Los Angeles herald., 1909-08-21

which could be seen farms and orchards
in pillows for miles around, with the
smoke of the city far away to the
northwest.
"Piie out, you boys" the driver or
dered. Here's where you spend the
hot spell"
The way the driver said twas hardly
as unkind as the speech may appear
to sound.
Surrounded with Cheerful Ideas
A large white farmhouse in the center
of 1876 acres of orchard land, hillside
and garden was the wagons destina-
tion. In the nearby fields little groups
of men In blue overalls and slouch mats
were grubbing and plowing. The strlk-
ing feature of the scene, to the mlnd
of the man who had just arrived there'
was that none of the men wore leg
irons and that there appeared TO be no
armed guards. Some barbwire across
the windows of the house and barb
wire barricade around the yard We're
the only suggestions of prison. Inc
wagon rumbled away and the prisoners
went into the yard, then into the mousse
1t was simply a plain, old-fashloned
farmhouse. Two women spoke Klndiy
to the Discouraged Man. In'the front
room, where they took him to snow MN
children who were playing there. Ihere
was something so human and decent
about the place that he was touched. A
pleasant young fellow, who did not ap-
pear to be more than 80 years old, m
troduced himself as the superintendent.
He asked the Discouraged Man some
questions, slapped him on the back ana
set him to wedding in the potato patcn'
There was a guard in the Held with
A. THE guard was as
cheerful as a minstrel and did more
work than any of the men of whom ne
was the boss He used to be FARMER,
he said and this was living again!
Some Of the men sang as they WORKED
None appeared to be unhappy. Wneh
the wedding was finished they dld Some
work with a crosscut saw on tree
trunk. The saw went back and forth
with all the spirit of well paid labor.
A little Austrian boy, who in the city
had been so incorrigible that he was
given a $500 fine, was the happiest or all.
ike the guard, he said he had at last
found the work he liked. 1t happened
that he had never been on 1arn pc
fore. This was a new and Wondertul
world. The questions he asked were as
numerous as those or the silall poS
of the comic weekly.
A large addition was being built 10
the farmhouse. The superintendent OIL
the farm took the Discouraged Man 10
where the carpenters were pounding
and introduced him. The carpenters
with one exception, were all prisoners
In the chicken yard, where the superlir,
tendent led him next, the Discouraged
Man watched 125 chickens caiieo l!lto u
one bunch and fed. He learned that the
chickenhouse, the storeroom, the pig
mems and the blacksmith shop all were
built bv the prisoners.
"Here is a buggy that we're as proud
of as of the house." the superintendent
said. when we got it 1t was such
ramshackle thing you could nave pougnt
it for two bits. A man gave II 10 us
half as a Joke. But the boys IN the
blacksmith shop worked up new body
scrapped and sandpapered and tiled the
whole thing, and gave 1t seven coats OF
naint. We had a carpenter and an up
boIsterer and a blacksmith on the farm.
There's the buggy now, almost as good
as new, to show what sort or work we
can turn out" s nro,,
Rv this time the Discouraged Man
was catching the idea. This was a
place not of punishment, but OF train
ing and reform-where wornout, DIS
carded things are made to look IKE
new. vaguely, he had been wishing Tor
such a place for a year or moreover
since the bottom dropped out or llfe.
The superintendent and the FARMER
suard took the new prisoner and the
enthusiastic little Austrian boy ana
went into the orchard to milk the COWS.
The Austrian boy sang and skipped nke
a. child. He called the cows in dozen
different intonations, and laugheu ana
whistled for joy. The orchard had been
In fun bloom until the white petals now
were beginning to drop off. The sight
of the flakes fluttering downward filled
the Discouraged Man with an odd glad
ness. He was or the point of speaking
of it, but felt ashamed.
The guard and the superintendent
said they were bound this was a
mighty fine season for fruit.
The cowyard was not yet finished.
So the Austrian boy and the guard
milked the three cows in corner Of
the pasture on the crest of hill.
Then the four men strolled back to