Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1942-09-18
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from the
Democrats Pen
from the

Well, Sir, you know that old uncle
of you people and of me, also, Uncle
Sam, has been raising a rumpus for
some time, about conservation. He
tells us he has a little spat on hand
with some folks across the big ditch
and, before he can spank 'em as they
deserve, all his nieces and nephews
have got to get busy in the matter Of
saving everything that will put
strength in his right hand and arm
so he can make a good job, when ne
gets 'em across his knees.
Now, two of the articles the Old
Bow mentioned, are rubber and gaso- /
line, both used in these rapid trans
it vehicles that separate you from
your cold cash about as fast as cream
is separated from milk in that Whirl-
agig mechanism the dairymen know
all about Blest if I wouldn't have
had three times as much money as l
have, if I'd let 'em alone. But, make
no mistake, dear reader, if l had
used walkers hack instead of one OF
those gas wagons, l wouldn't have
been a Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, or
Hetty Greene.
How-some-ever, in order to save
rubber and gas, alias gasoline, Uncle
Sam saws it's best not to drive over
40 miles per hour, and do hear some
echoes of plan to reduce that to
35. Speaking of speed per hour, l
am reminded of that sweet young
thing who, in flashing new sport
roadster, was splitting the pike open.
A cop managed to overtake her, call
her down, and accuse her of violating
the speed limit, informing her she
was doing about 70 miles an hour
She gave him sweet smile and a
sweeter remark when she said:
"That can't be true, Officer,
haven't been out in the road more
than 5 minutes"
But l started to say something a
bout the way one should "hit it up"
with the rubber, gasoline, chassis
batteries, and all the rest of the para
phernalia going to make up modern
horse and buggy. Uncle Sam lays
the law down to his nieces and neph-
ews. All right, but how about those
sons of his? That's what l call
those khaki boys. They ought to be
a little more closely related than we
are. notice that 40 M. P. H. means
nothing in their young lives, when
they get behind the wheel in one Of
those contraptions called "Jeep."
They split the road wide open, no
matter whether it's through city,
town, village, hamlet, or out in the
free and open.
I'd like to know their secret of con-
serving gas and rubber on that
scheme of travel. And they are not
carrying supplies to battle front
either. They are not rushing the
wounded to a field hospital. They
are not forwarding war messages
from a commanding officer to the
front. They are not rushing up re-
serves. No, Sir, four, or maybe few
er, are out for a joy ride. | saw
driver not long ago, who seemed to
be in a mortal hurry, with his leg
thrown around the windshield and the
others in various positions of relaxa-
ton. I'll bet if you'd asked him,
where to-" they wouldn't have told.
Well, it's all right just so long as
they keep off my toes. Now, l don't
mean I don't care how many they
kill, just so they don't snuff out my
candle; Pm not quite as selfish as
that: but, bless Peter! if one didn't
come near smashing my apple cart
the other day. He came roaring
down side street, just as l was
turning into it from Market. There
never was time when the need of
good brakes was more wildly Illus
trated than just then. We both play
ed a regular tune with our brake
bands and nothing serious happened.
1 guess maybe somebody might say,
1 was roaring into that side street
myself, but 1 had to make turn, and
/ don't generally do it on two wheels.
You know, believe if I had been
struck and killed by that little grim
crank of a car, / would have had a
right to apply for a pension-wait
minute, that statement don't sort of
fit, does it. Seems like 1 would have
been sort of out of action, as it
were, and anything done along that
line would have to be attended to in
some other way.