Evening star., 1917-09-30


timea Twice, unexpectedly. he had come
upon him in a wood road and once on
Round Hill. where the stranger was pre-
tending to watch the sunset. Jimmie
knew people do not climb hills merely to
look at sunsets SO he was not deceived
He guessed the man was a German spy.
seeking gun sites, and secretly vowed TO
stalk him. From that moment, had the
stranger known it, he was as good as
dead. For Boy Scout with badges on
his sleeve for stalking and 'pathtind-
ing, not to boast of others for garden
ing and cooking" can outwit any spy
Even had Gen. Baden-Powell remained in
Mafeking and not invented the Boy
Scout. Jimmie Sniffen would have been
one Because by birth he was boy and
by inheritance a scout. In Westchester
county the Sniffens are one of the county
families If 1t isn't a Sarles it's Sniffen
and with Br-lndages. Platts and Jays, the
Sniffens date back TO when the acres OF
The first Charles Ferris ran from the Bos-
ton post road to the coach road to Al
bany and VIXEN the first Gouverneur MOT
rls stood on one of his hills and saw t!'e
Indian canoes in the Hudson and in the
sound and rejoiced that all the land be-
longed to him.
II YOU do not believe in heredty. the
fact that Jimmies great-s-eai t gra nd
and hunted deer, and even bear. over e&-
actly the same hills where Jimmie huAteu
weasels will count for nothing. II Will NOT
explain why to Jimmie. from Ia!rytoWH
10 Port Chester the hills. the roads the
woods and the cowpaths, caves. streams
and springs hidden in the woods, We're as
familiar as his own kitchen gaIoes
Nor explain why when you could not see
a PeaSe * Gilman For Sale sign naiied
to a tree Jimmie could see in the high-
est branches last years bird nest
.l,1, out q a
ing Indians and had sunk his scouts
eN into a fallen log and then scalped
the log, he felt that once before IN
those same woods he had trailed that
same Indian, and. with his own tcma.
hawk split open his skull. Sometimes
when he knelt to drink at secret
spring in the forest the autumn leaves
would crackle and he would raise his
eyes fearing to see panther racing
him.
But there amt no panthers in West
CHESTER Jimmie would reassure him
self And in the distance the roar OF
an automobile climbing hill with the
muffier open would seem to suggest ne
was right But still Jimmie remefn-
bered once before he had knelt at that
same spring and that when he raised
his eyes he had faced a crouching pan
ther .Mebbe dad told me it happened
to grandpo-p." Jimmie would explain
.'or L dreamed it, or. mebbe read II
in story book
The German spy" mania attacked
Round Hill after the visit to the Boy
correspondent. He was spending the
week end with Squire Harry Van Worst.
and as young Van Worst. besides being
q justice of the peace and master of
beagles and president of the Country
Club. was also local councilman"
for the Round Hill scouts, he brought
his guest to a campfire meeting to talk
to them. In difference to his audience
ID l.,
had seen in Belgium and of the part
they were playing in the great war. 1t
was his peroration that made trouble.
And any day." he assured his audi
enco. this country may be at war
with Germany: and every one of you
boys will be expected to do his bit.
You can begin now. When the Germans
land it will be near New Haven or New
Bedford. They will first capture the
munitions works at Springfield, Hart
ford and Watervliet. SO as to make sure
of their ammunition. and then they will
start for New York city. They will fol-
low the New Haven and New York
Central railroads and march straight
through this village 1 haven't the
least doubt" exclaimed the enthusiast
tic war prophet. that at this moment
German spies thick in West
chester as blackberries. They are here
to select camp sites and gun positions,
to find out which of these hills enfilade
the others and to learn to what extent
their armies can live on the country.
They are counting the cows the horses.
the barns where fodder is stored; and
they are marking down on their maps
the wells and streams"
As though at that moment a German
spy might be crouching behind the door.
your eyes open,' he commanded.
Watch every stranger. If he acts sus-
piciously. get word quick to your sheriff,
or to Judge Van Worst here. Remem-
4p.
That night as the scouts walked home
behind each wall and hayrick they saw
spiked helmets
Young Van Worst was extremely an
scouts" he declared. you'll talk on
Votes for Women. After what you said
tonight every real estate agent who
dares open a map will be arrested. We
are not trying to drive people away from
Nyestchester; we're trying to sell them
building sites"
You are not retorted his friend,
you're trying to buy the other half"
I'm a justice of the peace" explained
Van Worst Il don't know why l am.
except that they wished it on me. All
/ get out of it is trouble. The Italians
make charges against my best friends
for overspeeding and l have to fine
them. and my best friends bring charges
against the Italians for poaching, and
when I fine The Italians they send me
Black Hand letters. Anw now every day
I'll be asked to issue warrant for a
German spy who is selecting gun sites
And he will turn out to be a millionaire
who is tired of living at the Ritz-Carl-
ton and wants to own his own home
and his own golf links. And he'll be SO
hot at being arrested that he'll take his
millions TO Long Island and try to
break into the Piping Rock Club. And
it will be your fault,'
The young justice of the peace was
iDh oCt far w.t. C,,if
fen was concerned. the words of the
war prophet had filled one mind with
unrest. In the past Jimmie's idea of a
holiday had been to spend it scouting in
the woods. In this pleasure he was
selfish. He did not want companions
who talked. and trampled upon the dead
leaves SO that they frightened the wild
animals and gave the Indians warning
Jimmie like to pretend He liked to fill
the woods with wary and hostile adver-
saries. 1t was game of his own in
venting. II he crept to the top of a
bill and on peering over it surprised a
fat woodchuck he pretended the wood
chuck was 4 bear. weighing 200 pounds;
il. himself unobserved. he could lie and
watch. off it's guard. rabbit, squirrel
or. most difficult of all, crow, it be-
came deer. and that night at supper
Jimmie made believe he was eating
venison. Sometimes he was a scout of
the continental army and carried dis
patches TO Gen. Washington. The rules
of that game were that if any man
plowing in the fields or cutting trees
the same road saw Jimmie before Jim
mic him Jimmie toll wi