Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1920-10-20
Miss Florence Minis and Other
Teachers Take Hike in g
Minnesota Woods. ;;
Dear Advertiser:

leacnerS lake f1lke IN s.
Minnesota Woods. .S
Dear Advertiser: 81
Every year thousands of imr,is
grants land at Ellis Island, eventas
the Pilgrims landed = at Plymouth.
The first possessed a better sort; ef
courage. The difference is that the
Pilgrims landed on a crock bound
shoren with no greeting but the war
wb6op of the red man, and the
Films nd Swedes arrive at well
populated coast, but lonely, too, foir
crowds are as unfriendly as solitudess
The Pilgrims were influenced by.sa
desire for spiritual freedom but the
immigrants Of today by a desire for
citizenship in free country, and%@a
chance to make a livelihood without
interference from the man higher ups upIsl
Just what the foreign element IN
the middle west is, l have very re-
Gently learned. s
On the farms and in the mines Sof
Northern Minnesota are literally
thousands of Films, Italians, Swedes,
Austrians, Monetnegrins and Nor
wegians who speak the English lan-
guage very imperfectly, or not at
s1.
Yesterday a party of five started
out on a seven or eight mile hike
through a forest that resembled, 3I
presume, the forests of northern Eus
rope, with the pine, spruce and fir
trees, interspersed in the clearings
with the peasant-like cottages of sub:
stantial folk who will in time become
good Americans. l
At this time of year mature is
wearing her full dress, uniform" The;
white birches stand like painted mile.
posts against the dense green, and.
the golden leaves of the slim white;
naples Seem to touch the blue sky
itself. The trail was covered with aus
tumn leaves and their dry crackle,
under our feet was the only sound
that pierced the absolute stiffness of
the forest, except now and then the.
rustic of the frightened partridgesi
mistaking US for hunters. 1t seemed;
"as though all Nature was holding
its breath" Before the trail had end-l
ed the sun was setting in the west
with. all the brazen splendor ola,
forest fire. ~.
On the edge of the forest We
came upon a small farm house, sur
rounded by rail fence. On stopping
to prepare our supper, we always go
to9the nearest farm house for buck
etg of water. 4 remarked as elam
bered oEar he encl ttsli 81 /
was perhaps the first South Carolin
ian who had ever made visit to this
Finnish home, especially in so un-
ceremonious fashion.
In asking for water we felt like
the American soldiers must have felt
in France, asking for drink if they
did not know the French Word for
water. The Finnish woman came to
the door and carried on a prolonged
conversation in what might have
been japanese or Hindu for all l
knew. We looked at her, and drank
it all in, not doubling for moment
that what she said was true. Then
we held our bucket up and started
to drink water in pantomine, when
the little boy about seven years of
age, playing in the yard, approached
and spoke to US in perfect English.
Using him as an interpreter, we fl
nally made the woman understand,
and the three of US, my friend, the
Finnish woman and l, set out over
more rail fences and through pas
ture full of formidable looking cows,
to the spring, about a quarter OF a
mile away. She carried us to another
farm house inhabited by Firms or
Swedes who knew little English.
We asked the man of the family to
thank our benefactress for US, since
we had no way of assuring her of our
heartfelt appreciation.
Here we found cold water in plen-
ty, which we carried to the others OF
our party who had built fire and
were awaiting our coming to put the
kettle on.
AS the stars came out in the sky
and the camp fire blazed brightly,
some little boys came by to drive the
cattle home and one of them we
recognized as a pupil of ours at the
Aurora school. His name, Arvo Heit-
taba, is somewhat characteristic of
the foreign titles of many Of the
blue-eyed, fair-haired youths who
have America as their new found
We. thought how wonderful it is,
that children may leave a bit of a
cabin, where all their environment
is foreign, and go every day to a
school so we'll equipped that it would
grace the campus of many a college.
If America is the great melting
pot, it is the schools of America that
refine and mould the citizenship thus
gathered together.
FLORENCE MINIS. !