THE POET’S FAITH.
To-day the world may pass him by
With heedless haste, averted eye;
To-day the world may go unstirred
By all the witchery of his word;
To-day the clamor of the street
May drown his song so wild and
sweet;
To-day unto himself alone
His art melodious may be known;
The world untouched may go its way,
Nor listen to his song to-day.
Yet, does he murmur? Nay, not he;
He muses on the days to be,
Upheld serenely by the faith
That though he die, there is no death.
For that immortal voice which rings
Through e’en the lightest song he
sings;
The faith that though all flesh must
fade,
The beauty whidh his soul has made
Will never perish; but live on
To win the world when he is gone;
The faith that when he’s dead, that
same
Old heedless world will breathe his
name
With love and reverence, and keep
His memory sacred—ay, and steep
Its very spirit in the lay
He sings to deafened ears to-day!
—New York Sun.
Jim Ford’s
Redemption
He had dreaded most of all the re­
turn to Hingham. He knew what the
boys would say. He knew how unmer­
cifully they would gibe at him. He
had no mother to c^re, but there was
a girl whose opinion.was the dearest
of all. She wouldn’t gibe at hi»m. She
would look at him with "’’those big,
questioning eyes, and—no, he couldn’t
tell her. That was impossible.
He waited awhile before he return­
ed to Hingham, but he was only put­
ting off the inevitable hour. So he
went back one day, and kept aloof
from the boys, and almost buried him­
self in the old farmhouse that had
been his father’s aqd his grandfath­
er’s, and was now his.
His' Aunt Amelia had met him at
the door.
“Home again, Jim?” ' .
“Yes.”
“Best place after all, I guess.”
“It’s the. safest place,” he had an­
swered.
And she asked him no more.
He busied himself about the house a
few days and then went down into the
tillage where he knew he would meet
the boys. They gibed him as he ex­
pected they would, and he had taken
his .medicine quietly. Bitter as it was
he knew he deserved it. From their
point of ciew lie had proved a fail­
tire.
“They’re right,” he growled at him­
self as he trudged home in the moon­
light. “I am a failure—a failure and
-a fool.” And he kicked the clods along
the way viciously.
Then he met Laura Crane.
“Well,” he said in a flippant way,
■"you see what happens to a bad pen-
ay.”
Her clear eyes searched his face.
“I am very sorry you failed,” she
said.
He drew a quick breath.
“Farming’s my*
1 work,” he said. ”1
was a poor fool to imagine I could suc­
ceed at anything else.” He drew an­
other quick breath. “It is a little hard
to have your air castles blown over.
I fancied I could earn enough and save
■enough in five or six years to put me
in good shape. 1 meant to have a new
home, and—well, that’s not worth talk­
ing about. You are looking very well,
Laura.”
He flinched a little under her steady
.gaze.
“You must come and see me, Jim,”
«he said.
But he was ashamed to go. She
was disappointed in him. She thought
him a failure, too.
, And then one »morning an item in
the Hingham Times drew his eager at­
tention. He read it through twice.
Then he took his hat and walked down
to Abner Quigg’s harness shop. Abner
was there alone.
“Abner,” he said, “I want to have a
talk with you.”
.
Abner pushed a splint-bottom chair
toward him.
“Sit down, Jim,” he said. “Glad to
see you.” He threw a sha^p look at
his caller. “See here, Jim Ford, there’s
no use your sulking over this thing.
You had your chance, you failed just
as lots of other fellows have failed.
There’s no use brooding over it. It
was rough on you, and kind o’ rough
on us, too. But you needn’t feel as if
your life was soured by it.”
Jim clicked his teeth together.
“You think I was a failure, don’t
you, Abner?”
“Why, yes.”
“Well, I wasn’t—at least, I wasn’t
the kind of failure you mean.”
“What’s that, Jim? Don’t you s’pose
we read the papers? We know all
about the only game you pitched while
you was with Cullinan’s team. Didn’t
you go all to pieces in the fifth and let
the Browns hammer in five runs?
bidnt’ all the papers come out and say
you was in too fast company« and you
uadn’t any nerve, and you ought to
hike back to the bush? What’s the
matter with you, Jim?”
But his caller’s glance did not wa­
ver.
“I tell you, Abner, I’m not the fail­
ure you and the boys think I am. Do
you know why I couldn’t pitch that
day? It was ’cause I was getting over
a drunk.”
“You, Jim!”
“That’s right. I didn’t go to bed
till 3 that morning. I was with some
fellows who fooled me and flattered
me and made a laughing stock of me.1
You know me, Abner. You know the
life I’ve led here in Hingham. But
you can’t imagine how a little dissipa­
tion upsets me. The big salary, the
fact that I was on a league team, the
flatteries of the fellows who hang
round the players, all conspired to
make a monumental fool of me. I went
on the field that afternoon with a mud­
dled head and a shaking hand. Culli­
nan didn’t know it. I did my best to
put up a confident front. I knew it
was all a bluff. I cursed my folly as
I stood there and saw all my hopes
slipping away fro»m me, but it was too
late—it was too late.”
His head drooped. His gaze sought
the floor. There was a little silence.
“I’m awfully sorry for you, Jim,”
said Abner Quigg. “I was mad at first,
but now I am only sorry.”
“Thank you, Abner,” said Jim.
“You’re the only one I’ve told about
it.”
“I understand,” said Abner. “What
did Cullinan do to you, Jim?”
“Suspended me without pay.”
“Do you think he found out about
the—the spree?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t get any
chance to talk with him.” He looked
up suddenly. “Abner,” he said, “do
you know what brought me down here
to-day? It was that notice about the
game. Is it a sure thing?”
“Yes. We’ve guaranteed Cullinan
what he asked. They’ve nothing sched­
uled for the day, and they’ll be just
that much ahead.” He looked at Jim
curiously. “I don’t suppose you’ll care
to see the game?”
Jim’s eyes snapped.
“Yes, I will.” His tone suddenly
changed. “Abner,” he said, “let me
pitch against the leaguers.”
Abner stared at him.
‘‘You, Jim?”'
~ “Yes.”
There was a little silence.
“Northcote has a lame arm and Sim­
mons max Pot be here,” muttered Ab-
LAURA CRANE WAS THEBE.
ner.
“Why do you want to pitch
against the big fellows, Jim?”
“I want to show them I can pitch.
I mean to do my best to beat them,
Abner.”
Abner laughed.
“That’s the hardest hitting bunch in
the league, Jim. You know that. If
you can beat them you can beat the
others sure.”
“Then you’ll let me pitch?”
Abner hesitated.
“They are here next Thursday. I’d
like mighty well to beat them. It
would make our Hingham backers feel
good for a month or Sundays. But of
course that’s all nonsense. They’ll
make monkeys of us, no doubt. If we
can score at all against ’em I’ll be
satisfied. You’re the best pitcher Hing­
ham ever had, Jim. If anybody can
hold ’em down you’re the man. But
it’s going to look mighty funny to see
you going up against the club that
turned you down.”
“Never mind the looks, Abner. Will
you catch for me?”
“Want me, Jim?”
“Of course I do.”
“Garver is catching mighty well.”
“I want you, Abner. You an I have
won many games together.”
“All right, Jim. I’ll catch for you.
We’ll have to get together as many
times as possible—and on the quiet,
too. I don’t* suppose the boys will be
over pleased with t'he idea at first,
but I’ll bring ’em round. Wouldn’t it
be a howling joke if we should béat
’em!”
And Abner laughed loud and long.
“When will I see you again, Abner?”
“At 4 o’clock, back of the willows in
the old place. We won’t be disturbed
there.’'
And so Jim and Abner, who was cap­
tain-manager of the famous Hingham
team—famous at least in its own sec­
tion of the state, met twice daily and
renewed their old-time cleverness. And
Ab,ner told the other boys of Jim’s re­
turn to the team, and there was a dis­
position to criticise his judgment, but
in the end Abner won out, and while
there was a little coolness between the
former players and Jim, there were
no more sneers or jibes.
Jim worked with a quiet persistency
that aroused Abner’s admiration.
*You’re just as good as you ever
were, my boy,” he said. “And I be­ wind and quickly disposed of the'
Hingham trio, and Jim, steady as
lieve you are a little better.”
And then the night before the game clockwork, was equally fortunate.
Whereat Hingham suddenly lost all
Jim went round and called on Laura
control of itself and swarmed over the
Crane.
“Laura,” he said, “I’m going to pitch field. It was some little time before
it could be driven outside the ropes.!
for Hingham to-morrow.”
And then the tenth inning began, and
“You, Jim?”
“Yes. I want to show Hingham that it began with Wingfield out of sorts.
I’m not the quitter they take me to He was tired and Harlow had irritat­
be. I—-I want you to see the game, ed him. And Tom Cannon caught the
second ball pitched and cracked a liner
Laura.”
a little too high for the thirrd base­
“I’ll be there, Jim.”
Her searching eyes were on his face. man. And Dick Steele had advanced
“Jim,” she said, “some day tell me him by a double play. And Jack Groom
drove a long fly to right and Tom
why you quit the league team.”
Cannon was on third with two out.
He flushed.
Then Jim Ford came to bat. And
“I can’t do that,” he stammered.
there was a dead silence.
“Yes,” she said.
“One strike!” ,
“No,” he persisted.
Jim hadn’t moved.
“I think I can guess, Jim.”
The crowd groaned.
Then he turned and came away.
“Hit it out, Fordy!” shouted a small
What did she mean? How could She
boy.
guess?
Wingfield paid no attention to Tom
But she had promised to be at the
game. This would give him an added Cannon. He was determined to strike
out this saucy upstart.
incentive.
He sent the ball in like a shot from
“With Cullinan there, and Laura
there,” he muttered, “I’ll have no ex­ a gun. And Jim met it with a light
tap that drove it gently a llttjp to
cuse fo not doing my level best.”
The day of the great game dawned the left of the pitcher. And Wingfield
bright and clear. At 1 o’clock Hing­ sprang for it, but it was an awkward
ham ball park contained pretty nearly ball to handle and when he had it In
all the active residents of the town. hand he threw it wideband Jim was
safe, and Tom Cannon had crossed the
Abner Quigg was delighted.
“Boys,” he said, “the town has plate!
The next man was an easy out and
moved over into the park to see you
play. Now give ’em something to look then in the midst of an awful uproar
at that will be worth their while. And Hingham took the field.
Jim had never felt better in his life.
another thing, boys, Jim Ford knows
these big fellows and he’s going to With five balls he disposed of the first
handle you in the field. Watch him.’1 man up. And Hingham roared. The
There was a cheer from the Hing­ next man batted a high fly for Tom
ham rooters when the team came into Cannon at second Which that reliable
And Hingham
the field, but Jim Ford realized that player harvested.
there was very little of the encourage­ roared again.
When Tom returned the ball to Jim
ment intended for him. The town still
looked upon him as a quitter, and he •he threw a little wild and Jim had to
knew that a good many friends of the cross the base line to get the sphere.
club blamed Abner for lettering him As he picked it up he suddenly en­
countered the gaze of Manager Culli­
play.
The Hinghams went to bat and Jim nan, Who was only a dozen feet away.
Ford kept out of sight as much as And Manager Cullinan’s face was
possible. He knew the men of the beaming.
“Great boy!” he distinctly uttered
league team had seen him and he fan­
cied they were laughing. Once he as he caught Jim’s eye.
And then with four heavy shots the
looked up and caught Manager Culli­
nan’s gaze, and Manager Cullinan was great boy disposed of the third batter,
and Hingham had beaten the leaguers!
smiling.
Jim dodged the eager arms that
Jim realized that they considered
were stretched to embrace him and
him an easy mark.
The first three Hingham batters ran to the dressing room. And Abner,
went down like stubble before the un­ half crying, hugged him tight and the
erring shoots of the veteran Wingfield, other players showed their jubilant
and a little later Jim Ford found him­ delight in his prowess.
He waited until the crowd had
self facing that extremely confident
hitter, Jack Logan. And he was quite thinned away. When he reached the
sure that Logan winked at him sidewalk Laura was there. Her eyes
were shining as she gave him her
slightly.
Jim had firmly resolved that he hand.
And then a voice hailed Jim. He
wouldn’t waste a ball.
looked around. It was Manager Culli­
44One .strike!” cried the umpire.
nan.
Logan looked surprised.
“Just a word, Ford,” he said as he
“Two strikes!”
Now the batter was in a hurry. Jim aame up. “You will report on the field
shot the ball away from -him. He Monday. I am going to put you in
reached for it with a half-regretted against the Bostons.” He paused and
looked at Jim with his keen eyes.
swing.
“I’m in a business where a man has to
“Striker out!”’
A little cheer went up from the be careful with his compliments,” he
said, “but you certainly are one of
Hingham rooters.
The second leaguer was more wary. the finest youngsters that ever walked
He found the ball he wanted and drove on spikes. And now tell me why you
it straight at Jim. And Jim met it didn’t do What you have done to-day in
pluckily and beat it down and flung that game against the Browns.”
Jim hung his head.
it accurately to Charley Grimes. As
“I think I know, sir,” Laura said.
he turned back to the points there
“You must t remember that he is a
was another little cheer.
The third leaguer popped him a fly country boy Who has seen little or
and as he* walked back to the bench | nothing of the world. Is it to be won­
there was quite a little hand-clapping. dered at that its allurements caught
“You’re slinging ’em like a demon, him unawares?”
Cullinan nodded.
Jim,” said Abner as he laid aside his
“I understand,” he said.
mask. “But can you last?”
“Jim needs somebody to look after
“Yes,” responded Jim, and his teeth
him,” said the girt and her voice
clicked.
“The» big fellows think you’ll fall trembled a little.
Cullinan suddenly smiled.
down along about the fifth,” whispered
“You mean a wife?”
Abner.
The girl flushed and nodded and laid
“I’ll show ’em,” growled ’Jim, and
her hand on Jim’s arm.—W. R. Rose.
his teeth clicked again.
“Laura Crane is here,” said Abner,
and his voice dropped. “She’s sitting HUMAN MACHINE NOT PERFECT.
over there at the left. See her?”
Short coinings of the Body Pointed
Jim flushed.
Out by Dr. Woods Hutchinson.
“I can’t see anything but batters
The human body as a machine is far
to-day.”
from perfect, says Dr. Woods Hutchin­
Out went the Hingham men in on- son in the Delineator. It can be beat­
two-three order, and again Jim found en or surpassed at almost every point
himself in the points. Now he faced by so»me product of the machine shop
the mighty Norris, the leading batter or by some animal. It does almost
of the league. Jim shot a disconcert­ nothing perfectly or with absolute pre­
ingly close ball at him and Norris bare­ cision.
ly escaped it. Jim grimly smiled. He
As Huxley remarked a score of years
knew the big batter’s weakness. Nor­ ago: “If a manufacturer of optical in­
ris dreaded being hit. And Jim played struments were to hand us for labora­
on his anxiety and eventually struck tory use an instrument so full of de­
him out.
fects and imperfections as the human
This time Hingham’s cheer was un­ eye, we should promptly decline to ac­
doubtedly jubilantf and it grew still cept it and return it to him. But,” he
louder as a fly to short and an easy went on *to say, “while the eye is in­
bounder to second disposed of the accurate as a microscope, imperfect as
next two leaguers.
a telescope, crude as a photographic
And then it was a pitcher’s battle camera, it, is all of these in one.”
to the very finish, with all the odds
In other words, like the body, while
against Jim Ford. The veteran Wing­ it does a dozen different things well
field had that wonderful human stone enough for practical purposes, it has
wall about him, while Jim’s support, the crowning merit, which overbal­
although generally excellent, was just ances all these minor defects, of being
a little ragged at times. In the fifth able to adapt itself to almost every
with one man out, the leaguers con­ conceivable change of circumstances.
trived to fnl two bases, a scratch hit
This is the keynote of the surviving
and a low throw being responsible. power of the human species. It is not
Then Jim bucked down and struck out enough that the body should be pre­
the next two batters and a mighty roar pared to do good work under ordinary
went up from the excited crowd.
conditions, but it must be capable, if
“The big fellows don’t know what needs be, of ¿meeting extraordinary
to make of you, Jim,” chuckled Ab­ ones. It is not enough to be able to
ner. “They’ve stopped lauglhing.”
take care of itself and preserve what
And pretty soon it was the ninth might be termed favorable or average
lining and neither team had scored. circumstances; it must also be pre­
Then Jim saw Harlow speak to Culli­ pared to protect itself in peril and re­
nan and Cullinan nodded, and then gain its balance in disease. It must
Harlow pulled Wingfield aside, and be a hill climber and a mudplower as
Wingfield flushed and shook his head well as a smooth runner on level
vehemently and went back to the macadam. What we term “disease” is
points.
often only its sportings and plungings
Jim knew what, this meant. The on grades or in ruts.
veteran was getting tired, but he
True love is something that is able
wasn’t ready to fall down before this
bush outfit. And Jim grimly smiled. to dispense with the advice of out-
Thwi Wingfield caught bls second sldem.
Rural Delivery and Road*.
Stable Ventilation.
Some years ago Prof. F. H. King,
of Wisconsin, made an experimental
study of the effect of ample and de­
ficient ventilation upon twenty milch
cows. The experiment was made in
a half-basement stable, represented in
accompanying figure, having three out­
side doors, thirteen large windows and
a door leading by a stairway to the
floor above. The ceiling was nine feet
above the floor and the stable con­
tained 960 cubic feet of space per cow.
Leading upward from the ceiling were
two hay chutes two by three feet in
cross sections, twenty feet high, which
could be opened or closed at will, and
a ventilating shaft terminating near
the ridge of the roof inside.
During the trial the cows were kept
continuously in the stable with the
hay chutes closed during two days and
then with them open two days, the
trials being repeated four times. Fol­
lowing these four trials the hay chutes
were left closed during three consecu­
tive days for poor ventilation and left
open the following three, making four­
teen days In all.
It was found that measurably the
same amount of feed was eaten under
both conditions of ventilation. But
during the days of insufficient ven­
tilation the cows drank, on the aver­
age, 11.4 pounds more water each
day and yet lost in weight an aver­
age of 10.7 pounds at the end of each
The Postoffice Department at Wash­
ington has again sent out orders that
rural mail delivery is to be discontin­
ued on routes not properly maintained
by mail, patrons, who are supposed to
keep the roads in good condition. In
many parts of the country the roads
are maintained and kept in fairly good
condition, but thousands of miles of
roadways traversed every day by the
carriers are wretched, and later in the
year will become .next to impassable.
Were it a matter of great expense or
effort to keep country roads in good
condition it might be something of a
hardship to farmers, but the intelli­
gent use of the split-log drag has prac­
tically solved the problem of country
road making and road maintenance,
and people need to get busy in em­
ploying them on the highways. In
many parts of the country, especially
in Iowa and Missouri, hundreds of
miles of roads are kept in passable
condition the year around by means of
this cheap and inexpensive implement.
When once a highway is placed in
good condition any farmer can keep up
one mile of road the year around by
dragging it a few times a month after
rain has fallen, a work that will take
the time of a man and team less than
a half a day all told.—Denver Field
and Farm.
Experience with Alfalfa.
In the first place, I ¿made two mis­
takes in sowing with grain and of
course made two failures in getting a
stand that suited me. For my third
endeavor I selected a piece of ground
which had been in hoed crops for a
number of years and heavily manured
each year, plowing it in April and
keeping it cultivated till July, when
I seeded it at the rate of 20 pounds
per acre.
On the night following my sowing
we got a very heavy shower, and I
period, regaining this again when good
ventilation was restored, and this, too,
when they were drinking less water.
During the good ventilation days, too,
for each and every period, the cows
gave more milk, the average being
.55 pounds per head per day.
At the end of the fourteen days the
cows were turned into the yard and
exhibited an intense desire to lick
their sides and limbs, doing so in
many dases till the hair was stained
with blood.
Examination showed that during the
interval a rash had developed which
sould be felt by the hand, in the form
of hard raised points, and the rasping
of these off caused the bleeding.
got a magnificent stand. On part of
the field I had sown wheat and red
clover the fall before. So that in the
fall after sowing my alfalfa, the red
clover was knee high and in full
bloom, and as I did not wish it to go
to seed I turned my cattle and sheep
into it, thinking they would not trou­
ble the alfalfa, but I found that I had
made a great mistake, as they fell
upon the alfalfa and eat it nearly into
the ground. I gave it up, thinking
it was entirely ruined, but the next
spring it came up as green as a bed
of lettuce, and since then, now five
years ago, I have mown from two to
three crops each year, of the very
finest of hay, and the stand of alfalfa
is now as good as ever, and all with­
Sell Less Wheat Abroad.
The calendar year 1909 will show a out being manured or fertilized in
way.—A. C. Gowdy, in Michigan
¿mailer exportation of wheat than any any
Farmer.
year in the last decade, and an in­
Glass Walls for Fruit Trees.
creased home consumption, both in
An interesting experiment in fruit
amount and per capita average, says
a report of the Bureau of Statistics on growing has been recently carried out
wheat production, exportation and con­ by the Count de Choiseul and de­
scribed in Cosmos. When a south wall
sumption of the United States.
The continued decline in exports of is used for fruit trees the north side
breadstuffs lends interest to the state­ of the wall is practically wasted as far
ment. The exportation of wheat for as fruit is concerned. Count de
the nine months ending with Septem­ Choiseul has used a glass wall, and
ber amounted to only 27,768,901 bush­ grown fruit trees on both sides. The
els, against 68,178,935 bushels in the produce on the north side is little in­
same month of 1908; flour exports were ferior to that on the south. A photo­
6,288,283 barrels, against 9,428,347. graph shows heavily fruited pear trees
This reduction ip exports of wheat on both sides of the wall. The wäll,
3eems to be due to increased consump­ 60 feet long and 6% feet high, had fif­
tion at home rather than at any de­ teen pear trees planted on each side.
cline in production. The average an­ In 1907 134 pearö, weighing 91 pounds,
nual production for the last five years were gathered on the south side of the
has exceeded any earlier five-year wall, and 109, weighing 77 pounds, on
the north side. The variety grown
period.
was the Doyenne L’Hiver.
Skim Milk for Hens.
In some tests by the Virginia experi­
ment station skim milk has been
proved a valuable food for laying hens.
In a test of 122 days 22 hens were fed
skim milk, laying 1,244 eggs, as
against 996 laid by 22 hens fed a wet
mash with water. In a test covering
37 days 60 hens laid 862 eggs on a
skim milk diet, while a like number
fe*d no skim milk laid 632 eggs. Other
experiments conducted recorded simi­
lar results. The station, from these
tests, estimates that when eggs are
worth 20 to 25 cents per dozen skim
milk has a feeding value of 1% to 2
cents a quart.
Fruit Stone* for Spring Planting
Agricultural Statistics.
Peach, cherry and plum stones
should be spread thin on high, dry
ground in narrow rows, and then cov­
ered with about 6 inches of fine earth,
with a little trench on each side of
the row to draw off the surface water.
After the ground freezes a little fine
horse manure may be spread over the
frozen ground, just enough to cover the
ground. If too much is used it will
make a, harbor for mice and rats.
Apple seed may be sown in the sa»me
way, but will need a heavier covering.
These seed will sprout and take root
as soon as the weather turns mild,,
when they should be taken up and1
planted out in rows.
At the approaching census special
attention will be given to the gather­
ing of agricultural statistics. Farmers
will be asked for information which
might be regarded as of a very per­
sonal nature concerning their opera­
tions, but they will be assured that the
tacts will be held sacred.
Richard Pybus, of the Old Lodge*.
Derby, Pa., at the local agricultural:
show in 1906, guessed the exact weight
of a live bullock—854 pounds. In 1907
his estimate was only 1 pound out, and
this year he was within 1% pounds of
the correct weight.
A Skilled Estimate.