The Bamberg herald. (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, June 24, 1915, Page 7, Image 7
A FRIZK-WINMXG LKTTEK. !
A Father's Terrible Confession and
His Remorse.
The American Magazine has been :
offering prizes for the best letters en-!
titled, 'The Meanest Thing 1 Even
Did." In the June issue the prize-J
winning letters are published. The'
^ first prize was awarded to the follu- j
ing letter?a father s terrible confes-i
sion:
"A great, strong. Swedish farmer j
it to mp?this story of the mean-1
est thing?told it to me with tears'
and 6obbing, afer a lapse of eighteen |
r- years.
" 'You know my son Christian?'
he began. "It happened when Chris%
tian was ten years old. and Peter was
only eight.
" 'Every night all summer long.
Christian and Peter had brought the
cow from the pasture and had kept
her out of the lucern lots where the
fence was down along the way.
" 'On the 5th of October the school
*
* teacher took them to the hills to
gather flowers and autumn leaves.
They came home after dark, tired
?nt_ and finding no one at home,
crept up stairs and went to bed.
They were sleeping soundly when
their mother came a few minutes
later, and she had not the heart to
ask them to go fo? the cow.
- " *1 helped Rasmussen dig the last
ten feet of his well that day, and
when we had finished he invited me
to supper. After that we sat for a
long while enjoying our pipes and
stories, so it was 11 o'clock when I
got home.
'< " 'When I came to the kitchen I
saw that the milk had not been set in
the window to cool. Then I was
I angry. I took the pail and went out
to milk. The.cow was not in the
barn. Now, I was furious.
" 'I took up a loose halter strap
that hung over the stall and rushed
up to the boys' bed room, muttering
and banging doors as I went. My
wife in her night dress, stepped before
me at the head of the stairs and
tried to explain. I pushed her aside
and bade her hold her tongue, i am j
ashamed to tell it, how, I, a great
big brute of a man, stood over those
two crying, pleading, trembling,
writhing, helpless little bovs, my
own flesh and blood, and whipped
them lash upon lash.
" 'When I paused for breath Peter
sobbed, 'Father, what is it for?"
' 'What is it for?* I repeated savagely,
"Come, I will show you what
it is for!"
" 'I dragged them from their bed
1 by the arms, one in each, of my monster
hands, down the 6tairs, out into
the night and a mile away, down to
the pasture bars.
'" 'The cow stood at the bars, and
when I had let her out the two little
fellows freed their hands from mine
and drove her home.
" 'In the morning Peter did not
get up. I had relented by this time
. ' and ordered that he was not to be
awakened till noon. At noon he was
in a burning fever and talked deliriously
about the cow. Dr. Davis
came and said it was pneumonia. A
later we laid him away.
" 'Christian did not get whipped
any more, and he has forgiven me
years ago; but I would give my life
and all I possess to know that at the
last I could clasp little Peter in my
arms and know that he forgives me,
: j.
too.' "
San v^ v
The Hessian Fly.
The Hessian fly, of which we begin |
to hear early in the spring, with supplementary
information as the sea.
son Advances, is no newcomer to the'
* United States. The fly was first no-j
ticed on Staten island, New York, in;
1776. and is supposed to have been1
introduced into this country during i
the Revolutionary war, bv the Hes-i
t * i
sian troops, and hence the name. The
fly spread rapidly over New York.'
New Jersey and Connecticut, and before,
the end of the eighteenth cen-;
tury had crossed the Allegheny moun-1
tains. This gnat or midge, the body'
4 of which is about a tenth of an inch j
long, is very destructive to grain, especially
to wheat. The fly has two
broods yearly, in the spring and in
the fall. It lays its eggs, 25 to 30, in
the leaf of the young plant. Four
days of warm weather hatch the
? brood and the larvae crawl near the
ground, where they fix themselves to,
the main stalk. Here they suck the
sap and the plant withers and dies. |
The larvae in five or six weeks be-;
come full grown flies. Fortunately!
for the wheat grower, the Hessian i
fly has enemies, parasitic insects
which prey upon the larvae, otherwise
the efforts to keep down the increase
by burning the stubble would amount
to little. Among these enemies is the
ichneumen fly. so called after the j
mongoos. which is the special foe of!
snakes and rats.?Indianapolis News. J
Sparrow Hawk Commissary.
Pigeons are raising in the old water
tank near the passenger station.
They enter at a hole near the bottom
of the tank. A sparrow hawkhas
found their nest and now makes
a business of feasting on squabs.?
Sanford Express.
COST OF LIVING IX AMKKICA. | ,
Higher Than Kver Itet'ore, Says Gov- ^
eminent !{ep?!'t.
Washington. Jane 16.?The cost of I
living is higher than ever before in1 n;
the Cnited States, as far as govern- i Z1
nient statistics show, and is increas- i \
ing eacli year. j w
In l HI 1 the year's cost of filling the it
market basket of the average work- w
ing man's family was $6.68 higher ti
than it was in 1913 and $6.43 higher jr
than it was in 1907, calculating on : a]
relative price figures announced to- r?
day by the federal bureau of labor
statistics as a result of its recent in- tl
vestigation of retail prices. j w
These figures represent prices oi j jr
fifteen articles aggregating approxi-' a]
mately two-thirds of the expenditure j
for food by the average working jE
man's family. The cost of these ar-;
tides in 1913 was $333.90, making; g)
the 1914 cost $340.58, while in 1907 ( ^
it was $280.15. Calculating these. t
amounts as two-thirds of the work-) w
ing man's family food expenditure, [ si
the total 6pent for food in these years
would be: 1913, $500.So; 1914,|w
$510.87, and 1907, $410.20. The m
bureau's investigation covered 44 im-| ^
portant industrial cities, representing
33 states. It showed retail food j ^
At-- 1 OA" 1Q14 I
prices in wie pcnuu iu
reached the highest point in 1914. a]
while the lowest price was in 1907.
This, however, is not true of each s(
article. Flour, for instance, was 5.3 ; +f
1
per cent, higher in 1909 than in 1914.' 0]
Sugar, which reached a remarkably j V(
high point in August, 1914, was 7.9 j
per cent, lower for the year 1914 , f
than for the year 1911, and was also; tj
lower for the year 1912. All meats j ^
were higher in 1914 than in any of t(
the seven preceding years. Except a(
for lard and such articles as are af-j p,
fected by occasional changes, the s(
highest price during the year was rj
either in August or September. d
: L
The Old Time Darkey. tI
Confederate veterans of Mobile will
suggest at the reunion in Richmond J h
this week that a monument be erect-1 *
ed to the faithful negro slaves of the. 0
South. y<
This suggestion is worth serious n
consideration. The faithful slave
should not be forgotten. The oldi r<
time mammy, or "uncle" command n
the respect of us all. Their love foi l
"marster," the "missus" and the 11
"chilluns," was an unselfish. love, j
Their faithfulness was an unreason-, n
ing sort of devotion, which gave n
much and asked little. - In song and u
in story this type of negro is brought C1
before us for the present day. Thomas d
Nelson Page, Joel Chandler Harris a
and others have enriched the pages k
of their writings by accounts of this'
unique type of character. Uncle Re- j C1
mus and the old darkey who told the **
story of Marse Chan as well as he;?
who related the romance of Me Lady, c<
exemplifying a type of negro who
now is fast becoming extinct. m
The South owes something to these ^
--? ~ i y<
Old Siave6. I neirs v?aa a. >
too strong to be forgotten. Many a j p
time have the ladies of the South, 11
been left in the care of slaves, and w
the last drop of the sla%*e's blood
would have been spilled ere the la- 11
dies could have been harmed. There
were mean slaves of course, and also
there were mean masters. But we
are talking of the good slaves, the b'
property of good masters. As body P
servants some of these went through 0
the war with the men who owned S(
them. As house servants others stay- i
ed at home to look.after the comfort; 11
of the ladies and children. The in-!t!
cidents are few where the slaves of | l<
high type proved false to trust placed n
in them. The incidents are many; v
where these slaves showed admirable'
devotion to duty. 81
Because of the former relations'*'?
between the Confederate soldiers and ' P
the slaves, it is particularly appropri- t!
ate that the former should consider:*'
a memorial to his old time servant, j ^
Faithfulness to trust is not a virtue! so
common that it calls for special1 w
recognition. The old time negro is|b
not a type so common that we can1
afford to forget about him. He hasjb
earned a place in literature, though a
there are very few authors who have; d
portrayed him with any degree of w
success. Some of our writers havejb
kept fresh our ideas of the old time; 0
darkey. But the South as a whole! n
has not erected a monument to one b
of its most unique types. The building
of a monument to the devoted *'
u 1 tVlo P
Slaves wuuiu ue a pi cn,< uuug iwi
South to do. It would show appre- n
ciation of worth. It would aid in e
preserving the memory of a class of
negroes the last of whom are now ^
rapidly passing away. Possibly the p
monument would be inspirational, not ^
only to negroes, but to white people J
too, for in this ante-bellum darkey
there were many traits which merit *
a consideration higher than an in- v
dulgent. cursory survey.?Greenville J
News.
Huerta must have swelled with fi
pride as he watched the naval review i
at New York and realized that this t
was the mighty armada which \
couldn't make him salute.?News and t
Courier. C
- -? i.. : - .
Jl'IKiK OF THK MOOXSHIXKItS. f
entucky Mountaineers Have Confidence
in Hon. A. >1. J. Cochran.
In the interesting people departlent
of the April American Magane.
appears an article about Judge
. M. J. Cochran, a federal judge
ho, a part of the time sits in Breatht
county, Kentucky?which, by the
ay, is no longer bloody. However,
tey still make lots of illicit whiskey
i Kentucky and these mountaineers
re constantly up before Judge Cochin
who. although a just judge, treats
leni like a father and tries to make
lent see that what they do is really
rong and against the law. Followig
is an extract from the article
bout Judge Cochran:
"From eight o'clock in the morn-;
ig until nearly six at night, I sat in
le court room and watched the rag- >
?d. pathetic line of moonshiners and i
ootleggers go by. There was no bit;rness
in their faces; rather, they
ere Demlexed. mystified. Why.
lould the government 'parsecute'j
lem for making their own corn into;
hiskey, in their own homes, any
iore than for making their corn into
read in their own ovens? Couldn't
ie officer ever understand that the
ad roads made it impossible for
lem to get their corn to market in
ay except liquid form? A few little
ollars?what was that to a big,
rong government? But when your
)tal family income for the year is
alv seventy-five dollars, and you see
aur corn going to waste?
"It was a wearisome business,
hey were so awkward, so slow in
ieir answers, so childlike in their
lental processes. The judge had
)ld me in the morning that his head
:hed terribly. Toward evening I exacted
to see his patience break, his
ilf-control explode in a burst of
ehteous wrath upon their tedious
ullness. But no explosion came,
ong after the lights were on he sat
:ere, and it was still:
"Come up, Henry,' or 'Joe, you'll
ave to speak a little louder,' or,
Cow. Jim, ju6t tell the jury in your
wn way how that still could be in
>ur corn field for six months and you
ot know it.'
"I have been in other federal court
joms where the judge sat behind
lahogany anr'd a cathedral-like si>nce.
There was only a plain oak
esk in the Jackson county court
ouse?and no silence; all day long
len shuffle in and out, while witesses
and jurors, lawyers and specitors
alike spat with studied predion
upon the floor. But there was
ignity just the same?and with it
wonderfully transforming spirit of indness.
1
"Over against some distressing
"iticisms of the courts I like to place
ie picture of that rude room in
loody Breathitt, with its friendly c
intral figure at the simple desk. 9
"Ten thousand ragged, wide-eyed g
ien and boys have stood before p
udge Cochran in the past thirteen
sars, mumbling their threadbare s
leas. And one might think, to hear
im calling their names, that they u
ere his grown-up children, and he
ie moonshiners' father instead of ^
r
le moonshiners' judge."
i ^
et Acquainted With Your Neighbor.
"Get acquainted with your neigh- q
or." Perhaps you have had the ex- P
erience of taking a dislike to some
ne on account of some minor per- 0
onal habit or mannerism. Perhaps E
lis dislike has been deepened with ^
me until you reach the state of mind ^
lat you not only would do nothing
i assist the person, but where you a
light go out of your way to pre- *
ent him doing something for himself ?*
iiich would be to his profit. Such ij
tates of mind are quite common, h
nd then perhaps something will liapen
that will show that you were en- ?
irely mistaken in your estimate of
fie person. Perhaps you may get ac- c
uainted with him! And perhaps ?
ou will find that what you thought q
as a lump of clay i6 a piece of price?ss
metal. t
"Get acquainted with your neigh- ^
or." Talk over with him the various
11 livA nut in the country; neither p
o the townsman's neighbors all live I
rithin the corporation. The farmer 0
as business in town, and the mer- t
hants, mechanics, bankers, railroad b
ten, lawyers, doctors, etc., all do a
usiness with the farmers?lots of
:. Get acquainted with the folks g
hat you meet in a business way. A b
ersonal acquaintance will often p
lake a business transaction much t
asier. o
"Get acquainted with your neighor.
Talk over with him the various!
roblems that you have in common,
'erhaps there will come a time when 1
ou will feel well enough acquainted
o consult him about some of the
Iiings that concern you only, but in j
hich his advice will be helpful to
ou. Perhaps you will be able to
elp him in settling some matter that ^
lav be worrying him. Do not con- *
ide in every one. That is not wise,
lut you will never know the charac- ^
er and disposition of folks, and
whether or not you can confide in
hem, until you really know them.?
)hio Farmer.
??
i t , ni 1 I
Last inance i]
If you ever use paper now is
your opportunity. We have on
hand about fifty boxes of sample
paper, which is not hurt in the 1
least, that we are offering at from
one-third to one-half the regular
retail price. This is no fake, but
a bonafide offer. You can take
your pith ot any sampic uua in
the store for 25c. This offer will
hold good until July 15th, 1915. . i||ii
Get some of this to take with you
on your vacation this summer. llfP
v m
1 UU1 1 1V/IV a
Herald Book Store 1
1915;
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON M :i
South Carolina's Oldest College. DON'T KEEP TINKERING /rr235v -m
131st Year Begins October 1. WITH YOUR WHEEL '- "
ounty seats on Friday, July 2, at Bring it here if there i6 anyFull
four year courses lead to the thing wrong and we 11 make it
t. A. and B. S. degrees. A two-year right in one quarter the time ( WB?^?>
re-medical course is given. ,, , \ v yatV A
A free tuition scholarship ie as- y?u spend on it and then /-JcvU '
igned to each county of the State. ^ make a poor job of it after all.
rounds, well equipped laboratories, repair bicycles in the
nexcelled library facilities. "know how" way. See what's
nd" catalogue address HARRISON wrong at once and go about ?gjgjz ||}i?jM(. r|i
1ANDOLPH. President. the right way of fixing 'it. We
iOTICE TO DISTILLERS AND LI- are right in our charges too.
QUOR DEALERS. ^
Bids and samples are hereby re- j ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
uested in accordance witn tne ins- m m um g B - _
ensary Law now in force for tbe I A I _ l"~S_ I-m I ^ > IV. I > 1
allowing goods to be furnished the I ^ ^ B
fate of South Carolina for the use 9 Bicycles, Guns and Automobiles Repaired. Bamberg. S C
f the County Dispensary Board of ^ 6'
lamberg Carolina.
.iquors to be shipped in car load lots, : _
xcept Beer, freight prepaid to BamBeersinpints
and quarts to be de-1
All goods shall be furnished in
om p!ianit^nd ^subject to^^e jj
ress or registered letter to Geo. A. ?^ f
>n or before Monday, July 5, ?? :| Bridging the distance twixt
3. The contract will be awarded // ?
o the lowest responsible bidder, the ?7nil on/l anYTUrnO^O
ioard reserving the right to reject Jr UU Ctllvl CUIV Wllvi vi
ny or all bids, or parts of bids.
The Board requir^ that on an bids The Bell Telephone, with its 16,000,000 miles of
ubmitted the age and proof of all . , . \ , . *
oods shaii be stated, and bids shaii wire, brings millions of people within earshot of
e in gallons, 1-2 gallons, quarts, vour Voire '
ints and 1-2 pints. j *
Bids win be ?peneJaa^he office of j Many thousand of them, living within fifty or a
he County Board, Bamberg, S. C., - j j ? t i_ j ^ ?< ^ ?* ?
n July 5,1915. hundred miles, can be reached for a small toll charge. 'Wjk
J. M. Grimes, , , ? ,. , . .
chairman. Are you making use of this vast bridge on your
J .B..K?ars?' farm, in your home or in your business. There's a
w. H. rausi, . ,
&oard of control County Dispen- profit of time, money or convenience for you in the
saries, Bamberg County, South gejj Telephone if yOU will USe it.
:?? Gr*sp the Opportunity!
?APER HANGING ^ it . . * . .-'taB
house painting Call or write the manager to-day.
. JZZ SOUTHERN BELL TELEPHONE /7\ M
Prices reasonable. AND TELEGRAPH COMPANY U. J J
Vhen in need of anything in this
line come to see
BOX 108, COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA.