Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1911-09-22
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I. Be HERO
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b NJ. QUAD
81 N. QUAD
Copyright. 1911. by Associated Lit
sE@s erary Press.

l. 80 S4&a#S liz
IN Copyright. 1911, by Associated Lit
MS -erarySs Press.
Joe Harper was a sturdy young farm.
er, and Ellen Taylor was the daughter
Df another, and they were engaged to
be- married. All their friends said it
would be a sensible match. Joe was,
given the credit of, lots of horse
sense" and no n could say that the
young woman was a bit frivolous.
That is. they couldn't until after a GER
tain girl friend Of hers from town had
made her q three weeks visit and left
four or i've novels behind her when
she departed.
Those novels were about heroes, cav.
alters, ~chevaliers and knights. They
told Of perils. combats and rescues.
Mrs. Taylor would have chucked them
into the stove had she found them and
boxed her daughters ears besides, but
she didn't find them. They were read
at night after the rest Of the family
was asleep.By the time she had fin
ished the second one the girl was look
ing askance at Joe. HeSwas sunburn.
ed and freckled; his ears were rather
large; instead Of saying prithee, he said
ny gosh. In all the novels the cheva-
Tiers had plumese in their hats; Joe
didn't even year a hens feather in
his old straw. He had a hoe on
his shoulder instead of a lance, and he
plowed corn with an old deabitten
mare. instead of riding around on an
Arabian steed.
No, Joe didn't size up for shucks,
compared to the chevaliers.
In the meadow. near the field where
Joe was blowing corn, a colony Of
humble bees had taken up their quar-
ters in a tuft Of grass. This fact was
known. to the Taylor family, and the
farmer intended to rout them out some
evening. Bundle bees r not cheva-
Tiers, but they are the next thing to it.
At 2 o'clock one afternoon, when it
was seen that Joe and the old mare
were hard at work. Miss Ellen put on
her bonnet and walked out to that
bumblebee caucus. At five feet from
it she halted and screamed and danced
around.
The scream reached Joe Harper's
ears, and he let 60 Of the plow handles
and made for the fence. In an instant
he realized the situation, but he didn't
dash forward and fall over several
stumps. Instead of so doing he sat on
the fence and called out:
"Ellen, why in thunder don't you run
away"
"Oh, the humble bees!" she shouted.
Eyes, but don't stand there like an
idiot! Make for the house,"
A week had passed and the stings
had been cured, when Joe got another
chance. At 2 o'clock one afternoon
Miss Ellen sat on the veranda sewing
and wondering how Joe would look in
armor and on horseback, when she
caught sight of a big dog coming along
the highway on the gallop. She
screamed for Joe again. He dropped
his hoe and came running, but paused
as he reached the fence to ask what
was the matter.
Mad dog! Mad dog!!" she shouted.
Then climb up that ladder on to the
roof Of the kitchen"
No rushing to the rescue. no beating
the dogs brains out, no remarks worth
leaving to %posterity. Miss Ellen vas
furious with him. That was the reason
a rung Of the ladder broke as she was
descending and precipated her on an
ashheap. Within an hour the chevalier
Of the hoe received word that he need
never show up at the Taylor house
again. The engagement was or.
"Now look at thatv! he exclaimed
when he had been made to understand.
'There was that ladder handy to climb.
l saw the dog coming and knew it be-
longed to Perkins. Vas there any
need for me to break my other sus
pender? And If it had been a real
mad dog would it have helped the case
any for both of US to have been bit.
ten?"
Joe stayed away. He had been told
to and he obeyed. At tho end Of two
weeks he took a day Off to 60 fish,
ing. Miss Ellen heard through her
brother that he was going, and she
made a little plan. She had got over
being mad at the man who wouldn't
be heroic. In fact, she wanted to
make up" She would 60 a-fishing
too. She wouldn't fish for fish, but for
Joe Harper. The lover Of other and
happier DAYS was fishing from a shady
bank when she came into view, but
he was on the other side of the stream.
He watched her walk out on a strand
ed log and said to himself:
III she gets a bite and jerks up her
pole she'll sure 60 off that log"
Two minutes later the thing hap
pened. There was a nibble, a jerk and
q souse, and after the u a yell