Mansfield mirror. (Mansfield, Wright County, Mo.) 1908-1957, 1919-05-08

way. The spring winds came and the
mud dried up and the young shoots
made a rrcnze mist of baby foliage
in the tops Of the maple trees. There
were danG, lions on the lawns and
along the beard walks but Jefferson
ville's attitude did not soften with
the advancing year. Jeffersonville
had just about mace up its mind. The
war was over anyway, the boys were
coming back. things were going TO be
all right aud Jefersunyiiie was going
to hold on to lis money, Hadn't it
done all right on everything else and
who could expect Il neighborhood to
80 right along forever. buying and Civ
ing and giving? The townsfolk were
careful to lay a lot OF emphasis on
the giving"
In the meanwhile the $50 per 100
hogs and the ) 2.26 a hushel wheat was
moving 10 market right along with
the hie.-priced b,eyes and the eggs
de like and all the other high.priced
toodstuffs that We're coming from the
country in which most of Jefferson
villa NloS pftn1lN. f,s.y,st.l Tl,Ara uun.
more money being spent than ever
before in the history of the town.
Nearly every body had a car ordered
and the income ~ paid with some
weeping and waiting and %gnashing OF
teeth and much inward bleeding"
was being forgotten. The dealers were
busy selling new pumps. new piows.
Il tractor row and then and. many,
many motor cars. The PIANO and or
gan man, who also sold talking ma
chimes, was cungratulating himself on
"A record business. The millincrs and
dry goods people We're not complain
ing, thank you.
Loan Talk Avoided.
In the meanwhile the ships were
bringing thousands of young Ameri-
IN home. And Central Europe was
beginning to rumble and emit vol
canic lightnings. Jacksonville was
not looking much further than its
immediate horiZon-than the coun-
ters and the ledgers and the farms
and the fields, the getting and buying
and selling. Jacksonville, as has
been noted, was trying its best to for
get all about the war.
The Loan started. All over the ma
ton devoted men AMI bent to
the task of raising the money so ur-
gently needed for the financing of the
United States of America in its year
after the war. The Liberty Loan post
ers and literature sent to Jefferson
vile were left in the express office.
The town slept placidly On. 1t seemed
to have been forgotten by the county
organization. No one disturbed it.
Nevertheless Jacksonville could
not entirely forget the Victory Loan.
The newspapers were talking about
it. 1t was in full swing all over the
country with the usaat agonizing In
certainties as to what district was
going TO first clear the ropes with its
quota subscribed. JeffersonviIle stirred
family in its sleep and a few OF the
dyed-in-woOl Americans placed their
subscriptions and began to remon-
strate.
However, 1t was tacitly understood
in Jacksonville that the loan was
not a subject of general conversation.
The weather was never more talked
about anywhere than it was in that
little town for a few days. Then the
workers. those who had bestirred
themselves in the oil er loans, began
to feel uneasy and conscience-strick-
Men began to mention the loan,
sort of tentatively.
Then Jacksonville went through
another curious phase. 1t began to
try and persuade itself that the loan
ought to fail and that 1t would fail.
Teach these Smart Alexis down 10
Washington sumthin'." muttered more
than ~Jeffersonville citizen to him.
self.
Beginning to sting EN-.
kilograms and long distance calls
began to sting a few OF the citizens
but they managed to forget about
them in a day or 50. The Loan was
moving along day by day but Jeffer-
sonville's quota vas hanging fire. Ben
Ochs was chuckling to himself and
cautiously imparting his views to a
few Of his intimates. The humbling
OF Germany was d bitter dose for him.
He would keep still when he had to,
but he was more than pleased to see
that JeffersOnville was not bothering