Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1945-06-08

swinging down black loan field, a
whole hill covered with steers, feed
lot alive with shoats. How he would
! blink. Yet these French farmers
| knew tricks didn't. If our Mis-
souri, farmers had to clop around in
wooden shoes and pillow with four
inch moldboard would we have
done any better?
In the spring we went back to
Paris. The day after we arrived, as
Homer, Junior, was riding his tri-
cycle around the hotel grounds he
put his hand on his back and said in
his childish voice that his back hurt.
BY morning he was worse. We got
the doctors at the American Hos
pital, and they also brought in the
best profesSeurS in Paris to help
our little boy. How far from home
we seemed! But it wasn't really so
far, after all, for five Americans
came to our hotel to ask if there was
anything they could do. But some
times no one can help.
He died in that lonely Paris hotel.
But in the next room were three
Americans we had never seen be-
fore who had come, as they said, Gin
case we needed them"
When our little boy was buried
from the American Church, there
must have been a dozen Americans
there we had never seen before and
who came up and offered their SYM
pathy. A kind-faced man had nev-
er seen before and have never seen
since, put his arm around my Shout
der and said: 1.-THE rest of them
asked me to say they know how you
must feel when this happens so far
from home"
1t made America seem very close.
When the coffin, covered with an
American flag, was taken through
the streets, the Frenchmen lifted
their hats. That helped, too. 1t all
helped and yet, at such a time,
nothing helps, for when the big
crises come we enter them alone.
But some way or other we do stand
them, we do 60 on living, we laugh
again.
After twenty-five months in Eu-
rope we returned to 10 Standish
Road. Item: fourteen windowpanes
in our little house were broken.) 1t
had been lovely fling. but all of our
money was gone.
One day a real estate neighbor
dropped" in to see me. ION what
small incidents does the door of life
swing.) had known him for some
time, and had seen his cars grow
bigger and rakier. Now what was I
going to do? he asked. Well, I was
going to plug along as best I could.
Then he asked me about how much I
expected to make without quite ask
ing it. And when told him without
quite telling him, he looked dis
tressed. 1t was a shame to see a
person work so hard and get so lit
tie. He began to tell about IDEALS"
he had pulled off. He wasn't the
only one doing that; everybody was
making money in real estate. All
person had to do was to get "con-
troll of piece of property, hang on
while, then sell at whacking
price. My tongue was soon hanging
out. He mentioned two or three
men who, as he said, were playing
the game. I began to think of my
self as playing the game.
There was piece of property
coming onto the market by forced
sale; it was an easy way for some
body to pick up some easy money.
had never picked up any easy mon
ey in my life and now under his hyp-
motto powers it seemed about time.
If I could raise some money and
make down payment, he could buy
that corner lot for me. The way
property was jumping, could sell it
in no time at a neat profit. Why,
I could make five thousand dollars!
That's nothing in comparison to
what some of the boys are making!"
he said.
When told him it seemed big to
me, he smiled pityingly. I'd just
never waded around in real estate.
Then he told of another man, who,
as he phrased it, had hit the jack
pot.
He came several times and sew
eral times l walked across the cor
ner lot that was bound to skyrocket.
He was a bit shocked when l con-
fessed how little money had. Well,
writer's were simply not business
men.
Bit by bit it got around to putting
mortgage on our house. l would
not put one on the farm. l stood
out against that. Should we, or
should we not? 1t would be only for
brief time, then we'd clean up las
my friend said), wipe off the mort
gage and have a neat sum in the
bank. The more he talked, the more
plainly could see he was right. But
there was a catch. I would have to
pay $2l0 month interest and taxes,
staggering sum. But it would be,
he explained, only for short time.
Then there would be that neat sum.
| After dayS of SWINGING hefween