The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1909-08-27
The
TRANSPORTATION
Of
Agricola
BIZ ADELAIDE NEWELL

0%0>O>0SO>0SOS
Two girls sat beneath the broad
shade of an ash tree by the bank of
a 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
gurgling waters stretched sunny
hay field, whose sweet 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 rebuke from the artist.
Go to work, Constance, and earn
your weeks board money!
Cant" complained the other 1.-THE
plot / had worked out in my mind
falls fat on paper. haven't done
thing for days. Do suggest some
thing. Sophie"
Where. is your romantic eye?" de-
manded Sophie. See yonder clod-
hopper bMthely moving the green
sward. Make 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 finished product. Now,
go 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
levelling the field glasses upon the
unconscious young farmer.
How near he seems" thought Con-
stance. Il can see the color of his
eyes. He does look hero, to be
sure. What 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.
some young haymaker worked. When
Sophie next looked at her she was
assiduously plying her fountain pen.
The authoress, 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 of the 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 the pair fall upon
each others necks in rather hack
neyed style, and are presumably hap
Ply ever afterwards
She called the story 'sThe Trans.
formation of Agricola'' and sent it
to The Daily Gallop, 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 their 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 a few weeks the story appeared
Almost simultaneously with the re-
ceipt Of the paper containing it, the
girls were startled by seeing the I'M
mistakables figure of Agricola, hands
some as Adonis but arrayed in a
cIerical-looking garb. crossing the
stubble field toward the stream. A
mischievous Whit of wind suddenly
caught his Panama hat and whisked
1t into the water, where 1t proceeded
to float down stream. The girls al
most inEoluntarily sprang to assist
in the rescue. The wind had borne
it toward their side, and as they
reached the edge OF the water. the
hat was lodged temporarily against a