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About Eagle Valley news. (Richland, Or.) 191?-1919 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 1917)
In the East and the West By II. M. EGBERT (Copyright, 1915. by V. 0. Chapman.) Will Thorpo had been sent West three years before. Ho had been an idler and extravagant; at last his fa ther. who had always dealt with tfio boy rather harshly, refused to assist him further unless ho entered his Iron foundry and settled down. Angry words had arisen, and in the- end Will had packed his sultcaso and gone West with a hundred dollars in his pockets. His sweetheart, Marion Vanalttart, had scolded htm for his decision. She bad reminded him, petulantly, that she could neither marry n poor man nor wait for ever. He had kissed her and told her that he would return with his fortune made. And for a few months she had written. Then her letters be came shorter and less frequent; finally they ceased altogether. It was more than two years since ho had heard from her. And gradual ly the new life bad woven Itself about him. and he had ceased to care. Then he had received a mysterious. Rode Slowly Down the Vatley. unsigned message asking him to be at the railway depot at a certain hour, to meet the train. And he bad gone, to find Jim Tremont waiting there. Jim was passing through on his way to California, be told him, and ho bad beard he was in that part of the country. Did Will know that his fa ther was dead and he was the sole heir to five million dollars? He bad better write home quickly, because ev eryone was searching for bim, and he had only heard of his address by chance. "I suppose you'll be back East In a week, and holding out at the club," said Jimmy casually, as bo shook hands and said good-by. It was that that made Will think he bad really changed. How could be associate those elusive memories which he had almost forgotten with this life that bad taken possession of him? He thought of Norma Gale, the daughter of the old homesteader down the valley. How was ho to tell her? The girl, educated and refined as were all the people of the district, was utterly unpresentable In the sort of society in which be had moved. She bad never worn a gown with a low neck in her life. She would be helpless among a crowd of people auch as Marlon Vanslttart! Yet It never occurred to Will that ho could do anything but go. It bad never entered bis mind that be was to stay permanently in tho West. A man on horseback was riding up to bis cabin. Will watched him as be approached. Visitors were something of an event in the settlement, and Will knew the rider as the telegraphist In the cluster of houses that had grown up around the depot and was called a city. "Wiro for you, Thorpe!" ho an nounced briefly. Will took the message and opened It Ho stared at It as If ho did not un derstand. It was from Marlon. Sho had learned bis address, sho said probably everyone could discover the address of a millionaire and sho was passing through on her way East from tho San Francisco exposition. Sho would stay an' hour while they changed engines. Would he meet her? "Thanks," said Will to tho telegraph ist, and watched bim ride down the hill. Yes, be was going East, and olnr I back to Marlon. For a moment tt old life enmo rushing ovor him, wit Its memories, Its thousand allun mcnta. And the new life meant notl Ing. Ho mounted his horse and rodo slowly down tho valley. Ho had no destination In mind, but suddenly ho realized that ho was approaching tho homesteader's housu. And at tho door stood Norma, In her sunbonnct. Sho greeted him. "Won't you como In and take some tent" sho asked. "I hear you nro going East, Mr, Thorpe." Ho dismounted, and now ho saw that her Hps were trembling. How had sho known ho was going East? Did news lly ns fast In this settlement as In tho great world? And what did It matter to her? "Yes, 1 am going East. Norma." ho answered, tnklug her hands In his. "I I congratulate you." sho an swered quietly. Hut ho saw tho tears In her eyes. "You havp meant so much to mo," ho said Impulsively. "I hato tho thought of going. And yet It Is my duty, I suppose." "Then you must go," said tho girl softly. Sho was smiling very bravely at him. "Won't you como In?" ' "No I can't now." ho said crudely. "Norma. I shall 1 shall see you again beforo 1 go." Sho nodded, nnd he know tho moan ing of her silence. Tho girl cared for him. and In her unsophisticated way was Incapablo of concealment. Ho saw her walk back quickly Into tho cabin. Marlon's train was to arrlvo tho fol lowing morning. Will rodo down to tho depot with a heavy heart. Tho old and tho now wore tugging at it. and ho did not know which pulled him the harder. The train was pulling In. Ho had stood on tbo platform In a sort of daze. Now ho awakened suddenly, and ho felt his heart beating hard In anticipation. Tho men about tho plat form wero watching him curiously. Ho looked Into tho carriages of tho train as It camo to a halt. Ho walked Its length. Marlon was not there. Had she missed her train? "Still dreaming, Will?" asked a hard volco over his shoulder. Ho started round, to seo Marlon, with a party of girl friends, dressed In the height of fashion, looking at him with a smile. "Dear me, I must bo very hard to And," she said. "Weill When aro you coming borne?" The hardness of her tones struck him like a blow. Surely ho had changed out of all recognition If be bad ever thought Mnrlon's volco beau tiful. Tho girl whom ho had loved to the point of Infatuation stood re vealed to htm as an artificial, hard young woman, without tho slightest charm. "I think It was very wrong of you not to write to mo for so long," sho continued, "nut I forgive you. Will. Wo can forgive a man with millions anything, can't we, Dora?" Tho girl addressed as Dora mur mured something. Tho whole party was taken aback, not to say shocked, at the sight of this man in tho cowboy clothes. And bo was a millionaire! He was Will Thorpo of Harvard and Boston! Perhaps Marlon shrewdly divined the change that had occurred in him, for she drew him aside. "Will. I know I ought to havo been more serious," she said, "But you can't think how startling and ridicu lous you look, dressed Uko ono of these natives. Listen, Will, and let me explain. I havo always cared for you Just as much, but I couldn't bo engaged to a beggar. You seo that for youself, don't you? And every body understood that your father was going to cut you out of his will, In stead of leaving you tho solo heir. I am Just as fond of you, Will." Will Thorpo looked at her with slow ly rising anger. Sho did not reallzo what she was saying. Had ho ever been like that? Was that tho kind of man that ho had been, that sho so con fidently Imagined ho was still? "So when nro you coming homo, Will?" sho continued. "When aro you coming homo to me?" sho added softly. Tho train conductor blow his whis tle. Will looked her full in tho face. "Never!" ho nnswered roughly. Tho party was moving toward tho train. Will saw tho look of amazed indignation upon Marlon's face. Ho broke from her. Ho mounted tho horso that was tethered to a post out side tho depot. Tho train was start ing. Hut Will was riding for tho mountain slopes, and his "never" rang In bin ears Uko tho sound of a chanted cborus. Ho flung himself from his horso at tho cabin door which hid at that mo ment all that llfo held most precious for him. "Normal"vho shouted, hammering with bis knuckles. Ho heard her footsteps; ho saw her stand beforo him; bo caught her In his arms. "Normal I havo come homo to you," he cried. Aboutortel Lisbon's Beautiful Harbor, POUTUOAL. tho most rocont na tion to bo drawn Into tho mael strom of tho European war, was onco a part of tho ancient Human provlnco of Lusltnuln, sayj a butlotln Issued by tho National Geo graphic Boclety. With a population senrccly exceed ing tho comblnod population of Now York cltv. Jerser Cltv. nnd Newark. and an area In Europo loss than the stato of Indlnna, Portugal Has not played a major rolo In tho politics of continental Europo In many years, not, In fact, since Wollesley, after ward tho Duko of Wellington, land ed his English forces and, with tho aid of native troops, defeated Soult and Mnssona, Napoleon's marshals. In tho two pcnlnsulnr campaigns. Hut the colonial emplro of Portugal Is out of all proportion to tho Im portance of tho homo country. In fact there were, at tho beginning of tho war, only throo other countries In Europe Great Britain, Franco, and Germany whoso flags floated over moro territory boyond tho boundaries of tho homo country. Tho combined area of tho New England and North Atlantic Btntcs would equal less than one-fourth of tho territory under tho dominion of tho tiny republic occupy ing tho western edgo of tho Iberian ponlnsuln, whoso navigators In tho (If tcenth and sixteenth century wore tho wonders of tho world. Yet nil this vast territory Is held by 8.000 colo nial troops, supplemented by natlvo armies. Peasants Are Poets. A curious anomaly Is to bo found among the peasants of Portugal, who aro classlllcd r.s among tho mont Il literate of Western Europo, yet among tho most Intelligent. Many of tho farmorH three-fifths of tho population Is devoted to agricultural pursuits havo a romarkablo gift for vorslllca tlon, and many of tho poems of tho country aro handed down from gen eration to generation without being rocorded. Tho peasants nlBo aro noted for their sobriety, and yet tho annual production of wlno exceeds 25 gallons for each Inhabitant. So great, In fact, Is tho product of tho vlnoynrds that In tho cities tho various qualities of water aro discussed with keener In terest than tho grades of wlno. While Portugal's marltlmo glory !b a thing of tho past, a largo numbor of Portuguese still follow tho sea for a livelihood, and tho fishing Industry Is Important. Tho Portuguese sar dines, however, aro preserved In Ital ian ollvo oil, although ono-llfteonth of tho cultivated area of tho nation Is given over to ollvo groves, for tho pro duction of oils of a cheap grade. The Portuguese peasant woman Is an Important bread winner, but sho receives for her day's labor of 10 hours In tho field only a shilling or less, whilo tho mon get two shillings. Ono of tho prolltablo and oxtrcmoly popular "Industries" of tho rural pop ulation Is a placid laying In wait for tourists who uttempt to motor through ,tho country on tho loss-frequented and often Impassahlo public roads. With an ox-team tho peasant waits at a ' favorable spot until a motorlBt, traveling on an autoraobllo on which an Import tax of $120 has been col lectod by tho portuguoso government, ticks In tho mud. To haul out such an unfortunato Is often moro prollt ablo than several days' work In tho wheat, imilto, or rlco fields. Lisbon's Deautlful Harbor. Tho harbor of Lisbon, where tho seizure of tho Gormau merchant ships precipitated Portugal Into tho war, Is ono of tho most beautiful In all Eu ropo, ranking scnrcoly second to Na ples and Constantinople. Tho city Is about tho slzo or Pittsburgh, nnd has been tho political eontor of tho na tion since It was wrested from tho Moors In tho mlddlo of tho twatfth cen tury by Affonso Henrlques, tho founder of tho kingdom. It was tho English who aided Affonso In his war ngalnnt tho Moors, and tho following contury tho two countries effected an nlllanco which has existed unbrokon during tho succeeding 700 years, savo for such sporadic Interruptions ns when Na poleon forcod tho little kingdom to do claro war against tho Island umplro. Tho Portuguese, especially those of Lisbon, aro a plcasuro-lovlng peoplo. They nro fonil of sports of many sorts, Including tho bull fight, but tho tore ador Is not tho Idol In this country that ho Is In Spulu, nor nro tho contests ns ilnrcu. Horses uro soldoni If over sacrificed In Portuguese trocadoros. Lisbon Is nn oven grcnter "night city" than was Purls, tho stroots ap pearing nt their busiest usually at 3 a. in. Tho principal thoroughfares aro admirably kept nowadays but as late as 1S35 a "clean-up" campaigner was In a woeful minority when ho bogau to urgo tho authorities to put a atop to such practices as breaking horses In tho streets and singeing pigs In tho main avenues of trade. Ho also pro tested against keeping pigs nllvo In tho streets "or tied to tho doors," whilo ho thought It ndvlsnbtu to put an end to tho custom of allowing dead animals to lie for Indefinite periods In tho streets. Thoro uro about 100 Journals pub lished In Portugul, tho majority of thcso being of a political nature, and many of them nro owned by tho lead ers of tho vurlous political parties. It haM been said that "If Lisbon turns Turk tomorrow all Portugal will wear tho turbun," so when tho mon archy was overthrown In 1010, uftoi 100 persons hail been killed and COO wounded In tho capital, King Manuel taking refugo In England, It was a matter of courso thut tho rost of tho nation would quietly acqulesco In tho now order of things. Portugal today has much tho sanio outward form of government as our own. Each par liament Is suppoBod to last thrco years; senators aro eloctod for six years, and presidents for four years. Tho head of tho government receives $20,000 a year. Money, however, Is reckoned chlolly In rels, und, therefore, oven a day laborer's wages Is uweot to tho oar, for It takes 20 rolu to mako a penny, Portugal's trauscondaut contribu tion to world history was tho coloniza tion of Brazil, tho lnrgost nation In South America and tho third largest In tho Western hemisphere, Whilo Brazil was dlscovorod by Columbus' companion, Plnzon, and formal posses sion taken by him In tho namo of Spain, Cabral lundod In 1G0O, a yoar later, and proclaimed It Portuguoso territory, Portugal settlod tho coun try and ruled It until 1822 whon, un der tho leadership of tho Portuguese prln co, Dom Pedro, Independence from tbo mother county was doctored. D4DDY'S Mm mm MARY GRAHAM 4k FAIRIEO PLGA8C MR. DOOK-CASE. "Tho fairies nro tho host llttlo pence innkurs In tho world," began daddy, us ho saw that tho children wero ready to hear what tho fnlrlos hnd been doing all day. "Last night," ho wont on. "tho book enso In a nursery became vnry, vory angry, lie Just talked and muttered to himself nil night. Hvory llttlo whilo tho children would wako up for thoy could hnnr tho book-cnuo scolding nwny. Of courso thoy didn't know that tho hook-casn wan really talking and ncoldlng Thoy thought It was only i creaking thoy heard but It woko thorn up over bo many times. "That was Just what tho linnk-cnno wanted. Ho was fouling so angry, hu JiiMt wanted to wako up tho llttlo boys nnd girls who wuro sleeping In tho nursery. "'Well.' ho croaked, 'l am too mad to stntul hero any moro. I think I will Just fall down. That would bo n "Now, Don't Do Angry, Mr. Book case." good Joke. That would mako nil tho tittle boys nnd girls appreciate what I inn, What would happen to nit tholr favorite plcturo books If I fell down? Yes, what ludoed? " 'And how about thoso books of ships and pirates nnd ndventuros Hint tho creatures thoy call buys llko? What would happen to them If 1 fell down and dropped them all? Or tho books thoy paint In and cut out paper dolls from? " 'They would all hnvo tholr covers broken nnd no doubt tho pages of a great many would fall ouL Thoy would hnvo fallen out long ngo, and tho covers would havo been broken It thoy hnd not hnd mo to hold them. " 'Now what umkus mo so mad Is that these children wero talking today, and they said thoy could uso mo out In tho back yard for tholr snowballs, snow Ice cream and such nnusanno In tho winter nnd In tho spring, dear, dear mo,' nnd at this tho bnok-caso would havo cried If ho had only known how, 'they oven said I could bo used for mud pies. Thoy satd thoy didn't noed mo any moro. Thoy could put tholr books In tho closet, In tho cold, dark, droary closat. Poor, dear hooks. And I havo treated them so welt nnd been bo fond of them. I will Just hnvo to fall down and losa my temper nnd crush with rago for I am not appre ciated. Oh, It's very sad.' "All this tlmo the fulrlon had boon listening. They had felt vory badly that tho hook-case wns behaving so disgracefully and when thoy saw ho was really In earnest thoy Just bognn to talk to him. "Thoy ran nlong tho shelves nnd crnwled In und out of tho books nnd Bald to tho bonk-caso: " 'Now, don't bo nngry Mr. Book case. It really won't do tho slightest bit of good. And ns for that creaking. It Is most unkind of you. Poor lit tle boys nnd girls! Wouldn't you lot thorn hnvo a good nlght'ii sloop? Wo don't really think you moan to bo un kind but seo how thoy aro tossing every tlmo you creak, und thoy nro so tired.' "'Hut,' said tho book-caso, 'I havo been so good to all tholr books. My broad shelves havo hold them up and I havo taken such enro of thorn. I am hurt bocause thoy think that now I don't need to look after bookH but can ho used for snowballs and mud plus to go on my shelves.' " 'Thoy renlly lovo you,' said tho llt tlo fairies, 'but how thoy havo grown thoughtless. Thoy will lovo you Just ns much later on for holding tholr books nnd In tho inoaiitlmo wo will keep you chourcd up playing hldo-and go-Book between your preclouu books.' " Didn't Ask for Pie. " Allen, agod llvo, was pausing tho afternoon with his aunt In tho suburbs, uid nftor ho had boon at play for a ;lino ho said; "Aunt Mary, mamma said I wasn't to nsk you for a ploco of plo, but sho didn't toll mo not to take it if you offered It to mo." H i III I