The Owosso times., 1921-01-07
SCareCrOwS.

Scarecrows may serve good pur-
pose but it seems to US that few
old clothes on a stick in the middle
of a field frantically waving empty
coat sleeves in the wind would have
q pretty hard job to fool even so
silly a bird as crow. Now, this
seems to be the service a scarecrow
is supposed to render. The farmer
plants his corn and few old crows
hard by see the yellow kernels put
into the ground and perchance here
and there one remaining on the sur
face. These old crows inform their
cronies that a feast is being spread
especially for them; crows con-
vention is held and it is decided to
convene at a convenient season and
swoop down upon the plain and pick
ND the uncovered corn. While en-
gagged thus they inadvertently dis
cover a few green shoots and they
help themselves to beak full of the
tender blades, as. they chew the
sweet morsels, unintentionally, they
pull up the roots with the seed corn
attacked. o joy! What discovery!
Even crow could not resist the
temptation to pull few more and
have a real feast at the expense OF
the farmer.
In order to curb the pulling pro-
f~o-,.aJ 20 fyaS his
pole and dresses it in fine fashion
its wardrobe consisting Of faded
coat, a pair Of pantaloons and an
old felt hat. When the thing is done
and the wind blows the loose cloth.
ing flaps around the pole and at GER
tain times resembles the ghost of a
man from which the body has de-
parted. The crows proceed to hold
another congress, on the rail fence
hard by, and from the "caw cav
chorus" one would think they were
giving the foolish farmer the "hav
haw." At any rate they hesitate FOL
a moment only then with louc
"caw, cawW they lift themselves
from the fence and plant themselves
where the picking is best and in spit'
of coat, pants and hat on the pole
they pull together until the last Wis
able token Of corn is taken, thel
with "Haw haw" they encircle tn
may pole, leaving few black feath
ers in their wake, and are off TO
fresh fields to conquer. Something
better than scarecrows must be III
vented to save the corn crop.
We have observed, in recent year
that another kind of scarecrow
being set up by another set OF folk
at certain periodic seasons. The
seem to think that unless scare
crow is in evidence the harvest wi
be too great. BY putting up
scarecrow of some sort, some peopl
will be kept away from the missio
field and the harvest from seed SOW
ing will result in depleted missionar
treasures, therefore, those who ar
managing affairs in the homelan
and those who are devoting thei
time and talents in heathen land
will be embarrassed and hampere
in their work and of course the RI
suits of their seed sowing will b
much less than if the scare hadn
come. Their motto seems to b
"Keep a preacher poor and the Lor
will keep him humble" If they SUI
ceed in keeping down the mission
ary offerings and thus keep the Mi
sionary Societies impoverished the
will make it impossible for the s.
cieties to attempt anything out (
the ordinary.
No additional funds can be pr
vided for the missionary and he w
have to paddle along in the same o
path-making one convert In
decade. Whereas, if, on the 9th
hand, sufficient funds were provide
for adequate equipment, the mi
sionary might be exalted in his st
ton, perchance the missionary mig
call in the other protestant worke
of that region and make demo
stration, in the sight of the heathe
of the actual Christian forces
work in their midst. That would
in the mind of some as heretical
when Thomas Campbell called
gether his brethren for union COZ
munion service or almost as bad
in the eyes of the natives OF Ind
the breaking of the cast system.
funds are withheld, our missionari
living in mud huts, would find it
possible to entertain their brethr
who differ in methods of operatl
but who are directed by the sal
Spirit. Any sort Of cooperative
ligious work on large scale M
be thwarted at any cost for it mit
create misunderstanding in the mil
of the heather whom we are co
manded to convert to the Christ
faith.
j. Frank Green.