MAT 19, 1911"
13
The Commoner.
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A "WORD WITH MY FIUENDS ()
Eight years no I Issued h
volume contniulnp; a number o
my sketches iiml verses under
the title of "Whether Common
or Not." The edition was cx
liuuNtcd Inside of a rem?. I am
how fiKiirlnj? on issuing a nor
volume of Verses, the Name to be
n collection of what seems to
inc to be the bent I have written
for The Commoner. Its title, If
Issued, will be, "Kiddles Six,"
because my bunch of six chil
dren hnvc furnlHhcd mont of
Whatdver Inspiration there ban
been la the verses. The frontis
piece will be n picture of them
all, from the nig Boy, who has
"flew the nest" to the Littlest
Girl, who hasn't had the new
worn off of her yet. The book
will consist of upwards of 200
pages, printed on the best of
paper, bound In cloth with gold
trimmings, and each copy auto
graphed by the writer.
The publication of this volume
depends on whether enough of
my friends signify a desire to
own copies. If enough so sig
nify to- warrant mc In-"undertaking
the expense, the book
will appear as soon as the Work
can be done. I do not want the
dollar now. I only ask that
those who think they' would
like to own one jf the books to
drop mc a postal card to that
effect. I'll record the names
and nritlfy them when the book
Js rendy. Then the dollars may
come in as fast as they please.
I have adopted this method for
the very simple reason that to
publlsb a book costs money,
and I am no John Andrew
Carnyfeller. If -you want n
copy, send me n card to that
S$ect' And lest Tow forget It,
Dp IT NOW! Sincerely yours)
vjljuju ill. JUAUJt-XW.
Dreaming
Tired of the cities, their Bham and
their show;
Weary of white lights, their- glitter
and glow;
Yearning and longing to pack up
and go
Back to the ranges unbounded.
Back to where honor is more than
a name;
Back where life's cards are dealt
square in the game;
Back to where duty undone is a
shame,
And life with joy is surrounded.
Weary of watching mad struggles for
gold;
Sick of child faces by labor worn
old;
Sick.of men's souls that are calloused
and cold
I long for the rivers and ranges.
Sick seeing womanhood traded and
bartered;
T Sick seeing -mother and child by
greed parted;'
I'm going back where the best in life
Btarted,
Back to where honor ne'er changes.
Far from the streets with their
noises and clamor;
Far from the shams with their tinsel
and glamour;
Far from the din of the wheel and
the hammer,
Out in the silence unbroken.
Out neath the blue sky in freedom
to revel;
Scouring the mountainside, riding
the level
.Where men are tmllt square and not
on the bevel,
Where friendships -are , Jtnown
though unspoken.
Sick of the sights of the, city's
streets crowded;
Sick seeing truth in the grave's gar
ments shrouded;
Sick seeing sin that parades with a
proud head,
Wearied by hypocrites scheming.
Longing to ride whore the scene ever
changes; "
Yearning for skyline o'er long moun
tain ranges;
Back to where both the true and the
Btrange is
This is tho dream I am dreaming.
Law and Discipline
The last session of the Nebraska
legislature enacted a law making it
a misdemeanor for a boy under
eighteen years of ago to smoke or
chew tobacco.
The law was enacted ' at tho be
hest of a lot o"f men and women who
are greatly interested in the welfare
of our youth, but for tho life of .us
we ore unable to grasp tho benefits
of any such law. When it comes to
pass that any father or mother is Un
able to handle an eighteen-year-old
boy, this department is going to ad
vocate the enactment of a law pro
viding for the education of the afore
said fathers and mothers. Discuss
ing this law with a neighbor the
other day, he removed his pipe from
between his teeth and remarked that
he thought it a good one, for it
might have the effect of retraining
his fifteen-year-old boy from con
tracting the habit.
That made mo laugh.
Itthe admonitions of father and
mother will not restrain a boy from
contracting the tobacco habit, you
may safely wager anything from a
doughnut to a box of crackers that
law will not. Being only a very few
years from boyhood the Architect of
this department inclines to the -belief
that the first effort of the law will be
to encourage boys to learn the habit,
more for the purpose of showing that
the law can ' not get them than to
secure pleasure from the tobacco.
That's boy nature. The Architect is
just old-fashioned enough to fear
that a lot of fathers and mothers are
trying to shirk their parental duties
off on the state.
Had we been cpnsulted in the
framing of the above mentioned law
we would have suggested that In
stead of fining the boy he be taken
home and the father Instructed to
give the young fellow a jacketing,
imposing a fine upon the father who
failed to carry out the mandate
properly.
Two Funerals
A few months ago there was
buried in an eastern city a mail
whose trade was war. He achieved
fame on the battlefield, and during
a long life he trained men in the aTt
of preparedness for killing their fel
lows. When he was burled the
funeral procession was miles long,
flags hung &t half-mast all over the
country, solemn salutes from parks
of artillery and volleyQ of musketry
resounded across the continent.
Xiaat week there was buried In
Lincoln a man whose 'whole life had
been spent in serving others. He
never laid up a dollar, for the simple
reason that he thought more of help
ing others less fortunate than him
self than he did of accumulating
money. When he saw his fellow
workers in trouble he never failed
to go to their assistance. No appeal
to him for help, either financial or
moral, ever fell upon deaf ears.
Time and again he could have made
big money by suppressing his convic
tions or by merely refusing to assist
others. But never a dishonest dol
lar crossed his palms. When his
mortal remains woro carriod to thoir
last resting place only one carriage
followed tho hearso, and less than a
score of the thousands of working
men ho had mado sacrifices for were
grouped about his grave.
'Twas ever thus. Will It always
bo?
Measured by tho world's standard
Tom Kelsey's llfo was a failure.
Measurod by the standard with which
final accounts aro reckoned, his llfo
was a success, for It was a llfo un
selfishly devoted to the sorvico of
others. Some of these days, , lot us
hope, tho world will pay Its homago
to the men whose lives aro spent In
building whoso lives aro spont in
trying to lift up, In trying to lighten
the load of unfortunates, in trying
to let a little sunshine into tho dark
places of earth. When that time
comes, homago will bo paid to such
men as Tom Kolsey and not to tho
mon whoso trade is bloodshed and
destruction.
Two Views
The pessimist
A lot of toil, a lot of care,
A lot of woe to vex us;
A lot of trials and of tears,
And worries to perplex us.
Long years of struggle and of
strife
All that makes up the sum of life.
Tho optimiBt
A lot of joy midst all our work,
The love of friends and neighbors;
Tho smile of loved ones 'round tho
hearth,
Sweet rest from weaTy labors.
For me the sun, the birds, the trees;
For me tho music ringing,
When childish laughter greets my
oars,
And children's hands aro clinging.
Sweet welcome home when cometh
night
I'll live today, for life's all right.
Worried
"That Mrs. Skipperly who has just
moved in across the street mot me
on the street a while ago and Intro
duced herself."
"What kind of woman does she
appear to be?"
"All right, I guess, but I've been
bothered ever since I -met her." '
"What about?"
"While I was talking with her I
smelled gasoline, and I've been won
dering ever since whether she had an
automobile or had been cleaning her
gloves."
Things We Hear Every Day
"Tho doctor said mine was the
worst case ho ever handled."
"It weighed just four pounds and
seven ounces three hours after I
landed it."
"This watch of mine hasn't lost
ten seconds In eight months."
"It Is almost impossible for mo
to get a shoe to fit because of the
peculiar shape of my feet."
"I told you so."
"I am taking so many papers now
that I don't find time to read half
of them."
A Beautiful Sentiment
Tho other day the Architect re
ceived a card from a friend In Phila
delphia, so full of beautiful senti
ment that it will always be treasured.
"Bachelors' children aro always
young, and so are the children of the
childless," said the writer. Then
the writer told of a friend who had
just lost his little one and said: "I
told iiim he was far better off
than I, because he had the memory
of a little one to cherish, while I had
none." j
There is a whole volume in thut.
little remark, and the longer one J
stuaies it tne sweeter it erets. Next.
to having little ones playing around
yctur knees is having tho sweet
memories of llttlo ones who hav
played about your knees.
Tho man who loves llttlo children
Is always young of heart, and tho
man who Is young of heart Is always
a wolcomo neighbor and friend.
Anarchy I
"Kill It, Jack!"
"Put him on tho hummer, old
boy!"
"Knock him out, old man!"
"TIo tho can to him, old man, and
send him to tho dog house!"
"Biff him, old sport!"
"Knock his block off!"
"Slam him! SLAM HIM!"
No, good friends, not anarchy; not
oven an Incipient riot. Moroly a
sceno you may witness on nearly any
vacant block every afternoon now. It
Is a suro incident of every session at
tho great national pastime. Without
It tho game would lose half its
charm. And if wo couldn't have tho
opportunity to exhaust our pent-up
feelings by anathomlzing an umpire '
now and then wo'd surely explode.
Many a man has been able to relievo
himself of a grouch duo to be de
livered at homo by moroly going to
a ball gamo and unloading it on tho
umpire.
Nobody loves an umpire
ItC'lCflfiO
Lot congress now adjourn
And savo expense;
Let members homo return
And end suspense.
Comes now the one who'll solve"
And problems of state,
And methods new evolve
Tho graduate.
Brain Leaks
Tho worst lies aro not couched
in words.
What we pray for and what wo
need aro often vastly different things.
Thoro aro two good features about
picnics the anticipation and tho
recollection.
What has become of the dear old
ladies who used to tie their spectacles
on with a string?
One of the most enjoyable sights
in the world is that of a small boy
landing his first fish.
Instead of worrying over things
you- fear may happen, try rejoicing
over things you hope will happen.
A gr6at many mothers have wor-.
rled over fingerprints on tho window
pane that they would give worlds to
see onco more.
One of the blessings of not having
everything you want Is the oppor
tunity it affords you for having some
thing to wish for and hope for.
About tho time a city man weeds
over a 7x9 garden a couple of times
he loses his ambition to be the owner
and cultivator of an 80-acre farm.
"Wisdom is good with an inheri
tance," remarked Solomon. This re
minds us of the patriot who is always
shouting for the old flag and an appropriation.
"Kiddles Six"
Our dear young friend, Will M.
Maupin Is now making arrangements
to issue a new volume of poems, and
will be titled "Kiddles Six." It will
be a completion of his best verses,
which from time to time has ap
peared in Bryan's Commoner. With
Gene Fields' and Whltcomb Riley's
volumes, it seems to use the addition
of "Kiddies Six" to the library would
make one's collection complete, and
the lover of the sentment beautiful
should by all means have this volume
constantly on the library table, and
thus be able at any time to "drive
dull caTe away." Just drop Will a
postal card, and tell him to reserve
one for you as soon as published.
The dollar you can send later. Ore
gon (Mo.) Sentinel.
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