Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1909-09-15
! The
TRANSPORTATION
Asricola
By ADELAIDE NEWELL

: ~ .
By ADELAIDE NEWELL
t.o.o>e.o.o.o.O.o.o.O.o.pS
Two girls sat beneath the broad
shade OF an ash tree by the bank OF
pleasant stream, One was sketch
ing the lovely piece OF nature before
them. and the other sat with her
back against the tree trunk with a
writing pad on her knee, even and
anon signing heavily. Beyond the
gNrgling waters stretched sunny
hay field. whose-swee fragrance was
waited gently across by the summer
breeze. A tall young farmer was
making hay.
An especially disconsolate sigh
from the girl with the writing pad
fetched a rebuke from the artist.
GO to work, Constance, and earn
your weeks board money
Cant, complained the other. .The
plot l had worked out In my, mind
falls fiat on paper. haven't done
q thing for days. Do suggest some
thing, Sophie"
Where is your romantic eye?n de-
manded Sophie. ..see yonder clod.
hopper blthely moving the green
sward. Make a story about him. He
looks every inch hero with those
shoulders and muscles. If he'd come
near I'd like to paint him. There
is no need Of succumbing to writer's
cramp with all this raw material ly-
ing around loose waiting to be manu-
featured into a finished product. Now,
60 to work and tell us about young
+ Agricola.''
There was long silence after
this. The artist looked around once
and was amused to see her friend
dwelling the field glasses upon the
unconscious young farmer
How near he seems" thought Con-
stance. II can see the color OF his
eyes. He does look hero, to be
sure. What a magnificent head for
a farmer"
She abruptly dropped the glasses.
Agricola had seemed to look straight
through the lenses and into her eyes.
But before she could drop her glasses
he had smiled. In embarrassment
she raised her glasses again, look
ing ostentatiously at every point OF
the landscape but where the hand-i
some young haymaker worked When
Sophie next looked at her she was.
assiduously plying her fountain pen.
The authoress, a novice In the field
Of literature, described the scene, the
brook. the warm, green fields with
the hills rising softly beyond, and in
detail she described the farmer. She
wove into the tale the episode OF the
field glasses, celebrating upon the
meeting ofsthe eyes, and causing the
heroine to succumb to the charms OF
the countryman, who turns out to be
a rusticating minister. by name Hor-
ace Blinn, and after somewhat orig
inal experiences tine pair fall upon
each others necks in rather hack
neyed style. and are presumably hap
py ever afterwards.
She called the story .sThe Trans.
formation Of Agricola" and sent 1t
to The Daily Gallop, a newspaper
published in her own distant city.
and. the spell Of inertia being brok-
en-, straightway reeled off other stor.
les which she, despatched to various
periodicals.
When Sophie was not looking for
fresh scenes to transfer to her can.
vas, the girls spent thew time under
the favorite tree. AS long as the
haying In the meadow across the
stream lasted. Constance surreptiti-
ously studied the young farmer
through the field glasses. But all
things temporal must end, especial
ly grass, and the hay field soon was
stubble and knew the young Agricola
no more.
In few weeks the story appeared
Almost simultaneously with the re
cefpt OF the paper containing 1t, the
girls we're startled by seeing the un
mistakable figure of Agricola, hand
some as Adonis but arrayed in {
clerical-looking garb, crossing the
stnbble field toward the stream. A
mischievous Whit of wind suddenl,
caught his Panama hat and whisket
II into the water. where 1t proceeded
to float down stream. The girls al
most involuntarily sprang to assis
In the rescue. The wind had borne
1t toward their side, and as the!
reached the edge of the water thu
hat was lodged temporarily against
rock. Constance impulsfyely steppe,
from rock I'd rock and seized tn,
runaway just as it was slipping from
It's moorsng. Here was now a dilem
ma How was she to get the hat t
this troublesome person who was will
difiiculty REFRESHING his laughter? Blu
he was soon making his way to he
side by means Of other rocks. 1t wa
perilous trip as the rocks were ia
apart and slippery. but he finall
reached her, when she straightwa
lost her footlng and slipped into tn
brook. The clerical-looking person
Of course. could not do less than fs
her out and escort the ladies to the'
boarding place. a nearby farmhouse
As he uncovered his shapely head ii
parting. he said with extreme gray
ity, II am the Rev. Horace Blmn
May I have the pleasure of calling?
Constance turned the color OF
poppy, and without causing her tn
embarrassment Of reply. the rev
erend gentleman departed.
The situation was confided to tn
good lady where they boarded Sh
laughed till tears stood in her eyes
lyon needn't be afraid of him." sh
assured them. Il know him we'll. Hi
folks live about here. But he ha