hulking big fellow at
that. She went outdoors with n lock
OF anticipation In her eyes and hunted
up a bit OF board of just the right
shape and for the next half hour che
was a busy woman. She stood or at
just the right distance from the win.
dow, and the board rose and fell with
amazing regularity and vigor. The
tramp kicked his legs about and in-
dulged in remarks. but Che walloping
did not end until the woman had tired
herself out. Then she took down the
clothesllne and wrapped Il around the
tramp's legs about forty times, en-
tered the house and tied bis wrists
securely. and then raised the sash and
let him fall backward on the grass.
AS he lay there she came out to bend
over him and ask: yT-.l
"well, how do you feel nowT ff
I'll don't exactly know" was the
reply. s-
This is an experiment on my part.
I want to bring you to a state OF hum
bleness. Do you think ! have accom-.
pllshed it?"
Eyes; feel humber than did. It's
a new feelin', and you must take the
risks Of It."
"oh, I'll look out for the risks. Just
make yourself as comfortable and as
humble as you can, and when the hired
man comes up I'll see to your case fur
ther."
Two hours later the trsmp's bands
were unbound and food set before him.
The food consisted OF bread and water.
There was consistency in humble
man eating humble fare. When be had
finished eating he was again made Sc
cure and dragged to the barn and lock-
ed up in the granary for the night
The next step is to arouse your am.
bition," said the widow as she left
him, land III tell you my programme
in the morning. / hope to find your
humbleness greatly increased by then.
DO you still feel humility bubbling up
in your soulf'
II do, marin, and am sorter afraid
OF it It's new feelin', and | don't
know what it's going to lead to. It's
an experiment, is it?" H.
at is"
"Then you must take the risks, as I
said before. / understands myself as a
cheeky tramp, but when you come to
make humble tramp OF me that's diff
ferent."
Next morning the fellow was hauled
ont Of the barn and asked IL any addi-
tional feeling had come to him during
the night, and he replied:
II think there has, marin. | think
I'm feeling what you call ambitious
this morning / find myself thinkin' OF
work without the usual feelin's OF
dread Accompanying 1t. That's smbi,
ton, take it?"
Yes"
But don't blame me, marin, IL any
thin happens. When you go for to i'm
plant new feelin's in the breast of a
tramp you can't tell what he's goin' to
do"
''Svill you take hoe and go to work
In the fed If l give yeu good break
fast?"
II will, marin. I'm sortar Gurus my
self to see what'1 goin' TO result from
this new feelin',"
The first result was breakfast that
should have done for three hired men.
1t keT1 the widow on the jump to keel
the table supplied He wasn't eating
on his humility appetite, but on his
ambitious one. When ne had finished
at last he was asked to cut some wood
before going to the field. In the course
of ten minutes he shivered two ak
handles and gave cherry tree NOR
tai blow Started for the field TO as
sist the hired man, he tramped oveI
the tomato and cucumber patches, tore
down panel Of rail- fence getting over
it and In the course of another hall
hour had welded his hoe so vigorous
ly among the turnips that he had dug
up two bushels with the weeds and
broken the blade. The hired man
sought to curb him. He was iusty
hired man that had licked over score
of tramps, but they had been tramps
without ambition. When he tackled |
this one he was laid on his back forth
with.
Then the tramp headed for the barn,
and with club he smashed the spokes
out Of three wheels of the family car |
riage. He pulled the harness down
and dragged 1t about. kicked the horse
out Of the stable, broke up the wheel
barrow and pounded the tanning mill,
and he was shoveling oats out OF the
granary window on to the ground
when the widow came out and said:
This was an experiment on ny
part. you know"
aYes marin. and I told YOU to LOOK |