Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1909-10-09
LIKE THE DODO. /.

An anxious inquirer wants to know
what has become Of the man that used
to carry cabbage leaf in the crown
OF his hat to ward of sunstroke. We
remember him we'll. He wore other
things besides the cabbage leaf and q
hat; items, bluejeans trousers.
brown jeans coat. cotton shirt. wool.
en- socks, and cowhide boots, the last
named coming In wooden hox, big at
one end and little at the other. be.
ginning with No. twelves-men's size
and tapering down to the copper
toes for the small fry. In the winter.
time he creased the boots with mutton
tallow to render them soft and phi.
able. but even then II required the
combined efforts Of a bootjack and the
entire family to begin his undressing.
He built his barn on the crest Of the
hill and his house in the valley below.
SO as to be near the spring. Tradition
and the almanac governed his farming
methods. He planted his potatoes In
the dark Of the moon and his beans In
the light OF the moon. and split his
cows tail to cure her OF the "holler
horn" He rose at In the morning.
fed the stock by lantern light. and sat
on the fence waiting for dawn to en-.
able him to work In the field. His
wants were simple. The farm products
supplied the table with almost every.
thing except sugar and coffee. These
he traded for at the store" giving In
exchange spring chickens at to 10
cents apiece and eggs at 10 to Is cents
q dozen. At hog-killing time he had
fresh meat as long as the sausage and
spareribs lasted. After that he went
from bacon to ham, and then from
ham to bacon. with kit Of salt mack.
erel added about twice a year. His
social diversions were few. In sum.
mer he was too busy. and In winter
the roads were too bad for much trav.
ell. In spite Of that he got to the coun.
ty seat occasionally and served on the
Jury two or three times. Once he went
to the "city." 40 the nearest metropo-
lis was vaguely designated. After that
event he was won't to shake his head
at unexpected moments and mutter.
such a rippin' and rarin'!" Read.
ers OF q certain class Of magazines i'm.
agine that his favorite oath was by
heck" but this Is q mistake. II gran.
ny" and plague take II" were his
strongest explosives a. rule. the for.
mer indicative Of modified form Of
ancestry worship. while the latter
bears evidence OF a transmitted En-.
glish oath. II In turn barking back to
the days Of London's pestilence. All
in all. his was a drab-colored exist.
ence, broken but not frightened by
hog cholera, quarterly interests. and
annual taxes. Like as not. the whole
thing ended by his getting caught In
a cold rainstorm; then came sudden
chill and pneumonia, or, as they called
1t then, the lung fever" He left the
farm and the mortgage to his eldest
son and told everybody he was "willin'
to Co." and no one seemed to doubt 1t.
So that's what has become of him.
Another reigns In his stead, but every
thing has changed. Other times. other
manners. His successor has a house
on the hill, with hot-water heat and
electric lights and bath tub. The
mortgage has been replaced by bank
account. Macadam roads. tailor.cut
clothes, an automobile, scientific farm.
ing. rural free delivery, cows MIXED
with a suction pump, eggs 30 cents a
dozen, butter 40 cents pound-cash.
Where Is the man with the cabbage
leaf? Non est, we tell you. He Is as
eytincf AZ the dodo