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THE NEWBERRY SUN. NEWBERRY. S. t. WfiaiOHcORMR She Floats Through the Air By JOHN H. HOSE Tony silently worshipped the petite trapeze queen but she did not know he existed until his heart and imagination combined to bring about a unique introduction. T ONY had just emerged through the rear flap of the sideshow tent when he heard the steady rumble of the snare drums sounding from P ie big top just a few feet away. He urried across the straw-littered tareaway which was the actor’s en trance to the circus. The gayly col ored pennants floated in the breeze high above the mammoth canvas. Performers in gay costumes lounged liesurely about the rear of the tent awaiting the grand finale. Lumber ing elephants pushed and heaved to move the animal cages into the menagerie tent. The big, tawny cats snarled viciously in anger at hav ing been returned to confinement again after their performance. But Tony was oblivious to all this activity as he moved intently into the tent, and slipped quietly onto the grass near the end of the hippo drome track. His position gave him a commanding view of the space di rectly over the center ring. Multi colored spotlights played upon the spangled figure of a dainty lady silhouetted against the tent top. The gentle music of a waltz now wafted through the tent from the bandstand. Poised upon the tiny platform, 80 feet above the ground, stood the petite Annette—queen of the aerialists. Many said she was the greatest since Langtry. The swinging bar floated rhythmically back and forth as she swung it gently and evenly away from her. Far across the space atop the tent, her assistant swung a similar bar back and forth. Annette was readying herself for the highlight of her performance— the feature attraction of America’s greatest circus. She was about to perform her triple somersault, defy ing death, as she swung her lovely, slim body through the top of the tent. There were no nets beneath! The slight- ~t miscue would spell instant dealt) for the intrepid An nette. With the 4,000 spectators, Tony stared upward as the drums again began their ominous roll, and An nette floated out on her swinging bar. A silent pause! Then the drums increased their pace furiously, and the leading lady of the big top hurtled out and up toward the root her body revolving once— ’ 'Tah-ah-a h-a h-a h-a h-a h-r u m p! ” beat the drums. Twice — “Tah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah- rump!” Three times — "Tah-ah-ah-ah-ah- ah-ah-rump!” She met the bar swinging out to her with perfect precision, and in a trice, stood upon the platform on the opposite side, smiling down on the vast sea of faces below. A great ‘‘Ah ....'’ of relief es caped from the crowd, and then the applause resounded throughout the tent. Tony sat entranced as Annette acknowledged the plaudits of the multitude. Then she quickly slid down the rope to the ground, took several graceful bows, and scamp ered toward the exit. Already the performers and horses were pour ing into the tent for the grand finale; but Tony watched only the movement of the raven-haired beau ty, Annette. Twice each day he came to the main tent to watch the star of the high swings. How his heart yearned for the little French actress, but Ann’tte was entirely unaware of his affection for her. Tony was billed as Anthony Fragiotto, creator and manipulator of FRAGIOTTO’S MARIONETTES. He was part of the sideshow, and had been with the circus about six months, joining them two months before they left winter quarters. Tony was in love with Annette. But the shy lad from Vicenza Euganea province in far-off Italy scarcely dared speak to the star of the show, let alone declare his feel ings for her. Tony had been a farm er’s son, working in the fields of those rolling plains when a boy. But Guiseppe Fragiotto was no ordi nary farmer. He was the village wood carver, and for years had de lighted the peasants in the Vicenza region with his puppet shows. Nat urally, he taught his son, Antonio, the art. When Tony was big enough to as sist his father in the manipulation of the gayly-costumed dolls, they traveled to Vicenza, Como, and even Padua to present the Fragiot to puppets at the street carnivals. Then the war had come! The Fragiotto family had gone under ground when the Germans flowed in to Italy. Eventually Tony had come to America. And with him he had brought his precious puppets. He found work as a farm hand in Penn sylvania where he exhibited his puppets one evening at a Red Cross benefit show. Not long after that night, the circus agent had con tacted him, and he was on his way to the circus quarters. There he became part of the strange con glomeration which comprised the side show. During the months in winter quar ters, Tony had seen Annette prac ticing her feats on the rings and bars high above the ground. Each day he became more enamored of the beautiful aerialist. But how could a poor youth who scarcely spoke English express his admira tion for the star of the show? In the early part of the season, Tony began to formulate a plan whereby he might show Annette how he felt for her. During the hours when he was not exhibiting his puppets, Tony carved furiously, creating new properties, scenery,' and characters. The triumph of this frenzied ac tivity was a beautiful doll—the very image of Annette. Soon Jhe trap pings were completed. It was The leading lady of the big top hurtled out and up toward the roof. Tony’s plan to assemble the minia ture circus on a Sunday when the show would be laying over. He had planned how he would invite An nette to see his new act! “What if she won’t come?” he thought. But surely she would not refuse this simple request. The thoughts raced through his mind as he watched the object of his affection leave the tent. Slowly he arose from the grass. He would wait until she had changed her costume. Then he would go to the mess tent. He knew the exact moment when she would enter for her evening meal. After an interval that seemed literally hours to Tony, Annette came into the dining tent Shyly he approached her, ««E'XCOOS, please, Signorina An- ■ L ‘ nette . . .” “Oh, M’sieur Fragiotto,” trilled Annette, “and how are you today?” Tony was pleasantly surprised that the circus queen knew who he was. “If the lady has the little min ute," he stammered, “I—Antonio— have created the new poppets. They are the pairformairs of circus,” he mouthed the words carefully in his broken English. “I would like, please, the advice of the Signorina about them!” "How very charming,” laughed Annette with a toss of her dark hair, and a merry twinkle of the sparkling, blue eyes. “I would be delighted, M’sieur Fragiotto. Per haps you could show them to me tomorrow when we have no per formance?” "That is what I was theenking,” said Tony. "I will have them as semble in the side show tent after dinner tomorrow.” * “Fine," replied Annette. "I have often watched your charming show. I would be delighted M’sieur Fra giotto. Perhaps you would be so kind as to show me how to make them work?” This was even more than Tony had dreamed might be possible. “Indeed! Indeed!” he shouted enthusiastically. “I shall expect you then tomorrow.” The next afternoon, Tony was ready with the puppets long before the dinner hour. He talked to them affectionately as he put them through their paces. To Beppo, the clown, he chuckled: “And now, leetle fonny man, you make the boys and gurls to laugh, no?” The beautifully carved wood en horses pranced and danced as gracefully as their real counter parts in the big tent across the way. But the truly artistic master piece was the Teplica of Annette. Tenderly, he placed thl tiny pup pet into place on the aerial swing in his miniature arena. “My beautiful one,” he almost whispered, "we shall see if you can do the triple soubresaut, reesking your lovely life!” As the graceful puppet tumbled through space at the behest of Tony’s nimble fingers, he became entranced in his work. He did not see Annette slip into the tent. He was startled when she exclaimi-i, i "But ... it is perfect!” She scampered behind the scenes to ex amine the trappings of the new show. She oh-ed and ah-ed at the beautifully wrought details of the tiny circus, and when Tony handed her the tiny duplicate of herself, shd was utterly speechless. Finally she said: “Oh, Tony, it’s beautiful . . . too beautifuL I don’t really look like that, do I?” she queried, looking coquetishly up into his eyes. The blood rushed to Tony’s face, and he stammered weakly: “Oh, Tony, show me how to make her work,” pleaded Annette, danc ing up and down excitedly like a child with a new toy. “Can you really make her do a triple somer sault like myself?” “Yes,” laughed Tony, "but it is not easy. You must practice. Now see,” he said, placing the toggle sticks in her hands as she clam bered onto the platform beside him. "When you move thees one so, the arms and legs do your heeding. When you move thees one so,” he indicated the other stick, "the head and body move at your command.” Annette moved the sticks awk wardly, and the little doll gyrated wildly in her hands. In her effort to disentangle the puppet, she be came involved in the strings. Tony reached around her shoulders to straighten up the entanglement, when she raised her face, brush ing his chin with her soft hair. Her lovely feminine fragrance held Tony entranced, and acting im pulsively, he kissed her upturned lips. “Flees, forgeev me, I ... I . . ." he stammered. But Annette was not angry. Rather she seemed pleased. Ever so tenderly, she cud dled against Tony, and speaking softly, she said: “But, Tony, little Annette is still all tangled up. She will surely nev er make the somersault if you do not help me.” Tony’s heart was making the somersaults now, as once again he put his arms about her. Then the words came pouring forth . . . the words he had whispered to the pup pet Annette. "Oh, my beautiful Annette,” he sighed, “these long months I have loved you. I never dreamed . . .” but his words were lost, for An nette’s lovely face was lifted to his, and her warmth and beauty engulfed him as he kissed her long and tenderly. And Annette—the doll—somer saulted again and again at the end of her tangled strings. | “Zkis Same ffesus” Grace Noll Crowell T c 1 ■lODAY on the read I met Him: The very same Jesus who trod The old, old lanes and the highways On His beautiful errands for God. I was troubled and heart-sick and weary With a load too heavy to bear; I cried aloud in my weakness And suddenly He was there. His gentle hand on my shoulder Was lifting the burden from me. And He dried my tears, and I knew Him, It was Jesus of Galilee: No different at all from the Mailer On the Jericho road that day; No different at all from the Saviour Along the Samaria way. And I am so glad that I met Him! I knelt and I called out His name. And I am so grateful I found Him Unchanged and forever the same* Efficient Fertilizer Use Boosts Yields Good Soil Management Must Aid Plant Food Every ton of fertilizer can be stretched or used more efficiently, boosting crop yields at the same time. Many farmers, says Middle West Soil Improvement committee, use fertilizer as a crutch. They try to make it substitute for good man agement practices. They put plant food in the soil without making sure the plant can send out its roots to use it. Fertilizer is essential in giving the soil plant nutrients to feed crops. But fertilizer can’t do the whole job. It must b^ teamed with other practices that build and main tain soil structure and keep the top soil “nailed down." The soil needs good Structure so roots can grow and reach out for plant food. Roots need air and wa ter to live. When a soil is packed down and tight, there is no room for the air and water needed by roots and plants for high crop production. The way to build soil, structure is to grow legumes and grasses regu larly in the rotation. These legumes make a thick layer of good soil. YOU CAN 1 S-T-R-E-T-C-H YOUR They add organic matter. Such soil has plenty of air space. Water soaks In quickly and more of it is held. Weak, scattered stands of legumes won’t build soil structure. For strong, leafy stands and vigorous roots, the legumes need phosphate and potash that can be added in commercial fertilizer. Getting thick stands isn’t the whole story eij^fer. All these crops can’t be cut for hay or graze close and still be expected to build the soil. At least a part of these crops must be turned back to the soil. Private Life of Bossy In the current craze for dissect ing private lives even Bossy is not Immune. The inevitable prober comes up with these statistics: Bossy grazes only seven and a half hours daily, regardless of how much feed she gets. She does 60 per cent of her grazing during daylight hours, 40 per cent at night. She spends five hours a day eating at a rate of 50 to 70 bites per minute. She chews her cud seven hours a day and spends 12 hours lying down, at nine dif ferent times. While grazing, she travels two and a half miles in the daytime and one and a half at night. She drinks 10 times a day. Erosion Takes Alarming Toll of Good Crop Land , Erosion is taking an increasingly alarming toll of good crop land in the United States. Estimates by the department of agriculture indi cate that about 100 million acres of once good crop land have been ruined or nearly ruined for profit able cropping by erosion, another 100 million acres have been badly damaged and still another 100 mil lion acres are eroding too fast There are now approximately 460 million acres of good crop land in the U. S., including acreage now in crops as well as about 100 million acres that need clearing, drainage, irrigation or other improvement. All but about 7% million acres of this 460 million acres are subject to erosion unless protective meas ures are adopted. Planting of Windbreak Will Improve Farmstead Ranked as a major farmstead im provement project, planting of a windbreak around farm buildings not only improves the appearance of the farm but also saves fuel and gives wind protection to the build ings and livestock. In addition to the regular wind break on the north and west of the farmstead, many farmers also are planting a garden windbreak on the south and west of the garden. SCRIPTURE: I Kings 4:21-11-13. DEVOTIONAL, READING: Psalmf 33:12-ae. His Hand in History Lesson top October 24, 1948 mm S UPPOSE you were given a long flexible wire and were asked to arrange it on a pattern which would represent history, what would you do to it? Some people would cut that wire into little bits and let them (all in a pile like jackstraws. Histo ry,'they would say, is a meaningless collection of dis connected events— it has no real pat-' tern. ^ Someone else would arrange the wire like a long arrow pointing upward; others would make it into an arrow point ing downward; these would be the pure optimists and pessimists among historians. Others would arrange it is a series of up-and-down curves— history, they would say, some times goes up and sometimes down, but it never gets any where. Others again would make an immense circle; his tory goes around and around in cycles, repeating Itself. Others still might take that wire and shape it into a kind of spiral, almost repeating itself but never quite, often seeming to go backward but actually making some progress. mm* God’s Chosen People A GOOD deal of the Old Testa ment is taken up with history. Starting with Genesis and going through Esther, most of what you read is history. But it is not mere chronicles, that is to say it is not a mere listing of events. The historical parts of the Bible were written by men who had a theory of history. They would agree that the Golden Age is ahead of ns, not behind. They would all agree that the most important figure in human history is not a human being at all, but God the Creator. They would all agree that his hand can be seen—if you look for it—in the events, of man’s existence here. And they all affirm that among all the nations of the earth there was one which could be called truly God’s chosen people, the little na tion called Israel, the people we know as the Jews. The whole of Hebrew history Is a sort of sermon on this text: Righteousness exalteth a nation, bnt sin is a reproach to any people. The history of any na tion, ancient or modern, would illustrate that text just as well; only the Israelite historians saw it most clearly. They showed hoV, when their people followed God’s leading and his laws, they prospered; when they went their own stnpld, selfish ways they suffered. * • • Somehow Good O NE great lesson the Old Testa ment history teaches is that God’s will is good, and that when man defies and disobeys that will, he does it to his own destruction, but that God can bring good out of eviL People often act from bad mo tives; yet even the worst of mo tives God can overrule. David waded in blood to his throne, and he treated -cruelly many • of his enemies. That was not good; yet God brougl t out of that a national independence and strength. David put Solomon on the throne because he was the son of his favorite wife; that was pure favoritism. Yet God brought good out of a choice which was selfish. When the Israelites were tempted to fall for the cheap and nasty gods whose shrines filled the land, that was bad; but it gave the prophets their great opportunity to make perfectly clear the difference be. tween false and true religion. m m m The Voice of God H ISTORY is no bucket of ashes. If you have ears to listen, it is the voice of God. These ancient tales of a nation long since dead, that lived in all scarce 500 years, carry God’s voice to us today. The diseases which are fatal to a nation’s life are here de scribed; the foundations on which alone true national wel fare can be built are made quite plain. Up to now, all nations have per ished sooner or later. We can see some of them decaying in our own time. That is because no nation ever yet has built its life on God’s design. But the pattern is there, the lesson has been written. God still waits for a people who will learn his lesson in how to live. (Copyright by the IatornMtiooMl Council of Religious Education on behalf of 40 Protestant denominations. Released by WNU Features.) Neat Style Features Popular Side Closing 1736 12-42 Slenderizing Style T OOK neat and pretty about ' your household chores in this slenderizing style that features the popular side closing. Buttons in threes are a nice touch; a nar row belt snugs in your waistline. Pattern No. 1736 comes In sizes 12, 14. 16. 18, 20? 40 and 42. Size 14. 3% yards ol 36 or 39-inch. SEWING CIRCLE PATTERN DEPT. $30 South Wells St. Chicago 7, IU. Enclose 25 cents in coins for each pattern desired. Pattern Nr. sire Address To Relieve Your Cough, Mix This Recipe, at Home You’ll be surprised how quickly and easily you can relieve coughs due to colds, when you try this splendid re cipe. It gives you about four times as much cough medicine for your money, and you’ll find it truly wonderful. Make a syrup by stirring 2 cups of granulated sugar and one cup of water a few moments, until dissolved. No coqking needed—it’s no trouble at nil (Or you can use corn syrup or liquid honey, instead of sugar syrup.) Then put 2% ounces of Pinex (obtain ed from any druggist) Into a pint bottle, and fill up with your syrup. This makes a full pint of medicine that will please you by its quick ac tion. It never spoils, and tastes fine. This simple mixture takes right hold of a cough. For real results, you've never seen anything better. It loosens the phlegm, soothes the Irritated membranes, and eases the soreness. Pinex is a special compound of provdb Ingredients, in concentrated form, well-known for its quick action In coughs and bronchial irritations. Money refunded if it doesn't please you In every way. Pinex la Past Relief! Cop-Brush Applicator j jUSY BLACK LEAF DASH IN ZIATMIRsTNi 0 MUCH OR SPREAD ON ROOSTS w a He’s trying to msk« a go of things here. When we trade oet of town, we iet our veterans down. Yes, Camels are so mild that noted throat specialists, mak ing weekly examinations of hundreds of men and women who smoked Camels exclusively for 30 consecutive days — on the average of one to two packages a day — found not one single case of throat irritation due to smoking Camels, MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE I Smoke Camels for 30 days. If, at any time darias these 30 days, you are not convincea that Camels are the mildest cigarette you’ve ever smoked, return the package with the unused Camels and we will refund your full purchase p»ice, plus postage. This offer is good for 90 days from this date. R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., Winston-Salem, North Carolina. 30-tty Te&v? tfarT-Zbae