Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-12-14
"OLD TIMER" FULL
OF YARNS

lean West is little or nothing WIFI
out its Old Timer. He fs usually,
though not necessarily, its Oldest n
known the village, or the town, or the1
settlement. or the county. whatever II
may be with which he is intimately
associated, since it was in
clothes. 1t is even possible that he
was present when the place was tlrst
settled, and, what is more to the
point, he himself. may have been ne
first settler. In such case. the
chances are that, out of compliment
to him or to the place, or to the IN
habitants, the later corners have seen
to it that the name of the Old Timer
and the place are Identical But
those Old Timers who We're the orist
inal sponsors are getting rarer ana
rare every day, and one has thus 10
be content with what one may call
the inferior varieties.
There is something about the Old
Timer thai easily identifies him. He
is one of the few distinctly American
types which do not necessarily
change with the ever-growlng pros
perity of the United States. On the
contrary, much OF the simplicity OF
his early days persists in cljnging to
him, and the inha bitants Of the place
probably prefer that where so much
is subject to p%rotean change there
should be some elements OF their
civic past that are constant and On
during. For the Old Timer is the
citizen of whom they are not only
the most proud, but whom they take
care to make the show feature OF the
town. There is no ceremonious oc.
casion on which the Old Timer Is not
unearthed and PROUDLY produced.
The word "unearthed" is used ad-
visedly. Any one who understands
the genus Old Timer knows that he
rarely "produces'' himself. Whep,
for instance, a stranger arrives IN q
Western town to see the sights and is
called upon to view and admire the
new combination city hall. fire sta
ton and public offices, or the town
lookup, or the lofty water tank near
the station, or the hole which is
grandiloquently described rs the site
for the future law courts or the pub
lie library, or the opera house and
garage, some patriotic citizen hap
pens to remember "Chalk" This or
Exit" That. the Old Timer, and
:'reckons'' that the stranger would
like to shake hands with him.
So "Chalk" This or Exit That is
ferreted out. Perhaps his 3habitual
the station yard, or on a box outside
the main store for the probabilities
are that he is a man of the most
democratic externalities, and has that
air of pioneer freedom, eloquently
suggested by the absence Of both
coat and shirt collar. 1t may be
that his hair is long; that his sus-
Western candor, the name Of some
paint or lumber firm which gener'
ously bestowed them upon humanity
in return for a g%ratuitous advertise
ment Of their wares on a living back
But this Is about the only thing con
nected with the Old Timer which
Voluntarily talks. He is rarely
boaster. though he may be a verita'
BILE s~torehouse Of the romantic or ad'
= venturous past. Perhaps he has fol
: lowed the trail to Oregon out Of Mis-
! souri,, or been a bull-whacker in thu
!. days when the numbers of the buf
falo were sufficient to block the pas
: sage of the plains. Perhaps he wa
: once a rider Of the pony express, {
. driver Of q Concord coach, a buildel
of. prairie schooners, an argonaut O.
ter and Indian fighter. Certain I
2 is that somewhere in. the corners O.
! his mentality linger stirring memor
les of buffalo and Indian, of white
and red warriors struggling for mas
terry or for foothofd, OF homeseeker'
and gunner, gold miners and empire
Y builders. He knows first hand of tn
corralled' "schooners."A the enduring
E faith of the sturdy pioneers. the cour
s age of the pathfinders. i.
: In his. own town or settlement he
3 the hero and the focus. Away from
it. within the canons of a great cit;
8 like New York, he is utterly lost. I
: the truth were known, he has an ut
49,. >>@o~>Ak &@. <h1 Inf~o @f orNf0r
cities who nave had no part IN tn
building Of them. The Romulus o
his own particular place, it is a liv
ing entity to him. untrammeled b.
the prejudices of caste and conven
, ton. Fe saw the first sod turned
= the first tent go up, the first house
dumped from the railroad. He wa
the first sheriff. saw the first wed
ding and the first christening, an
helped to repel the first Indian raic
He saw the water laid on and tn
: town hall erected. He helped to la
p out the first street and probably ra,
! the first store. Civic life took it's in
itiative from, him n he was Its frs
Judge and censor of its morals. His
: tory, at least SO far as he is con
cerned, records no prouder epoch q
helped to clean out the olives" o
: won the fight for concrete Substitute
for the old wooden sidewalks, o
when the ugly wooden "battlemente
fronts Which used to disfigure Mai
street" gave way to brick frontage!
and the town bacame the pride G
the plains.-Christian Science MonI
tor.
NJ" RESEMBLANCE.
"My dear" said Mr.. x as he locke
at his wife's purchases, "you remin
me Of the Greek slave"
"How so?"
# "You were sold at auction."-Bos
ffop Tronucrinf ls 4a