Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1912-07-22

whether he knew how to ride or not
There was brief struggle within him,
and | won. He went out to the stable
structions. | ran upstairs. donned my
riding clothes, and when | came down
John appeared in an immaculate riding
suit-he had never worn it beforehand.
going out to the porte-cochere, we
mounted and rode away.
John had provided himself with a
horse that could not be driven out of
a walk, and even then the poor fellow
had hard time to keep his balance
But had made beginning and made
up my mind that before | had got
through with him he should be jump
ing logs and bitches. l was tempted
90 prick the animal he rode with a pin
and get my pupil dumped on the turf,
| but l didn't wish to try too much at
once. so | refrained. / gave him a
him to return to the house. take a
bath and put on his evening clothes
before dinner. He was quite exhaust
ed. but seemed to be very proud of
having ridden horse.
1t required only this much to con-
vince me that John was a man, like
other men. He had been deprived of
/ the elements of development How
can plant thrive without sunlight?
My old playmate had grown to man
nhnhinnnn fn n n In w
| He was like boy who had been taught
to swim by reading swimming instruc-
/ tions from a book. In other words, he
had not learned at all.
The next morning / came down to
breakfast in tennis suit, John in i'm
maculate morning costume.
Go straight upstairs" | said to him,
"and come back in your shirt and
trousers. DO you suppose you're going
to entertain me sitting on the piazza?
Not on your life! You'll play tennis"
He gave a sickly smile. marched up
stairs, came back in sporting costume,
and after breakfast we went out to
the court. He played the game, though
he had begun too late to make much
of a hand ut it When we had played
one set he was tired. but l kept him
at it till an hour before luncheon. and
he went in to the tub reeking with
perspiration.
AT the end of the week great
change had come over John. He had
got some of the soft" out of him and
had entered upon n new career. l had
been link for him between his moth
er and freedom. Before the week eX-
pired he had declared his independ-
ence and developed a natural taste for
athletic sports. He was like plant
brought from cellar and placed in
the shower and sunshine of an April
day. He wouldn't hear of my leaving.
must stay on indefinitely, as long as
would
His mother needed some one to take
him from her influence as much as he
She had followed a habit and was not
sorry when she saw that | was trying
to undo what she had done, for there
is no mother who does not wish to see
her son manly, even though she be the
cause of his effeminacy.
l remained at the Perllinses for a
month and even then found it hard to
get away | had nearly killed Johnny
but he said "he liked it." His mother
didn't approve of that part of it and
asked me if taste for athletics neces
sarily involved breaking persons necks
replied that an occasional neck was
necessarily broken in athletics, as wei
as in other less strenuous pursuits.
A year passed, during which l wa!
constantly spending short or Ions
terms at the Perkinses. Athletics wer,
to Johnny like a new toy to a child
In the winter he learned to skate ant
in the summer to swim. He was great
ly handicapped on account of learning
those accomplishments late in life ant
had he not had strong natural tast,
for them would not have learned then
at all. AS it was, he became fairly pro
} ficient in them.
was repaid for all my trouble-if /
. can be called such-by John himself
Among other sports. was fond o.
canoeing. 1t seems to me the mos
, dangerous of all outdoor sports, ever
for those who can swim-that Is, il
they go too far from land. One day
Johnny and l were padding in canoe
on bay of the Atlantic ocean. W.
, ventured too far out and were caught
in a squall. We saw it coming ant
, death in it. In John the nature of {
strong man triumphed over the disad
, vantages he had so long endured. HC
: became the anchor, | the Ginger. He
: ordered me to lie down in the bottom
, Of the boat in order to preserve It's
; equilibrium, while he crouched as low
as possible and still worked paddle
Watching the wind coming over the
, water, he kept the canoe in position
to be struck on the stern instead Of OF
the side.
J We plunged on the crests of the
: waves for awhile. but no strength ol
| skill could keep us straight before
them. The canoe turned, and the mex
: wave that struck us keeled it over
! Both swan for the boat, which foatet
bottom up. and caught it.