davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07
@55515:555, yz2zazRz].''

Fate Deals Meeker q
Bust Hand"
CoIumbis Flood Takes
First Crop
Search for New Home
On Puget Sound
Find Haven on Mcneil
island
lIyHEN Ezra Meeker and his
w wife settled on the claim at
Kalama they thought they had
reached the end of the trail and
had found the home for which
they had hoped. With the
money obtained from the raft
of logs which ran away and
finally landed at Astoria, the
highest priced lumber market
on the Columbia river, Meeker
obtained several months sup
plies and some farm equipment
and prepared to make a dream
come true. The awakening came
the next June.
The only fertile land on the
claim was the low bottom along
the Columbia river. On the sew
eral acres which he had cleared
the crops made wonderful
growth. Nothing like 1t was
known in Indiana or Ohio where
Meeker obtained his farming
experience II looked as II the
crop of potatoes alone would
bring enough cash to provide
the family living for a year.
Then the June flood came along
and swept away every spear of
vegetation.
AS Meeker gaZed at the mud
flat that was left when the river
receded he experienced the most
Encouraging moments of his life.
Clearly that was not the end OF
the trail. Pondering over his i'll
luck he recalled that earlier in
the spring he had heard about
rich valleys in the Puget Sound
region. There also were ru-
mors that congress was about
to make a new territory out of
the portion of the Oregon
country" north of the Columbia.
When he talked the situation
over with his wife she advised
him to 60 to Puget Sound.
There was a little of the tim
Der money left. The small gar
den patch near the cabin which
had escaped the flood. A cow
and one OK team had been saved
of the cattle that brought them
over the trail. The oxen could
be rented to nearby settlers for
enough to pay for their keep.
Eliza Meeker could milk the COW
and was not afraid to stay alone,
so what was keeping him? And
how could they expect to have
the farm home they wanted if
Ezra was going to spend all his
time cutting timber or working
on the dock at Portland?
There was no answer to those
arguments, and the next spring
Ezra Meeker and his brother
Oliver started north in search
of the promised land They fol-
lowed the trail of the emigrants
who had been induced to settle
north of the Columbia and in
a couple of weeks arrived at
Olympia.
Determined not to settle again
until he was sure of the land,
Meeker and his brother bought
a flat bottom boat, rugged a
mast and sail and started To
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

explore the land around Puget
Sound.
Oliver wanted to settle near
steilscoom or Nisqually. There
was quite a settlement at Stella
COON and a couple of Hudsons
Bay company ships anchored
nearby suggested possible
source of income If the farm
didn't pay out. But Ezra would
not listen TO him. He had come
TO find a farm and was going
to see every piece of land on
Puget Sound before he settled
down. So they sailed on for
days.
They explored Vashon and
WILDLY islands, learned from
the Indians how to cook clans
and live off the products of the
sound. They went as far north
as Port Townsend and then
turned back to explore the main
land along the west side of the
sound. At Seattle. where a saw
mill was being erected, Oliver
wanted to stop to look for a
job. but Ezra wouldn't be swerv-
ed from his purpose. Soon after
they left Seattle a heavy wind
came up that carried them
through the west channel be-
tween Vashon and the mainland
and landed them near what
might have been Sunrise beach.
There the brothers had another
discussion about where they
would go, but when they EN-
barked the wind and tide set
tied the argument. They were
carried through the Narrows
and back to Steilacoom. Oliver
finally won the argument that
they should settle near what
would certainly be the metropo-
lis of the new territory that was
being formed, and Ezra located
a claim on Mcneil island.
The soil was good. There was
a market for the timber. The
cedar alone would make enough
shingles, selling at two and three
dollars a Thousand, to take care
of their finances. That seemed
to be the end of the trail. Oliver
was left to build a cabin on
slightly spot overlooking the
sound, while Ezra went back to
the Columbia river for his FAM
lily and the little equipment they
had.
That he might travel faster,
Meeker discarded his coat. He
wore only a heavy woel shirt,
and carried a small pack of food.
He stopped when darkness made
it impossible to follow the trail,
sleeping on the ground and
sometimes soaked to the skin
by rain.
He came in sight of the cabin
on the Columbia early one morn
ing and was overjoyed to see
smoke coming out of the CHM
ney. That meant that the FAM
lily had survived. A little further
on he saw his wife milking the
COW and determined right there
that she never would have to
do any more work outside the
house. But he didn't know Eliza
Meeker. She insisted on doing
anything that would help hasten
their objective.
Monday: The Meekers take
the Oregon Trail for Puget
Sound.
TnnAV,S CnNNON rRR0u
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

SUNDAY, AUGUST 6, 1888

Mingled good and evil mark
the aspects for today, according
to astrology. The early morning
IL favorable to the clergy and
those who turn to the written
word.
Interest in the Bible is to in
crease and demand for the Book
of Books will be greater than
ever before. As certain nations
turn away from religion there
will be access of faith in others.
There ia a sign believed to
clear the mental vision and to
inspire hopefulness. Under this
sway calm reflection should
bring poise and confidence.
Astrologers declare that now
adays men and women seldom
look into their own minds or
plumb their own intelligence.
Experiments in the practice OF
mental relaxation should be
tried.
Writing is well directed under
this CONFORMATION. Letters
should be effectual in presenting
real feeling. but love missives
may be dangerous If not sincere.
The clergy is well directed
under this planetary govern
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07
READING HARITS

ment which seems to presage the
uniting OF Protestant sects and
the expansion of Roman Catho-
lie influence. The Jews through
financial sagacity will render
service to the government.
Schools and colleges are under
a CONFORMATION which forecasts
criticism of our American sys-
TENS of education. Sweeping re-
forms will be instituted and vo-
cational training will be more
strongly stressed.
Persons whose birthdate it is
have the augury of a year of
varied experiences. There may
be an inclination to make i'm
petuous and ill-considered deci-
sions. The advice of older
friends should be sought.
Children born on this day
probably will be extremely ambi-
tious and inclined toward self
ishness in the pursuit of sue
cess. These subjects of Leo are
usually industrious and at heart
kindly and generous.
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07
IRON HORSE

One Of the toughest grinds in
turf history was the Bowie
Stakes, at Pimlico. Nd, when
Bushwhscker. owned by T. w.
Dodswell of Virginia, won in two
different years l1s7s, 1892. and
each time had to run three four
mile heats.
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

cheney, says DR.. Julius F. Neu-
mueller, director of the Ameri-
can Optical company's bureau of
visual science.
The average efficient reader at
college level reads intelligently
IL words at a time. dispelling
claims that many read and COM
prehend from six to eight words
at a glance.
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07
QUESTIONS 70 TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE

are Mammoth Hot SPRING.!
.. What Ia link"
10. In Springfield the capital
II Massachusetts,. Illinois or In
diana?
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

TODAY'S COMMON ERROR
Do not call your regular work
an "avocation"; it is a 'voca-
tion." An "avocation" is q side
interest.
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

In the first heat of the 1873
race, Bushwhacker ran over
muddy track in the remarkable
time Of Z minutes 81 seconds
only 81 seconds over the track
record.
READING HABITS
Not more than Is per cent of
all readers read with real eff
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

To receive attention In this coll
umn letters must give name and
address Of writer Only initials
vii bs published when requested.
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom:
M with all thy getting get andng-Proverbs Al
The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-08-07

Monday: The Meekers take
the Oregon Trail for Puget
Sound.
Evening star., 1939-07-12

been compromised out. Aren't you sat-
isfied with your victory, that you insist
that your adversary after yielding must
not question the soundness of your
stand? Must you jeopardize the success
of even those provisions that you may
agree are beneficial, for the sake of a
parting shot at your defeated adver-
sary? I do not believe that this effect
was noted. 1t cannot be other than
detrimental to the prospects of such
service to the interests Of the District as
the bill in its present form would pro-
vide.
There is one point about your editorial
on which we can thoroughly agree, If
for different reasons. That is its title,
Not Accurate" find 1t peculiarly ap-
propriate, though not in just the way
that you intended.
This is a personal letter, expressing
ideas Of my own as an individual, with
out consultation with my colleagues, and
is not to be imputed to my firm. hope
that you will accord 1t full space in your
columns, to overcome in some degree the
i'll effects of your editorial, though I
cannot expect equal prominence for It.
Very truly yours,
FRANK o. EVERETT.
Evening star., 1939-07-12
Summer Concerts

The 1889 season OF summer con-
certs at the Water Gate on the
Potomac opens tonight. A series Of
thirteen programs has been arranged
for successive Wednesday and Sum-
day evenings until August %. The
National Symphony Orchestra, under
the leadership Of DR.. Hans Kinder,
admittedly merits the support of its
friends of other years; and there is
reason to hope that new audiences
may be attracted. It is with pride
in past achievements and ardent
confidence in those of the future that
The Star again advises its readers
tQadd to their experience the pleas
ure of hearing great music in an
ideal setting.
Other capitals make much Of out
Evening star., 1939-07-12
Representative McReynoIds

Representative Sam Davis Mercy
nolds of Tennessee, chairman of the
House Foreign Affairs Committee,
had been III for several months and
his death therefore cannot be re-
garded as unexpected. Yet so highly
regarded and so deeply loved was
he that his friends have received the
news of his passing with sense of
shock and panied surprise. All who
enjoyed the privilege of his acquaint-
ance had hoped that he might re-
cover his health and return to his
seat in Congress. He was a man
whom it was good to know, man
easy to work with, easy to admire
and to trust.
President Roosevelt rightly ap-
praised Mr.. McReynolds as being
possessed of Exceptional ability, in
tegrity and great capacity" But
there were other qualities OF mind
and heart for which he was widely
and deservedly noted. His serenity,
his generosity, his tolerance, the
sweetness of his temper even under
provocation must be mentioned. He
was liberal in the traditional mean
ing of the word; never a radical His
devotion to his country and its insti-
tutions was too compelling a force
in his soul to be compromised for a
political advantage. He was lawyer
who served the law in the interest
of fundamental equity, a legislator
Evening star., 1939-07-12
Happiness

What is happiness? A rose; q spray
OF light like daffodils; the carved &C.
vice
Displayed by grape-leaves patterned
plaques; the ice
OF cold blue iris In rain drenched day.
A glimpse of daisies spread in pure array
OF light beneath the quiet summer
moon;
The curving cloud dissolving all too
To nx its shape within the memory.
The transient moment; like a startled
breath
In-caught, which senses strive to catch.
but far
Removed before perception comes: the
death
OF sunsets, and the first pale evening
star;
All high, brave moments, heaven inclined
to earth;
Brief beauty past the power Of grief to
soPHRoN1A FULLER.
Evening star., 1939-07-12

who sought only the public benefit
in terms of justice applied to all citi-
zens without fear or favor for any
special class. His knowledge Of for
eign relations was comprehensive,
his skill In dealing with them dis
tinctive. IN a time OF turmoil he
maintained his sanity.
The loss of such leader would be
a cause for mourning in any period.
Mr.. McReynolds' departure in the
present hour of crisis is an authentic
tragedy whose implications cannot
be overeStimated.
Evening star., 1939-07-12
THIS AND THAT
BIZ Charles Z. TraceUeH.

no more than q colored leaf, or bird
shaped pebble, or fragment Of clay.
1T happened that my young fellow
watchers, seeing that the elected robin
If left there would inevitably perish,
proposed to take 1t in to feed and rear it
to save 1t, as they said; but advised
them not to attempt such q thing, but
rather to spare the bird.
ITO spare it the misery they would in
flict on it by attempting to fill its parents
place.
1T would perhaps have q wholesome
effect on their young minds and save
them from grieving overmuch at the
death Of the newly Matched robin, if they
would consider this fact OF the pain that
is and must be.
Il \ ~
when summer came around again
they would nnd no more birds than they
had now.
"And so 1t would be in all places; all
that incalculable increase would have
persisted.
Many millions would be devoured by
rapacious birds and beasts; millions
more would perish of hunger and cold; :,
millions Of migrants would fall by the
way, some in the sea, and some on the
land; those that returned from distant
regions would be remnant.
1T is not only that this inconceivable
amount of bird life must be destroyed
each year, but we cannot suppose that
death is not painful process.
In vast majority of cases, whether
the bird slowly perishes of hunger and
weakness, or is pursued and captured by
birds and beasts of prey, or is driven
by cold adverse winds and storms into
the waves, the pain, the agony, must be
great.
'The least painful death is undoubted-
ly that of the bird that, weakened by
want OF sustenance, dies by night of cold
In severe weather. 1t Is indeed most like
the death of the nesting, but few hours
out Of the shell, which has been thrown
out OF the nest, and which soon grows
cold and dozes 1t feeble, unconscious life
away
Il am not sure that said all this, or
marshalled facts and arguments in the
precise order in which they are here set
down.
Il fancy not, as it seems more than
could well have been spoken, while we,
standing there in the late evening sun
light by that primrose bank, looked
down on the little fesh-colored mite in
its scant clothing of black down. fading
out OF life on its cold green leaf
But what was said did not fail of its
effect, so that my young tender hearted
hearers, who had begun to listen with
moist eyes, secretly accusing me, per-
haps, of want of feeling, were content in
the end to let it be-to 60 away and
leave it to its fate in that mysterious
green world we, too, live in and do not
understand, in which life and death and
pleasure and pain, are interviewer light
and shade"
We do not know whether any reader
will agree with this although we think
1t is easy to see what Hudson was irving
10 say. But still we wonder vhy he
didn't take the young cuckoo out of the
nest, and put the rightful robin back in.
Evening star., 1939-07-12
Hours and Wages
Then and Now.

To the Editor OF The Star:
P. w. A. wages for unskilled labor have
now been fixed at about $3.50 for a 32-
hour week. There is much dissatisfac-
ton (s55 for 130-hour month";.
Well, now, even as late as IS years ago,
you worked, as a hoeman, in Anne
Arundel County for rs cents a day, from
sunup to sundown. This means 13 hours
on the long days'-78 hours "a 6-day
week. for s4.50-board yourself. Those
who were married paid so cents out of
this Tor house rent. We singles lived in
shacks, rent free. In short, about $40 a
month for $40 hours of work. And mind
you, you lost rainy weather. This work
lasted from March to October but not
for all and not the year around.
Some were not put on until about June
l. During the "glut" of the picking sea-
son (berries, peas, beanS the married
mems families (women and children)
worked early and late. That work was
piecework and paid fairly well. This
meant flour and meat for the winter,
also shoes for the children. During this
"glut' (about six weeks foreigners"
from Baltimore (mostly Poles and Bo-
hemians) were also brought out to han
die the stuff. But otherwise all of the
work was done by the home folks dnclud-
ing the Negroes. Also, in some instances,
by seasonal laborers who came and went.
In Baltimore many families were raised
on the bceadwinner's 81 day Go hours
A $1.25 was considered quite comfortable.
Living was cheaper, but not in proportion
And, by the way, right here in Washing
ton this writer worked in hotel at $50
month, no ROOM no board. no tips, no
Sundays of. Can you beat it? And,
yet, nobody killed. There was one thing
about jobs then-they were steady II
you chose to make them so.
Now this is not plea for long hours
and short pay checks-far from it. 1t is
simply record of things as they have
been. Let wiser heads straighten all
this out. OF course, there is one thing
that comes to mind-in those times,
to a considerable degree, people still
Evening star., 1939-07-12
Sees Opportunity for Men
Who Want to Work.

To the Editor of The Star:
see in today's paper that a number
OF w. P. A. workers are striking. This
will, If they strike for five days, permit of
their replacement with men who want
and need work to earn living.
Why should the w. P. A. put up with
men who want good wage for leaning
on shovels until the handles break? I
don't know, but apparently the same
New Dealers who support the w. p. A.
support the Wagner Act, which says, in
effect, employers must pay strikers what
they demand. A little two-faced!
DEMOCRATIC BUT LOGICAL.
July 6.
Evening star., 1939-07-12

When city or suburban resident finds
a baby robin, he is often in doubt as
to what he shall do. Should he leave
the bird to nature. or should he try to
bring 1t up?
Many persons who shrink from the
task, nevertheless believe they should
attempt it, and sometimes do 50 with
success. Others are not so fortunate.
This question has been asked of this
column so many times this year that
we were interested in running across
discussion of it recently in w. H. Hud-
sons Hampshire Days."
The great English naturalist had no
doubts in the matter; he advises us to
let the bird alone. Whether one agrees
with him or not, his ideas are interest
ing.
1.-The end of the little history-the
fate of the elected nesting and the atti-
tude of the parent robins-remains to be
told. When the cuckoo throws out the
nestlings from nests in trees, hedges,
bushes and reeds, the victims, as a rule,
fall some distance to the ground, or in
the water, and are no more seen by
the old birds
Here the young robin, when elected,
fell distance of but or inches, and
rested on broad bright green leaf,
where 1t was an exceedingly conspicuous
object; and when the mother robin was
on the nest-and at this stage she was
on it greater part of the time-warm-
ing that black-skinned, toad-like, spuri-
Gus babe of hers, her bright, intelligent
eyes were looking full at the other one,
just beneath her, which she had grown
in her body, and had Matched with her
warmth, and was her very own.
II watched her for hours; watched
her when she was warming the cuckoo,
when she left the nest, and when she
returned with food, and warmed it again,
and never once did she pay the least
attention to the outcast lying so close to
her
There on the green leaf it remained,
growing colder by degrees, hour by hour,
motionless, except when 1t lifted its head
as II to receive food, then dropped it
again, and when, at intervals, it twitched
its body as If trying to move.
During the evening even these slight
motions ceased. though that feeblest
flame of life was not yet extinguished;
but in the morning it was dead and cold
and stiff; and just above it, her bright
eyes on it, the mother robin sat on the
nest as before, warming her cuckoo
How amazing and almost incredible
1t seems that being such as the robin,
intelligent above most birds, as we are
apt to think. should prove in this in
stance to be mere automaton!
The case would, think, have been
different If the elected one had made
a sound, since there is nothing which
more excites the parent bird, or which is
more instantly responded to than the
cry Of hunger or distress of the young.
But at this early stage the nesting
Is voiceless-another point in favor of
the parasite. The sight of its young,
we see. slowly and dumbly dying, touches
no chord in the parent; there is, in fact,
no recognition; once out of the nest it is
Evening star., 1939-07-12
Amused by Letter From
"WOman Clerk"

To the Editor of The Star:
Your letter from Woman Clerk"
printed few days ago is certainly the
funniest and most absurd thing I ever
read. A woman getting large salary
on which, If she has any common
sense, could live comfortably and save
money, complains because she goes out
with wild set. Who makes her2 If she
likes to blow in what she gets 1t is the
fault of her lack of character and sense
and not that Of Uncle Sam. Poor thing.
Looks as If she should have a nurse to
take care Of her. JAMES G. WRIGHT.
Warrenton, Va.
July 9.