The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1909-12-14
BEING A HERO.
Rv M. QUAD.
~ III W~FtNi
ECopyrIght, 1909 by American Press Asso-
citation

ciation.l
Ebenezer Schermerhorn, farmers
4 hired man, was in love with the Wild
Sw Tompkins, whose farm adjoined
TINT Of his boss on the west. Ebene-
ger was twenty-four years old, plain Of
face and ungainly OF form and without
800 worth Of property. The widow
was less than forty and well Off. Ebe-
nezer was rated as good hearted, but
rather duh. One evening as he drop
! ped ia to SEQ the widow about borrow
Ing some farm implements next day lie
found her reading love story. She
read a few chapters to him and after
ward acknowledged that she bad al
ways been romantic and that II she
ever married again 1t would be to
hero. The farmers hired man didn't
rush right of that night ana try to be
hero, but sat down to think.
Three OF four days after Ebenezers
thinking bee a tramp came along the
road and, seeing the young man hoe
ing corn just over the fence, halted
for word or two. Ordinarily Ebene-
zer would have leaped the fence and
run the wayfarer half a mile, but on
this occasion he invited him over into
the corn and sat down with him for a
confidential conversation. The result
Of that conversation was that at $
o'clock that evening the tramp APP
peared before the Widow Tompkine
a A.. 81 flaf hla
do IL she Int set out yictuals. hunt
up old clothes and come down with
dollar In cash. Ebene8er was not far
away, just far enough TO come rum
ming up and knock the tramp head
over heels and rescue the widow. But
as he started to come running be fell
down and got tangled up with the
bushes, and before he could get away
the widow had broomsticked the tramp
into flight. she didn't say she was
glad that the would be hero was 50
near at hard. What she did say was
that she wasn't afraid OF any cid
tramp walking the roads.
Ebenezers first try was a failure,
but within a fortnight he was ready
for another. Behind the farms ran
river. The widow had skin on the
water and often rowed herself up and
down. one night the farmers hired
man took some tools down TO the
landing aud was busy for an hour.
Two evenings Inter just at shutdown,
he saw the widow making across the
field for the river, and be was not long
In following her He expected to hear
cries Tor help. but they did not come.
He expected TO find a woman clinging
TO a swamped boat. but ne didn't. She
was wading ashore when be arrived
on the bank and dashed IN. aud all be
got out of II was good sousing aud a
cold In the head
A cold In The head casts a man down
for a few days, but II there be any
hero about him be rallies and becomes
more daring than ever. Ebenezer
rallied Two or three farmhouses IN
the township had been robbed. and
this fact became the basis for his third
plan. One night at midnight be left
his bed. descended to earth by way OF
window, aud. armed with club. he
became d guard for the widows house
lie circled around II and patroiled the
garden and the orchard. and he felt
that be would give year of bis life IL
q robber would appear. He would FIRST
fell him and then arouse the house
and when the widow came 70 know
that be had been guarding Der for love
her heart would melt toward him. But
no robber came Instead Of that his
footsteps awoke the widow, and. peer
ing out, she saw some one walking
about. and she got out a shotgun and
raised window and beged away. The
gun was loaded with bird shot to shoot
hawks that might come swooping
down on chickens but In this ease
they answered just as well for man.
Ebenezer received about twenty Of
them and ran two miles to d doctor TO
have them picked out he also had a
vacation from work for week under
the excuse that he had sprained his I
back turning over 10 bed.
Ninety-nine out of a hundred would
be heroes weuid have given up the Job Z
right here, but Ebenezer was man i
to hang on It was while he was
limping around on his vacation and do /
ing lot of standing up and wander
Ing over the fields that be came upon /
the widow fishing ia the river at a
certain point. lie did not show him I
self but fifty feet from where she sat +
under tree be discovered d humble Z
bees nest in the grass. 1t was large
and liberal nest. and II gave him 4
thought The bees wouldn't bother (
anybody 10 long as they were let alone.
II stirred up they would look for meat
There was haystack not far away,
and Ebeuezer had matches in his
pocket. He retired behind the, stack
and collected hatfuI Of stones from
the plowed land. These he threw one
by one at the spot where the bees
were pursuing the even tenor of their
ways. The plot thickened. lou can
thicken bumbIebee plot In a very
short time All you've got to do Is 70
tread on their coattails When the In
sects found the rocks dropping on their
heads they swarmed out Of the grass
to look for the enemy. They should
have seen the widow and descended
upon her and at her first shrek
Ebenezer would have come charging
down with wisp of lighted hay in
either hand. But things went wrong.
The bees then went for him alone.
They ran him up and down the hay
sack. they ran him over fences and