The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1923-09-26
The Brown Mouse

thirstfly. He had an lnestimable adj
vantage over Newt in that he was
starved. while Newt was surfeited
with advantages" for which he had
nc use.
Jennie" said Colonel Woodruff,
after the party had broken up, I'm
losing the best hand l ever had, and
I've been sorry"
I'm glad he's leaving you," said
Jennie. HE ought to do something ex-
cept work in the field for wages
I've had no idea he could make
good as a teacher-and what is there
in 1t If he does?'
what has he lost If he doesn't?"
rejoined Jennie. "And why can't he
make good?'
THE school boards against him, for
one thing" replied the colonel. They'll
fire him If they get a chance. They're
the lau~ghing-stock of the country for
hiring him by mistake, and they're IT.
ritated. But after seeing him perform
tonight I wonder If he can't make
good"
IF he could feel like anything but
an underling, he'd succeed" said Jen-
ME.
That's his %heredity," stated the
colonel, whose live stock operations
were based on heredity. "Jim's a
scrub, I suppose: but he acts as II he
might turn out to be q Brown Mouse"
what do you mean, pa" scoffed
Jennie-'a Brown Mouse! :"
"a fellow in Edinburgh said the
colonel, CROSSED the japanese waltz
ing mouse with the common white
mouse. Jim's peddling father was a
Waiting mouse, no good except to
jump from one spot to another for nc
good reason. Jim's mother Is an al
bino of a woman, with all the color
washed out in one way or another.
Jim ought to be a mongrel. and I've
always considered him one. But the
Edinburgh fellow every once in a
while got out of his variously-colored,
waltzing and albino hybrids, a brown
mouse. 1t wasn't a common house
mouse, either, but a wild mouse unlike
dAAf h1 AAho th1A IL ian dnalp
and bit and gnawed and raised hob. 1t
was what we breeders call a Mende-
liam segregation of genetlc factors that
had been in the walters and albinos
all the tlme-their original wild an
cestor of the woods and fields. If
Jim turns out to be q brown mouse.
he may be a bigger man than any of
US. Anyhow, I'm for him."
Hell have to be a big man to make
anything out of the job of a country
school teacher" said Jennie.
ANY jobs as big as the man who
holds 1t down." said her father.
Next day Jim received a letter from
Jennie.
Dear Jim," 1t ran. "Father says
you are sure TO have a hard time-the
school boards against you, and all
that. But he added I'm for Jim, any,
. how! l thought you'd like to know
this. Also he said, ANY jobs as big
as the man who holds it down And
l believe this also, and I'm for you,
too! You are doing wonders even be-
fore the school starts in getting the
pupils interested in a lot of things,
which, while they don't belong to
school work, will make them friends
of yours. 1 don't see how this will
help you much, but it's a fine thing,
and shows your interest in them.
Don't be too original. The wheel runs
easiest in the beaten track. Yours,
Jennie"
Jennle's caution made no impression
on Jim-but he put the letter away.
and every evening took it out and read
the words, I'm for you, tool" The
colonel's dictum, ANY jobs as big as
the man who holds 1t down." was an
Emersonian truism to Jim. 1t reduced
all Jobs to an equality, and it meant
equality in intellectual and spiritual
development. 1t didn't mean, for in
stance, that any job was as good as
another in making it possible for a
man to maryland Jennie Woodruff's
'Humph! returned to kill and drag
off her I'm for you, tool"