The Morgan City daily review. (Morgan City, La.) 1916-1920, 1918-01-25
THE OLD LADY TALKS
ON HARDSHIPS
Bv Edith Barnard Delano of
The Vigilantes

The Old Lady came in with her
cheeks as rosy as winter apples.
"Cold, mother?" her daughter-in-
law asked.
"Now, look here, Mary, don't you
say anything to me about being cold
or about anything in the nature of a
hardship! Course know you don't
mean it the way some do, but l de-
clare to goodness l just can't stand
any more talk of that sort! Every
body met up street either asked me
if there was any coal at our house or
said something about the scarcity O
things or the price Of 'em, till l just
out and out lost my patience! Lands
sake! l don't know what folks are
coming to, when they are afraid O.
what they call hardships! That just
what up and told 'em, too,y right
there in Hines storew
"Why, mother! How outrageous
of you" Mary laughed.
"Well, l don't care" said the Old
Lady. "They needed it said to 'em,
and I said it. Look here says /,
do you know that this country of
ourn wouldn't found a place on
the map at all, not had boundary
it could call its own, nor grown in
to leading nation of the world, if
it hadn't been for the blessing of
hardships? Do you know how many
times your kin and mine come and
tried to settle on this Atlantic coast
before they could get foothold
enough to enable 'em to stay? Do
you know how many years folks
lived in log cabins, with the wind
bowling through the chinks and the
wolves bowling elsewhere, before
the West was built up and and won?
DO you know what those poor shiv-
ering creatures at Valley Forge had
10 eat and to wear, or what they
didn't have, before they won your
freedom as we'll as theirs? Do you
know what twas like in the sixties,
or do any of you remember it the
way do? Do you know all that and
more. and what come of it? And
do you know how twas all won?
Through hardships! You got a
country, and fine big rich coun-
try. and plenty of education in it
and plenty of good times and pros
perity and room for your children
to grow up safe in; and you got it
because your forefathers weren't
afraid of a little bit Of hardening!
And what's come Of 4 is that this
generation is downright afraid of
hardening! You're afraid to be
cold!
You want the fat of the land all
time and every time, because you've
been having it to waste and throw
away! You're afraid of doing with
out something, or of learning to put
something else. in its place! Shucks!
I'm ashamed of every mothers child
of you! Time you got little good
healthy hardening, seems to me!
Why, hardshios. are az healthful
as beans or baked apples, if you
know how to take 'e=,. l wouldn't
be willing to bring up child O
mine, no,.Ipor even a grandchild.
without some good old-fashioned
hardships to give 'em backbone!
And there you men over by the
stove there are fussing because
Tommy Hines hasn't coal enough to
keep the stove going red-hot! And
you knowing there's hundreds O.
miles O trenches over there with men
standing up to their knees in ice-wa-
ter, and all 50 you won't have to
come up against the hardships Of
war! That's what I said to. 'em;
and got excited over it, Mary, that
l plumb forgot to bring home your
pound Of sugar"
Mary laughed. "Well, mother, I
guess We can stand the old-fashion-
cd hardship Of going without, for .
few days!' "But I don't know what
George win say TO it!'
The Old Lady tossed her head.
''He won't say it before mev' said
she. "Not twice, anyway"
Benefit for tAs Red Gross EIse-