The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1917-05-29
MAKING
HISTORY
) Only II Pertained to Two
Persons Instead of
a Nation
By ALAN HINSDALE

was driving my auto along a
country road, enjoying the constantly
changing scenery. The spring had de-
veloped into summer; the leaves on the
trees were full blown, birds were sing
ing In the trees, range of distant hills
stood soft and mellow against the
horizon, light, fleecy clouds sailed
lazily over an azure sky.
1 am one of those who love to ride
slowly, that may see each vista, each
landscape, near objects, enjoying them
while look. have no patience with
those who must be always tearing
along so rapidly that no sooner does
one get an eye on green velvet slope
with cattle feeding upon it than, pres
tol 1t has vanished and its place is
taken by ragged height covered with
scrub trees, past which the road may
be 20 uneven as to require a three
mile an hour gait. Such drivers will
get over twenty miles of beautiful
scenery In jiffy, to drag and jolt
along beside a quarry or street lined
with novels.
On this summer morning of which l
speak my heart had been warmed by
the beautiful fecked sunlight beside
the road, and l felt especially char
liable toward all the world. was mo-
toring along a narrow dirt road, but
extremely smooth, lined with broad
space Of turf on either side to the
fences, when / saw before me a femi-
nine figure whose lines and dress indi-
Gated that she was young girl. She
was carrying a satchel of ample dimen-
sions on her arm and used a staff.
When came up with her l brought
my machine almost to standstill, she
turned her face toward me, and 1 no.
ticed that it was comedy.
"Shall / give you hft?" 1 asked.
'1Thank you, sir. l have far to go and
am aweary," she replied with that
Scotch accent which in a woman is
especially musical, though from man
the words usually come like bullets
from the muzzle of pistol.
She was about to climb into the rear
seat when / opened the forward door,
and she took the seat beside me.
Where do you go?'' asked.
Il dinna know at present" she an
swered. II am to meet my brother at
Medbury. Where We shall go from
there Gamma tell"
got out my road map, asked the girl
to unfold 1t and while 1 held the wheel
with one hand held the map with the
other. saw that Medbury was a
matter of ten miles as the crow flies
but it was fifteen by road and nearly
thirty by such roads as would be suit
able to an auto.
"At what hour do you expect to meet
your brother?" asked.
This afternoon"
It was 8 o'clock In the morning. 1
was not required to be at any particu-
lar place at any particular time. There
was plenty of time to get the girl to
her destination before she was due
there. She was pretty, her voice was
very sweet, and 1 saw no reason why
/ should not enjoy her companionship
for the greater part Of the day instead
OF riding alone.
/ logged along till we came to fork
In the road, and as was about to turn
into the right road the girl made
move to alight, saying that her route
lay over the left road, which was only
q Jane. told her that l would take
her to her destination over motorable
roads, and she consented. Again / ex-
amined my road map and laid out
course involving fifty mile ride, and
since preferred slow gait we would
make Medbury at noontime. As we
rolled along 1 led my companion to
talk about herself, for felt some Gu
riosity concerning her. She was not
dressed as a farmers daughter, and,
although her accent was Scotch, it was
not peasant accent / could not I'M
derstand why so refined a person
should be trudging along on foot, and
! did not consider the lonely roads a
proper place for a young girl to be un-
attended.
During our conversation she gave
me her name as Edith MacDownell.
Her father and mother had come to
America from Scotland when she was
about ten years old, which accounted
for her retaining only a portion Of the
dialect of her native country. Her IA
Their had been a landed proprietor to a
very limited extent In Scotland and,
having been seized with the desire to
extend his possessions, had sold his
property and come to America, where
the proceeds of the sale would pur-
chase more extended domain. But It
did not appear from what the girl told
me that he had utilized his American
acres except In devoting some of them
In the cultivation of fruit.
As we do not realize that we are
making history, so we do not recognize
In small events that we are shaping
our lives. I often revert to that pleas
ant summer day when took into my
auto for lift girl had never seen
before, intending at the start to set
her down where our paths diverged;
how resolved to make her my COM
panion for ride; how she communi-
Gated to me brief statement as to her
social position. 1t was under the
warm sunshine, tempered by a deli
eious cool breeze, while we rolled along
through beautiful country that 1 was
making history for myself as well az
the girl beside me.
In remembering the several small In