The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1910-01-15
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Picking The Pears
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Gown with golden pears. There wAaW
other fruit trees on The place, AAEs
lills was the favosite one. Nt
There was time when this treef
carried dead branches and worm nests
ahd looked as disreputabIe as an ola
tramp. Ii has yielded fruit thar no
one could eat Then Miss Mamie /
Waterman had taken up tree culture |
as fad Her widowed mother had
smiled ami her brother Fred had jolx- |
ed sa-castically at her expense, but
she had perservered, The tree had
been pruned, sprayed. mulched. and
IS carefully tended as an ailing child, |
and it had gratefully responded. Iti
bore bushels of pears this fall, and
every one of them fit for a king TO
eat.
Tuesday was the day set for pick
lng the pears. Brother Fred had
agreed to climb up and handpck and
ufop each pear into sheet held ready
by his sistcr and the cook The pick
Ing OF the pears was to be sort OF
family picnic. Alas for human plans.
Tuesday morning brought a letter ask
ing for tie presence Of the mother
and son in the city TO sign certain
legal papers, and they had an hou,
IN which to get ready. Tomorrow
must do for the pears.
II was the cook who was responsi-
ble for all that resulted. An hour af.
ter the departure of mother and son,
she accosted the daughter with.
''itfE tnl hu1 .hpttt fha,, ,,,,..,
Some OF EN- are already oyerripe and
dropping off this morning
But Fred had TO so, YOU know,
was the reply.
But there's two of us.
And what Of it?'
Why, while I'm too stout to climb
! can hold the sheet or something.
! We are alone about the place. There'll
\ be no man to call except maybe tin
pealler, and can yell al him before
me gets inside the gate. It's a shame
ito let the pears get too ripe"
But do you mean that / am to
climb the tree?'
Pears is pears, Miss Mamie Pears
3id big pears. Pears is luscious pears.
When I was a girl of twenty, as you
aTe--. Well, should you want me, call
out"
MISS Mamie went out and surveyed
4 that pear tree from all sides. Snt
G fund her heart heating faster. She
turned her eyes from the tree 10 a
ladder resting against a shed. Broth
er Fred had had to admit that he
had been in error about the fruit
tiee: why not gather it. as well, with
cut his help? The more she though /
of it the more she favored the idea.
It would be thing to crow over
when he returned. Three bushels of
golden pears all ready for the pre-.
serving process and no thanks to you.
sir!
Good gracious, but who are you
and what do you want?" was the ex-
clamation of the cook half an houl
/ later when a trim young man sudden.
ly appeared in the kitchen.
Don't you know me, Mery?'
"Sakes alive, Miss Mamie, but
you've went and gone and done it,
I fouve got on your brothers clothes. >
Yes, and I'm going to climb the
peaT tree while you hold the sheet.
had to rut on these clothes to
climb in, but If you ever tell hui
man being about it I'll have a ghost
haunt you all the rest of your life
Come on
: Fifteen minutes later the ladder
was up and the pears We're being pick.
: ed snd Miss Mamie and the cook
were giggling over il. Had the agri
cultural department at Washington
been furnished with statistics regard
ing the event one of the paragraphs
would have read:
Miss Mamie moved about on the
ladder almost as well as her brother
Fred could have done" It was only
when she had stripped the branches
within reach and had TO take to The
tree Itself that she displayed anything
Ike timidity and awkwardness. But
that was partly because she had to
consider oticr things us well at
climbing and keep calling down t.
Mary every five minutes;
Don't forget to keep your eyes on
the gate II any man should conc
to catch me up here
He'd never live 10 tell of it Id
XII him on the spot We are as safe
as If in the middle of he great
Sahara" said he faithful old setv
ant
Again alas for human plans A bic
pear dropped, for the sheet went down
, only as IA MS the cooks nose. and
llfll organ was bumped SO hard that
hlnnI "a a. FIJI.
ened woman deserted her post and
ran for The house
II was while she was applying cold
water that young man suddenly
! came around the corner of the house
looked all alound and then let his
ewes follow The ladder uD the tree
and shouted out.
All there, old boy. Rang the bell
twenty times and no one came. Pick
ing pears, eli? Quite pastoral. Why
! Gion't YOU wait fos yours truly?r
For ten seconds Miss Mamie was
paralyzed Then ii came to her like
flash that Fred had told of his col
lcge chum who was coming TO pass
fortnight with him before they re
turned to college together. He had
arrived a day or two sooner than was
expected, and he had arrived to find
Fled's sister dressed in one of Fred S
suits, and up tree at that The girl
was gasping for breath when Ronald
/, Wheaton. for that was the name,
continued:
Lost your voice, old msn. or aren't
you glad TO see me? I'll bet a cookie,
can hit YOU in the head with a pear
at the first shot viii you come down