Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-01-22

~ traveller. studying New England al
NJ opening of the twentieth century
,hrourh the windows of a hurrying train
.aIeht sigh for vanished ideal and con-
..ds the universal triumph of CONNER.
cial age,
ror such one Red Hill held locked a
,rsssage, and the key to the lock was
ne message itself: urn your back
Wy ,be parallelcd rivers and railroads
v w, nIunge into the bywcys that lead
in,o ihe eternal hills, and you will find
M world that was and still is.
st such a traveller but follow lane
,Ast leads up through willow and elder
sarrv sassafras, laurel, wild cherry and
.Sr,ntnr clematis: n lane aligned with
.,ander vood-maples. hickory and noun
,atneash. and anked where 1t gains the
onsn with scattered Juniper and oak and
NJ will come out at last on the scenes
Of a country's CHILDHOOD.
A, right angles to the la"e, n broad
ray cutting the length of the hill, and
losing itself In a dip at each end toward
,he valleys ard the new world. The
hroad way Is shaded by one or two trees
the domed maple or the stately elm. NJ
,ha summit of it's rise stands an old
.svrcb whose green shutters blend with
,hs caressing foliage of primeval trees.
,,s white walls and towering steeple
animate the scene. White, too, are the
ssattered houses that CLEAN from be-
Mind the verdure of unbroken lawns and
shrnbbery. white all but one, whose time
.,sined brick glows bloodred against
the black-green Of clinging IVY.
Not all these homes are alive. here
eharred beam tells the story OF a hre.
there a mound of trailing lines tcnderly
h,aas from view the hame of ruin, and
,here again stands a tribute to the power
N The new az "a house whose shutters
.ra closed and barred; white now only in
,atches its scaling walls have taken
an the dull gray of neglected pine.
For generations these houses have sent
,ut men. for generations they have taken
,hem back Their cupboards guard
trophles from the seven seas. paid for
with the Yankee nutmeg; swords wrought
from plowshares and christened with
M blood of the oppressor. 6 long line
n eolegiate sheepsltins, and last. but by
M means least, recipes whose faded INK
sna brittle paper sum the essence of ages
Of culinary wisdom.
some of these clustered homes live the
year round at full swing. but the life OF
,ome is cut down In the winter to a
minimum. only to spring up afresh in
summer like the new stalk from treas
ured bulb. OF such was the little king
dom OF Red Hill.
nd 'Hill was very still on this Indian
,ummer afternoon as though IL were In
hiding from the railroads, mills and high
ways of an age of hurry. Upon Its long.
level crest IL bore but three centres or
nfe and symbol: Maple House, The FRS
and Elm House, half hidden from the
road by their distinctive trees, but as
alive as the warm eyes of a Veiled
woman: and the church.
The church was but symbol-a mere
she'll Within. It presented the appear
ance OF a lumber room in disuse, play
ground for rats and haven for dust.
But without, all was as it had ever been;
for the old church was still beloved. It's
fresh white walls and green shutters ana
the aspiring stceple, towering into the
blue, denied neglect and robbed abandon
ment Of its sting.
In the shadow of it's walls lay an old
graveyard whose overgroWn soil had
long been undisturbed. Along the single
road which cut the crest of the Hill from
north TO South were ruins of houses that
once had sheltered the scattered congre-
CATION. But the ruins were hard to find
for they too were overgrown by juniper.
elematls and a crowding thicket OF
molntain-ash.
On these evidences of death and en-
enactment the old church seemed to
turn It's back as II by right OF its fresh
walls and unbroken steeple 1t We're still
linked to life. Through its small-paned
windows 1t seemed to gaze contentedly
aeross the road at the three houses,
widely separated, that half faced II in
diminishing perspective. The three houses
iooked towards the sunrise. the church
lowards its decline.
The supper call had sounded and the
.anaren's answering cries had ceased.
Mong the ribbon of the single road
NuIrled an Overladen donkey. Three
lengths Of legs bobbed at varying angles
iion her fat sides. Behind her hurried
! nurse. aghast for the hundredth time
ue donkey's agility never demon
suated except at the evening hour.
:, ,naiiway between Maple House and The
.ns .t stood two bare-legsed boys working
r aer toes into the impalpable dust OF
Is roadway and rubbing the grit into
,h ,hsir ankles in final orgy of dirt before
.es evening wash. They called derisively
y IA Ine donkey load of children. bound TO
'sl with the setting sun.
VI the veranda of Elm House an old
-. - 10 shirt sleeves sat whiting on to a
a. especially laid at his feet. Beside
neted pillars of the high portico he
,sAsa very small. The big, still house
-. lne tall elms that crowded the lawn
neo TO brood over him as though they
So mat he was not only small but
uosas uossTneIely one of the many genera
I'm. @ ol Eltons they had mothered and
nl@tea through the long years that
hsnt OF single life.
a. en the barn behind the house came
ehs,h SAN OF the Oatbin and a sudden
w., VI eager whinnies. The whinnies
"a answered from the roadway The
ogs, an ,a looked up. A wagonette appeared
By sra ow olow OF Red Hill. II was drawn
bnk isdh' well-conditioned bays whose
anS oat sticA stride reached out for stables
: TIA "a The wagonette was crowded.
haeas man answered cries and waving
dorr ana his eyes followed the bays
he ns road and twinkled as they saw
Ae sohette swerve and plow through
"a ~ 90 surrendering the right OF way
sae Iat donkey.
hefe,aa ans firs, home OF the Lansings even
Ho6ss me Eltons had come to Elm
lle hs Veranda was vacant; but
lide 4 ~, was still slowly rocking. Be
dfopped pie OF snowy sewing. hastily
eorrsS An overturned work basket dis
fesdiss 4 tangled medley of skelns.
BIZ 49, pms and scraps. A fugitive thin
nn liDed wide circle and brought
frnn,9 9ailst one of the yeranda posts.
1f so,,-s distant kitchen came the smell
Al lsssthlng burning.
Afs ~ an House and The Firs there was
Aepye y peace, but down the road at
islgnsd s1e, nome of the Waynes, life
Nlt6 alone on this autumn evening.
ts ssa arrival OF the wagonette and
land -, al was eommotion. A stable
kze'tsd oet TO take charge OF the bays.
hsIsisS sniiaren left their supper and
lie - On being kissed an around BY
ass E'"steners Youth called 10 age and
s,ss alisHea back. A hostess with quiet
ss6aIs .,,s.lzsd =. Welcome. playfully affee-
~ returning Fnau,her. ~ fba n i'm