The Glenwood post., 1923-12-13

"ThatS me-" said Buddy "but I
hain't been doin' nothin' wrong, sub y
have message here" said Pete,
"for Professor James f. Irwin. He's
what-ho within, there, amt he?"
Hes inside, 1 reckon" said Buddy.
"Then will you be so kind and con-
descendin' as to stoop so low as TO
jump so high as to give him this let
ter?" asked Pete.
Buddy took the letter and was con-
sidering of his reply to this remarkable
speech, when Pete, gravely saluting,
passed On, rather congratulating him
self on having staged a very good
burlesque of the dignified manners of
those queer mountaineers, the Simmses
The note was from the colonel:
"PleaSe come to the meeting tonight,
and when you come, come prepared to
hold the district up. If we can't meet
the Pottawatomie county standard of
wages, we ought to lose you Every
body in the district will be there
Come late, so you won't hear yourself
talked about should recommend
nine-thirty and war-paint."
1t was a crisis, no doubt of that;
and the responsibility of the situation
rather sickened Jim of the task of
teaching. Only one thing kept him
from lodging the whole issue and re.
naming at home-the coloners mat
ter-of-fact assumption that Jim had
become master of the situation. How
could he flee, when this old soldier was
fighting so valiantly for him in the
trenches? So Jim went to the meet
ing.
How could he impose conditions on
the whole school district? How could
the colonel expect such thing of him?
And how could anyone look for any
thing but scorn for the upstart field
hand from these men who hae for Sc
many years made him the butt Of
their good-natured but none the less
contemptuous ridicule? Who was he,
anyway, to lay down rules for these
substantial and successful men-he
who had been for all the years of his
life at their command, subservient to
their demands for labor-their under
ling?
1t was a mild thawy night. The win
dows of the schoolhouse were filled
with heads, evidencing the presence
/ of crowd of almost unprecedented
! size, and the sashes had been thrown
up for ventilation and coolness AS
Jim climbed the back fence of the
schoolyard, he heard burst of ap-
plause, from which he judged that
some speaker had just finished his re-
marks. There was silence when he
came alongside the window at the
right Of the chairman's desk, a silence
broken by the voice of Old Man Slmms,
saying "Mistah Chairman
1.-THE chair" said the voice of Ezra
Bronson. recognizes Mr. Simms"
Jim halted in indecision. He was
not expected while the debate was in
progress. There is no rule of manners
or morals, however, forbidding caves
dropping during the proceedings of
/ public meeting. Therefore he listened
to the first and last public speech of
Old Man Simms.
"Ah amt no speaker" said Old
Man Simms, but All CANT set here
and be quiet an 60 home an face my
ole woman an my boys an gyuhls
! withouten sayin' word To- the best
friend any family evan had, Mr. Jim
Irwin" (Applause.) Maybe Ah'll be
thought forrard to speak hyah. bein'
as All amt no learnin an some may
think All don't pay no taxes; but
seein' as how we've took the Blanch-
ard farm. hundred an sixty acres,
for lvs yeahs, an move In 4 week from
Sat'day, we pay taxes In our rent. All
reckon, an howsomever that may be,
Ah'vs come to feel that you-all won't
think hard Of mo II All speak what
ws-uns feel 20 strong about Mr.. Jim
Irwinr'
Old Nan simms finished this ex-
srdium with the rising infection, which
denoted 4 direct question a. to his
status in the meeting. -Gs enl"
You've got a. good 4 hight a. any
ene!" You're all right, old man !"
Such e1clamations as these came to
Jin's ears with scarcely Lex. grateful
ness than to those of OLD Man Nmms
who stammered and went o..
! "Ah thank you-all kindly. Gentlemen
an ladies, when Mr.. Jim Irwin found
Us, We was scandalous pore, an we
was wuss'n pore-we was low-down"
| (Cries of "No-Noi")
Yes, we was, becuz when 4 man
gets in new place. he's got to lift
himself up to what folks does where
he's come to, or he'll make a place
fer himself lower'n anybody else. In
the mountIngs we was good people,
becuz we done the best we could an
the best any one done; but hyah. we
was low-down people becuz we hated
the people that had mo- learnin', mo-
land, mo- money, an mo- friends than
what we had. My little gyuhls wasn't
respectable in their clothes. My chill.
dern was igernant, an trihin, but