The St. Joseph observer., 1920-02-07
GERMS-GERMS-AND
STILL MORE GERMS
CONTINUED From Page 1D

believing, as good people always do
that our enemies necessarily must be
Of a low type, full Of intriguos, dis
honesty, brutality, heartlessness and
carrying on "unclvilized warfare"
when I arrived at my friends
home I rushed into his private room,
seized the microscope and gazed into
it with a look that ought to have
been sufficient to kill an animal Of
the highest type, and what dId 7 see,
but a germ trotung around directly
under the lens.
That was too much for my over
strained nerves. l pictured at that
minute in my mind all the millions
OF people that, according to our pro-
fessors article in the Clarion, had
been sent to an early grave By these
terrible germs
He Just Spoke to 1t
Supporting myself by the table, !
concentrated all my energy, and
spoke to the germ in words loud
enough TO lift the house from its
foundation: "Hey!-stop there you
Internal, dod-gasted mankiuer, If l
could crush your head without
smashing my friends microscope /
would not give you another moment
to live. The proper thing to do would
be to cast you into the delamater,
boil you in milk and turn you over to
the profiteers and let them sell you
to the people as canned oyster soup.
Don't you think l have read about
your doings, and don't you think I
know that you cause disease, death
and tears and sorrow wherever you
are found?"
The little germ stared at me in a
most surprised manner, and I could
plainly see a look Of forgiveness in
her eyes when she opened her lips TO
answer me.
Its Plantive Plea
you say you would not give me
.al -...t. ro live if vou were
not afraid Of crushing the micro
scope" she proclaimed. That is Just
like you human beings--you consider
money first, last and all the time.
You also blame US for causing disease
and death, when the fact is that if it
were not for us little germs this
planet would have long ago been un-
inhabitable. Young man-let me tell
you in a few words something about
the laborious work that we germs
have to perform for you. When
members Of the animal kingdom die
and depend upon us little germs &c
reduce them into simple substances
| for dissolution, did you ever think fol
a minute what would happen if thi.
work was not done?
Would Cover the Earth
simply thLs-the dead bodies from
the animal ana vegetable world would
have long ago completely covered the
whole surface of the globe, SO as to
afford no possible room for any fur
ther growth Of either plants or ami
mails.
But this is not all When you
plant vegetable seeds in the ground
you depend upon us to soften the
food material in some way so that the
young seeding can receive proper
nourishment and grow, Yes, the
whole fertility Of your soil and the
continued production Of good crops
depends wholly upon US.
we have to turn an refuses from
your houses and barns into plant
food. We have to split mp the ferti-
lizer you put on the ground into sub
stances that the plants can asssimilate.
Does Not End There
But our work does not end there.
We are helping you in your kitchen
We put the flavor in your butter and
cheese. We prepare your vinegar and
cider. We produce the aroma in your
tobacco; yes; and have even built
your coal mines of which you are SO
proud, and which enables YOU 20 pro-
duce your illuminating gas and to
run your industries. and, also the
coral reef from which was made tho
beautiful neoslace that adorns your
best girls beautiful neck"
Here she stopped and burst into
tears-tears over the misundersyand-
ing and suspicion with which she has
for ages been met by us educated CD
fools, who have nothing TO offer our
benefactors but mock and suspicion
tears that Urty,uft1 Ilr from raarh-