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The Commoner.
VOLUME 10, NUMBER 26
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'J'ho Old-Fashioned Koiuth
Last Monday wo celebrated tho
fourth of July. That 1h wo shot off
n few firecrackers during the day,
and a fow fireworks at night, ull for
tho adlflcation and anniHotnont of the
Httlo oiioh. Wo wont out to a big
park and wandered around all day,
and we camo homo In tho evening,
tlrod out and contrasting the present
'method of colobratlng tho Glorious
Fourth with tho way wo used to
celobrato It In tho old days.
I've said a lot about tho old days
t and the old ways recently. This
' does not mean that I preferred tho
old days with all of their discomforts
,to tho present day with all of its
i comforts and conveniences. But I
am honest in declaring my. belief
that we havo lost tho real meaning
of tho Fourth of July, and all bc
causo wo aro growing blaso, forget
ful of what tho day stands for, and
,too solf-contorod to really take an
interest in tho larger mattors of
state. I want to talk to you a littlo
, while about tho old Fourth of July
celobratlonB we used to havo some
thirty or forty' years ago.
the
boy.
soul of any reasonable small
"cal-on
For tho Fourth, as for the circs,
,wo boys usod to hunt and hoard
scrap iron and old rags for weeks on
end to have some spending money on
the Fourth. And as for sleep at
night for a week or ton days before
tho dawn of tho evontful day well,
that was wholly out of tho question.
The whole community used to bo on
edge for a month, everybody getting
ready to colobrate. There were a
dozen committees to look after the
arrangements, too. Let's see, thero
,was tho committee on orator, the
committee on parade, tho committee
on fireworks, tho coram itteo on
ithumpians," the committee
sports, the committee on dilutes, tho
committee on stands a.W heaven
.only knows how many othor commit
tees. And thoy all worked, too. The
j committee on parade had in charge
.the matter of preparing tho float and
selecting the young ladles to repre
Jeont the states. Geo, how pretty
(those girls looked, each one dressed'
,in red, white and blue, a flag in each
hand and a shield of the Union In
front. And Columbia perched high
above thorn all. The happiest young
'glyl In the village was the one hon
ored by being selected to imperson
ate Columbia. This float headed tho
'parade, right behind the village band.
And speaking of bands, do you re-
member, you gray-haired o.ld man,
iliow your greatest ambition between
(the ages of 7 and 15 was to be tho
I tenor drummer in that band? They
don't have tenor drummers in
(bands any more. They are either
snare drummers or trap drummers.
jWo wouldn't give a penny to bo a
"snare drummer, but we confess to a
sneaking ambition yet to bo the
tenor drummer in the band.
At tho grove the village glee club
started things off by singing "Hail
Columbia," and then one of the vN
lago parsons invoked the divine bles
sing. Let's see, tho program In Its
entiroty wont something like this
that is the program of the last real,
genuine Fourth of July celebration
we attended, which was some thirty
live years ago: ,
Song, "Hail Columbia," by the
Glee Club.
Invocation, Rev. Thomas Shaw,,
pastor Christian church.
Song, "Star Spangled Banner,"
Gleo Club.
Reading, "Declaration of Inde
pendence," Miss Etta Tandy.
Song, "America," Glee Club.
Oration of the Day, Hon. William
Q. Soivers. (Hon. Mr. Seivers, by
the way, achieved, distinction by rea
son of being elected to tho legisla
ture from an adjoining county some
years previous.)
Grand Basket Dinner.
Tho afternoon program consisted
of a parade by the cal ithumpians and
foot racing, jumping, wrestling, etc.
Of course tho village band san
wiched iu some music here and there.
I remember "Montrose Quickstep"
and a medley of national airs. A
few years after the celebration re
ferred to I achieved some distinction
by reason of playing the "b" flat
clarinet In tho same village band,
but by' that time ,tho celebrations
wero becoming passe.
the
you
had
but
you
our brown brothers," nor apologies
for conquest and rule without con
sent, or "thrown Into our laps by
Providence." Not much, it was right
In lino with the sentiments of the
fathers who wroto it and then went
out and fought and bled and died to
make it stand for what it said.
And how we did sleep that night!
We made up for all the nights' sleep
we had lost during the previous two
weeks. And then for six months we
rovelled in the joyful recollections of
the day, and spent the next six in
looking forward to the coming
Fourth.
The old-time celebration of Inde
pendence Day just naturally beats all
hollow tho modern method of cele
brating tho day. On the truth of this
assertion I'll stake my reputation for
truth and veracity, and I'll call on
every one of the old gray-haired boys
to testify.
And the "Grand ' Basket Dinner"
at noon! Gee, but can't you taste it
yet? Yellow-legged chicken till you
actually grew pin feathers. "Mrs.
Bllllkens do help yourself to some
of this delicious peach preserve!"
Ana country cured ham till you felt
like rooting under a gate and squeal
ing. "Now Mrs. Sniffers, do eat
something; you'll find these grape
preserves mighty good." And baked
beans In a big jar. "Brother Smith
you ain't eating enough to keep a
sparrer alive do have some more
of them spiced peaches plenty
more where them come from!" And
twisted douKhnuts till tho sierht of
'em almost cavo von p.nrvnhirn rf
spine. "Now Sister Jenkins,
try some of my currant jelly. I
a awful time cettlnc: it to lull.
I think It is real nice and I want
to try some!" Eat why we sat
squatting there on the blue grass in
tho shade of the big walnuts and ate
and ate and ate. until we felt lust
.like rolling over on our backs and
taking a solemn obligation never to
eat another bite as long as we lived.
All this reminds me that you have
not yet written me to name your
favorite song and your funniest "story;.
I want every reader of this depart
ment to do that, for I want to see
if my taste in song ana my sense of
humor coincides with yours. Don't
bo afraid to write because you have
never written for 'a paper. Thero
are those on The Commoner who are
paid enormous salaries to edit cor
respondence. Just tell in your own
language what your favorite song is,
and write out the funniest story you
ever heard just as nearly as you can
remember it. We'll attend to the
rest.
Speaking of the old sentimental
songs, do you remember "Charming
Bessie of the Lea?" And "Wail till
the Clouds Roll By?" And then, of
a different character, were such
songs as "I saw the ship come 'round
the bend, good-by, my lover, good
by," and "G'wine f git a home In
Georgia," and "Darling Chloe." Re
member the old "rounds" we used to
sing at school, "A boat, a boat, to
cross the ferry," and "Scotland's
burning?" And wouldn't you like
to hear Deacon Snodgrass again lead
off at prayer meeting with that fine
old hymn, "How firm a foundation,
ye saints of tho Lord," or "When we
hear the music ringing?"
Come on with your vocal prefer
ences ana your tunny stories. We
are waiting for them.
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After the float of the states came
'citizens in carriages and on foot,"
and the band headed tho way to the
1 nearest grove. But we came awfully
near forgetting the first event of the
day the salute of thirty-six, or
thirty-seven, or thirty-eight guns at
sunrise. The number always ex
ceeded the number of states in just
proportion as the supply of gun
powder held out. Some villages
boasted of a real little cannon, but
usually we had to content ourselves
with a couple of anvils. But the
anvils made noise enough to satisfy
But the "grand display of fire
works at night!" It was always the
largest collection of fireworks ever
displayed, too. Once in a while they
all went off at once, but when they
didn't they were reallv worth wlHlo
Iteally, now, they wero tho biggest
balled roman candles, and the shoot
ingest skyrockets and the reddest red
nre we ever saw. And after tho fire
works, home again in the cool of the
evening. And we had heard the old
Declaration of Independence then a
living, breathing document, not an
antiquated, outgrown instrument,
and we heard it from the lips of a
fai nuau lumur uuuevea in it as
he believed in his Bible. And we
had heard an oration that breathed
patriotism in every sentence, not a
false note in it about "our duty to
Tho Ofiico Boy
"I've noticed," remarked the office
boy apropos of nothing in particular,
"that the people who are so awfully
interested in beginning early to teach
children habits of industry are a lot
more interested in getting the kids
into their mills and factories so as
to make a bigger profit on he labor."
Shocking
"I assure you," remarked the
young iaay at the glove counter.
"that undressed kid is the prevail
ing stylo now."
"Musslful goodness!" exclaimed
Mrs. Nurych, "I think such a fashion
is pufilckly brful!"
BANK
THE
GUARANTY STATE
has depositors in every state of tho
union In tho Interests of sound
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Wo share our suocess with our
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ality, three important factors to
consider.
Send Cor Booklet.
M. G. HASKELL, V. P.
MUSKOGEE, OKLA.
Don't Wear a Truss
FREE,
PLdrfffH
Some of
ery should
Yon can
by running
Brain Leaks
the labor saving machin
be in the kitchen,
not run up your business
down your neighbor's.
uoou nature is the salad dressing
that makes the bitter things of life
taste good.
Ever notice that when you are in a
story-telling crowd- the poorest story
teller in the lot alwayn murders your
best story before your turn comes
to tell one?
Of course I believe in dreams. If
I dream of green snakes with the
bodies of camels and the legs of
lizards I believe I ate something that
disagreed with me.
STUARTS PLAS TRPAOS aredlBVrf nt
from the painful truss, being mads
Mir nannivo purposely 10-aoia urn
rupturo In place without strops,
buckle or springs rnunot Up.
bo cannot cbafo or compress
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