The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1908-08-28
EXPERIMENTING
ON A TRAMP.

E
The widow Gregg was natural re-
former One afternoon she left her |
farm for the village to do some trad
ing" At o'clock, when she returned
and drove into the yard. a strange
spectacle greeted her. What might be
called the north end of q man was pro
truding from a kitchen window The
case was plain. His trousers and shoes
showed him to belong to the genus
tramp He had called and, finding the
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 bis back,
and he was held as securely as II be
had been handcuffed and shackled.
The widows face beamed with sat
isfaction as she entered the house to
take look at his phiz. Yes, 1t was
tramp. and hulking big fellow at
that She went outdoors with look
Of anticipation in her eyes and hunted
up bit Of board Of just the right
shape, and for the next half hour she
was busy woman. She stood of 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 the walloping
did not end until the woman had tired
herself out. Then she took down the
clothesline and wrapped it around the
tramp's legs about forty times. en-
! tered the house and tied his 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:
"well, how do you feel noww
Ell don't exactly know" was the
reply.
"This is an experiment on my part.
want to bring you to state Of hum
bleness. Do you think / have accom-
plished it?"
eyes; 1 feel humber than did. It's
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.
Their"
Two hours later the tramp's hands
were unbound and food set before him
The food consisted of bread and water
There was consistency in humble
man eating humble fare. When he had
7 finished eating he was again made Sc
+ cure and dragged to the barn and lock
ed up in the granary for the night.
gThe next step is to arouse your am
bition," said the widow as she lief
: him, "and I'll tell you my programme
in the morning. hope to find you
; humbleness greatly increased by then
Do you still feel humility bubbling vi
r In your soul ?"
v 81 do, marin, and am sorter afrai'
Of 1t. It's new feelin', and don
know what it's going to lead to. It
an experiment, is it?"
ut Isl
sThen you must take the risks, as
y edlu DtlOIt. uh0CA cta1ibo LIZ 1tAA ~
cheeky tramp, but when you come t
:, make humble tramp of me that's dii
ferent"
Next morning the fellow was haule
= out of the barn and asked If any add
tional feeling had come to him durin
s. the night, and he replied:
Il think there has, marin. thin
A r.. faol;rx xx-t.ok x-ns. ralI ouabffiol
this morning find myself thinkin' (
work without the usual feelin's I
. dread accompanying it. That's ami
ton, / take it?"
9, Eyes"
But don't blame me, marin, If an
g, thin happens. When you 60 for to II
plant new feelin's in the breast Of
~ tramp you can't tell what he's goin'
do"
"Will you take hoe and go to wol
~ in the field If give you good brea
fast?'
to Il will, marin. I'm sorter Gurus m
5. self to see what's goin' to result fro
ST. this new feelin'."
4. The first result was breakfast til
&c should have done for three hired me
- 1t kept the widow on the jump to Ike
80 the table supplied. He wasn't eati
on his humility appetite. but on
re- ambitious one. When he had finish
err at last he was asked to cut some wo
KY before going to the field. In the coul
in OF ten minutes he shivered two
u. handles and gave a cherry tree m
&, tai blow Started for the field to
- sist the hired man, he tramped 0,
ien the tomato and cucumber patches. t
mt down panel Of rail fence getting o.
1t and in the course Of another b
lay hour had welded his hoe SO yigoro
are Iy among the turnips that he had d
Of up TWO pusneis WIN the weeds g
broken the blade. The hired m