Newspapers / The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, … / Sept. 15, 1907, edition 1 / Page 15
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.4 ' 1 o I l : k f l l - l ! : ""i v - . j i - . 12 L;Iu(T2 CY THE CRICKET 0!f THE HTARTIZt BY Q. S. HULLS. HUMBLING CAVE AND THE POOLS The effects of so strenuous a night preceded by a day of continuous rambling over the cliffs of Chimney itock mountain were 'nek to be, ban ished entirely by a swim,. I found, however cold the waters of the atreani in which it was taken, and as I Avas the first to bestir myself, J lost no time In limbering my 'legs byv,a walk up the valley, ,t My every joint ached, and I made my way more or less stiffly along the rough path. : Day waa not yet full, in the mouth of tho gap although the sun had long since sent a ruddy flush high up Into the sky from benaid the foothills in the east, von any right perched on the'-topmost of a series of terraces, stood the hotel with its pavilion where we had so pleas . antly passed the. evening before. Over across the- Broad a heavy curtain of mist enveloped the shape of the moun tain; the many voices of the river, multiplied a thousandfold against the .shrouded cliff and . hurled back as from the centra tf the , cloud Itself, sounded uncannily -la the deserted veX' ley, , for the hostelry showed as yet no sign of life and would not for, an hour to come. Now and then, through a rift in the veil, I caught a glimpse of the Hickory nut, streaming down the mountain s flank to pour lis cur rent, as It seemed, into the very basin of the cloud; then the dens fog would sweep down 'again, lowering and Impenetrable. The air In Jhe val ley was searching chillvand the breath of the mist felt damp in my lungs; in plte of my closely buttoned coat and " Tapld step my teeth chattered audi bly. As soon as .the- exercise began to render the motion, of my joints and muscles lsa painful I headed back to ward camp, there to find a more or less- irate Kid. aa chief of the cull nary department, fuming over my : temporary defection But the Kid proved easily palliated by some Industrious -manoeuvre about the camp fire, and our, breakfast was soon prepared and demolished. We felt better still aftef- engulfing several rounds of black coffee and pronounced ourselves ready for a tramp, to Rum Wing cave the exploration of which had been named as the initial feature . of our second nlay, At the last mo ment our start was delayed by an other circumstance unmentioned in books on overland travel on taking Inventory of our respective duds we found that it was high time for wash day in camp and here we struck a faser, Never before, I am certain, did four people so ignorant of the myste ries of the washtub. fall together un der one wagon-sheet, Ordinarily any one of us would have argued as to his Information on a subject which he knew absolutely nothing about until clubbed into silence, but when it came - to the question of how to wash the dirt out of a few pieces of soiled clothing each and every one of us was billing, in the eyes of his neighbors, to be Judged an utter imbecile. The situation was growing desperate both for ourselves an our laundry when we found salvation at our very" door. A muscular colored washerwoman placed her tub at the branch by the roadside "a few yards above us, and to iher.we hastened with our bundle. Light in heart we departed for our Jaunt, little thinking to find on return ing our belongings, shirts, collars, and unmentionables alike, variously fes tooned and draped over the landscape where they had been hung to dry. Perhaps the decoration might have expiated the departure of certain of the fair , visitors from the hotel dur- Ing the day we had not the nerve to Inquire. As Rumbling cave Is situated In Bald mountain we wero forced to re trace our steps over a mile back the road 'along which we had Journeyed from Rutherfordton. Where the high way forks toward the mountain stands the third hotel of the valley, well out side the mouth the gap and near it a etore. I have neglected to state here tofore that Loge could climb his fam-i ily tree back to the Chimney Rock country; his name had worked hand somely by way of introduction more than once. The proprietors or me hotel and etore were his kinsmen, and we received a hearty welcome. The sight of the laden shelves immediate ly reminded us of a need: Our wagon had leaked; the remedy was more oil "cloth. And more oil cloth we bought, with careful regard to pattern. After due consideration we decided on green that the variety in color scheme might be carried out still further in .our wagon top." For the present I -will leave the picture of what that top, yellow and red plus, gceen,. look- Oilcloth was not the only cpmmod ', (tv we sought at-the storehouse; we also craved information. We were travelers in a strange iana ana we wanted to see all that was ttf-toe seen vi- oi us wonaers, io narra was in us, positively none was there, not a chance of our getting a squint at one . of the original blind ' tigers tf them , all? The mystification of our host, the merchant, was magnincept; it took . him fully twenty minutes to compre hend what the blockading business mevint. 'men, arter mucn euageuing of his memory, 'he found that he had once heard, many years before, of a party down- beyond the South Caro lina Une.who dealt in wlne;hat was all the information we could get. fiel- dom it is tmt one meets with such in nocence; we gazed upon it In rap 's turous awe!' Yet. Just around the bend . of the road we met a citizen whose legs; even at that early hour of the day, were dangerously erratic in their! motion, and whose face was suffused i with, a certain vague expression of Joy; ; as he nursed "along-, a Jug of, the , brownest - shade. We did- not, disturb his bliss to ask, but the Juig' beyond doubt contained the' water Of a cer- tain mineral spring of which we had neurit. .1 jib imiiwr wc iravtsieu tun more were we impr'essedby the va - rlety of marvelous effects that could ' be worked by simple mouVitalrv lithla water.- : S-- , V . "-. "T - i - fin frtAfld nf thA jatnrA nM nrtt . aid ns Jn the matter of the blockading. rwou Id. gladly have done so Jhadhe beft able, but he followed us out on our way to render that assistance in his power. Not If . he could help It should we miss seeing the . figures rarved by, Nature on the face of old Bald mountain. In the llhes -of , the ledges and Miffs he traced for us the 1 t&hin, the Indian's Head, and" what other figures -1 , know not. .X We saw thein all. not so , much because the v were there as because our Instructor helieved in them; we found we, had to ee them. Had he not lived there un - der Bald mountain all his Hf and ill..-. iJ .. . A . ML... gllien upwi. inom every fany j "mere was nothing for It but to see tbem, and dilate on thenvto an extent that : , would have brough a qualm to any but a Junior's conscience but a junior has : no concience. That is another point - in- which he ha the under hold on the plain everyday folk of his aq- quslnrance.' . -,- " While t tve could aroune nal nVer. over the relief work that, may or may not be depicted along its seamed and x fissured southern front, from which it 4 takes its name, we found abundant d ago, at the time of the Charleston earinquate, oia uaia createa qune a stir in its vicinity, by - emit ting - deep , rumblings' and growl- Inga from . the , depths of t Us caverns, while Us rugged flanks were felt to shiver with clearly per ceptlble tremors. The news was quickly spread that the ragged old hump of the Blue Ridge which had lain in thoroughly respectable ailence through so many generatlons.was in reality an extirct volcano and might be expected to epout noke and flame from Its crevices at iy moment and inundate the land with lava and ashes. Then indeed was there fear and trem bling throughout the region for. many miles around: from every hilltop re sounded the voice of the mourner, and in each valley echoed the songs of praise.' Revlvat followed revival, and from Turkey Hbllow to Panther Ridge there remained jiot a still orwash-tub to tell of the errors of the past. v That wag early In September. By the time the frost had bit the foliage black on the mounrain-eldes and the new corn was growing hard and dry on the cab the internal troubles of Bald had long ceased and It was, be having entirely as any self-respecting heap of dirt should. Furthermore, certain venturesome spirits had dared to enter the gallerlee in Its side and had there found'' nothing amiss save that a few, great stones' had fallen In different places. What naturally fol lowed? .There was the corn lying Idle, or, the priceless treasures of Its ker nels going to', feed senseless cattle or being crushed intd meal. Ih the changing of a moon, yea, verily, be fore the camp meeting arbors on the hillsides had been rent asunder by the autumn wind, 'lo, a thin column of smoke arose again from every hollow while the hard grain changed slowly to transparent liquid joy -and one more instance had been added to the already lengthy list to prove the av erage good man a man who Is well scared. , . Perhaps the happy process still goes on without intermission, for since '84 Bald has- observed unbroken silence, but the traveler In the mountains cer tainly knows It not. We-could wet our palates with nothing more inspiriting than cider and cider, at that, which was not even beginning to taste hard. This we found In the greatest abund ance at a house at the foot of the mountain, and after we had drained a number of glasses and had been suit ably inventoried, by a mob of tow headed, thin-faced fhlldren we push ed, on up the incline. 1 Most of the way we followed the path without difficulty, for it led also to an orchard and vineyard combined far up on the slope, sheltered from the blasts of the north by the preci pices of the summit. But at the field of fruit the path to Rumbling cave sopped abruptly. Search as we would we could find no trace of It. At this we were hardly surprised, for the rea son that the cave Itself had for some years been condemned as too danger ous for sight-seers. Repeated falls of tock naci occurred, and any excursion through it wbs considered a hazard ous -business. This fact rather strengthened us in our determination to find the entrance than otHVrwise. for were we not Juniors, and out fqr adventures of any kind that might run loose? Ttiererore we searched dill gently around the edges f the vine yard for any trace of a path that might lead us to the destination upon which we naci set our hearts. Our search in this, direction prov ing fruitless we decided to strike straight across the cultivated land to the base of theicliff a fatal mistake Before we had progressed any distance we found ourselves entirely surround ed. On every aide, closely massed. rose rank upon rank of vines, hansr- ing with great bunches of luscious Concord and Catawba grapes. Where tne grapes were, stood lusty peach trees, tneir boughs laden to the very ground with yellow nd red peaches mat snone amiathe leaves. No avenue of escape presented itself, we were hemmed In at every angle the enemy nao -us completely penned. We were juniors, and had more than once proved our ability to cope with any emergency, but at the peril by which we now saw ourselves faced our hearts quailed. An Instant of suspense only, then our commander gave the order to eat our way out. . We did so. and I would that I could relate that not a single member of our party faltered in nis auty. Aias, we round; The Bo in clined to play us false he was re membering that he had at one time hatl a conscience. It had been decld ed that as soon as we had reached a place of safety he should be" duly court-martialed. The sentence would beyond question have been that he sihould be choked to death on peaches, but it' was ordered to end otherwise: The Kid gave him a peach and he did eat. Aided by his timely .reinforce ment we speedily achieved our salva tion, reaching sa'fe ground only after accomplishing mucn slaughter, And there, right at tha terminal of the swathi that -we had cat, we came upon the trace of a long disused nath- way; the road the cave was ours at last, tip, half Way up the face of the cllx. we tolled, over huge blocks that had been shaken from the mountain's height and lay heaped in a' giant's stairway over which we clambered and crawled as best we might. At !at we gained the topmost boulder, worked ourselves around a narrow ledge and stood on a little porch Jn he moun tain-side cramped between two enor mous buttresses of -primal granite Which towered, upward to where the edge of the cliff cut the blue of the BKy. upenmg dibck Derore us we found a narrow eleft In the rock, large ejiougn to aamit tne ooay of a man Toward the 'open country we had a view second Only to that from the onimney, over mile upon mile of un auiating land of wood and field a far as South Carolina! From this vlsta-swe turned at once for we were now bent upon plunging into tne noweis or Bald mountain. Wa had been sufficiently warned of , the enterprise to be somewhat warv: In stead 'we - found ourselves impatient. mw was tne on iv really exc t nsr ven ture, that we were likely to strike and w entered into It with zest. The cold air that streamed steadily out of the cavern's mouth,' chilling us, damp; as we were with oersn! ration unHi . shlveredcoolc none of us In ardor save m a -. Again ne dp Kan fo see vivid pictures flash across hla ntiil fctlnit of permanent lthdfawl of his camping prlviieg-t.,; He tirgett vn tor nave a care again witn purely disinterested motives and decided to await our return on the outside. Loge lit the lantern and slipped through the portal, followed y Tn fia and myself. The Kld'i aflmoftlMotis in ouf ani. Through the darkness hardly ulerc ed by the dim rllmmer of our lantern, H groped untU-wfek .thai. tfi lery turned rmmedlatiy to the left. and followedlt In single file worming V w Chimney through a screvlce barely large enough i to permit our passage with ease. The rocks were cold and damp and the temperature here in the Interior tood so low as to be absolutely uncomfort able in violent contrast with the heat outelde. On making the pass we found ourselves in a small chamber'its floor, composed of shattered pieces of granite over which we made our way to tne root of a ladder leading upward to an aperture where daylight attain shone indistinctly. Sealing this ladder we found ourselves in a gallery open ing on the southern face of the moun tain but ot only small extent. Two tunnels leading directly back Into the heart of the rock promised further de velopments, but we found both of them blacked Jby masse- of fallen stone. We were disappointed. Ad- cording to our Information we should have found another ladder in one of these galleries which would have led us down and well back under the hump of Bald. As the heap of arrest ing granite in the most promising cor ridor seemed freshly detached from the wall above we concluded that the ipassage had been only recently chok ed. Judging from the appearance of the cavern another such fall might occur at any time. Here the whole body of Bald mountain stood cracked from surface to centre Into a series of Im mense perpendicular clefts of rock which leaned together to,. form the galleries in which we-moved in so.un certaln a balance that another deluge of splintered stone seemed imminent at any moment. From the date of the discovery of the cave muffled rum blings have issued from time to time from its. inmost recesses to be re echoed through the valley, hence the name that came to bo applied to the hollow in the cliff. Thesa'sound's, It was clear, had been caused by the grinding together of immense slabs such as those crowded together near the entrance In their shifting, Inci dent to the slow settling of the ridge. There was nothing for it but to make our way back to the xpen air; so far as adventure went our explora tion of Rumbllnar cave had been a farce. We were more or less disgust ed, for we had expected at least a few thrills, and we had undergone no more serious danger than that of con tracting bad colds from suddenly en tering the, ice-box In the side of the Thountaln. The Kid was vastly re-. nevea: n naa awniieu our return in terror lest he should have to bear the news down to the valley that we .had been ground to 'pieces In-the hopper of Old Baldy s sausage mill. It was well that at least one of our number waa satisfied. ... ,- A few minutes on the landing serv ed to bring the perspiration from our pores again, and the heat was wel come. The refrl'geratr-like atmos phere of the mountain's vitals had searched us clear to the marro"w: we paused gladly in the sunlight. From oun perch we could see well up Into the length of Chimney Rock valley, where, In ' a mass of rolling dark clouds, the first 4u!I thunderpeals of, a storm growled threateningly at Inter vals, I thought of Stokes, and won-? dered how he waa enjoying this the second day of his vacation with his friends, the moun'Aln horsen. doubt not that the poof brute-: -marveled much. at this unusual reason of un disturbed ease. ' Fut not one of our party needed rest more .than he. At the root of tne cntr, oy a tiny streamlet clear and cool which crept but from under the debris of the wrecked mountain-side we paused to break our fast aga!n-for the spot was conveniently- near the field of grapes and peaches. A" satchel bt lunch we hd found extremely heavy on the day before, therefore when The Bo had lift ed up his voice In the praise of grape nubs we had suffered onrselves to b? b-tfulled. . The amount of hard labor tht a man could perform on merely few mouthful of. the1 dark brown lumps properly nvststlcated was simply fabulous when The'Bo. gpt well Into his dissertation., Consequently a box of the cereal was the only thing we had brought for dlnrjef nd we . didn't need much of that. ;:'A '.' mouthful around, wi sufficient fir three of usj we speedily executed eallv against the, vineyard and left tbe-Bi to his banquet of aa!wdatt S-SA ':'t":-P-. " A few more glasseVof rldef'on our iway down and w felt fuHy equal to netting mxt ttpoft out- ftfterhooli fambl tThe Pools. To reach these We bad to " -retrace our steps stllf further -to ward the ford and com lb UtfiA.n suspension bridge, of the specially patterned mountain type." The floor Rock, the Sentinel of lllcliorjnut Ing of this structure consisted of strips of wood laid none too close together on a series of wire cables anchored firmly on either banK. Other cables served as guys and railings, and on the whole the reault was a thoroughly wife span. In spite of its hammock like swaying high above tho whirling wa ters of the Broad. One by one we made the trip in safety to the other shore, although see-sawing of the lllm- sy stretch of wire caused by the weight of our bodies tempted more than one of us to give way to all fours. The Pools, a mile beyond, we found well worthy of the Interest that our store-keeping friend had taken the pains to exoite in us through his de scription. They are three in number, drilled deep by the process of erosion In the bed of a torrent which comes ihurrylng off of the slope of Chimney Rock mountain with amazing speed, and situated on the natural terraces of a hillside of soft rock over which, the stream make a drop of at least a hundred and til'ty ft-et. The first ter race is only some twenty-five feet be low the crest of the fall; another twenty-five feet below is the second, while the third lies about half-way between this and the bottom -of the decline. Out of u narrow ravine the clear water shoots down a slant of smooth rock Into the funnels of the first pool, where its foam shines in the almost ghastly contrast with the dark green gulf. Its background. Never had I seen water wear a more cruel hue than that of these seething cauldrons where it leaped and whirled, lashing itself Into spray against the slimy walls that rose almost to a eyllndricui sha.ne above it, crying ever In a 'hoarse roar, as if hungry to tear us from our footing and draw us down Into its depths. There whs not a one of us that could resist an Involuntary shud der as he gazed Into the mouths of these raging pits and thought howl deep they might plunge him In their hideous brew, far out of the, reach of rescuers. Of the three pools not one is over twenty feel In diameter, but the continual rush and outcry of their waters, with their repulsive greenish hue darkened by the overhanging foli age, renders them more terrible even than if they hatl been planned on a grander scale. Nor Is the suggestion of depth in the color of these boiling death-tras unwarranted. The first measures sixty f'-et to Its bottom, the second" one hundred and twenty, and the third has tiver been successfully sounded. Two hundred feet of line have been lowered Into It without touchinjf bottom. Some assort that an undertow render sounding impossi ble, some believe that the great tube connects with a subterranean stream or lake. All of the dwellers In the region around hold that far more water flows out of this last pool than pours Into it from above. This is only a theory, and however plausible has never been backed by an experiment oft a scientific basis. Most Interesting results may reward the work of some future scientist oh these basins. In striking contrast .with the de moniac raving of the kettles on the terraces Is the placid sweep of the stretch Of qulot water at the foot ot, the fall. , Why a rooinardy cousin of Whom Loge boasted should shun this peaceful lake to take a plunge In the treacherous waters of the bottomless abyss above It wo could not under stand. And In this rash venture he certainly hazarded his life for The Pools have their list of victims. One had been added io the roll only a few days prior to our visit. ? Yet Loge maintained that- his kinsnfan never came near the spot without taking a dip. Nevertheless he showed no In tention of emulating the example set by one of his family, nor did the rest of us, No "such Infernal bathtub for ourst With the utmost caution we. de eendd the slope1 and gazed back up- the. Incline over which only a slight stream ot water was dashing now. But bv the breadth of the track scrubbed bare on Its either slde we knew that often arter s ciouariursi on two back of the mountain it most be filled by a furious tawny flood, : tearing1 at the frocky hanks, and speeding with the force of hundred mill races to pour into tn ravenous maws or Tne pools great tree and boulder hurled on ward by Ms'tMpettiritJs title,; At iilf H a lime, with each of the three pools whirling In a mighty maelstrom, the thre. tMMiag thel-4rfrem-eit t crest, imd filling all the mountains with the yell of their devilish play. As '4 i Xj'Si'' Gap. the gorge must present spectacle truly appalling. It was with a certan sense of re lief that our footing had been sure on the steep slope that we turned back toward camp when the afternoon w'aned. The road to our frying-pan was long and our hunger would not down; there was nothing for it but to partake with as good grace as pos sible of The Bo's grape-nuts. And while they were not especially tempt ing we did find in them sufficient strength to render our tramp back en durable. In the day's course The Bo's botani cal , predilections had grown steadily more rampant. Finally his case grew desperate. More then once he lagged far behind us to browse In a promising patch of weeds or to apply his pocket microscope to some unfamiliar speci men. Often, too. we observed him holding close communion with a small black volume which we at first sup posed to be a pocket edition of some soered writ, so devoutly did he peruse It, but on further examination we found that it was only a botanical key In which our companion absorbed himself much to the peril of his anat omy on our often uneven path. Final ly The Bo became utterly unmanage able, babbling without Intermission words of the most fearsome sound and executing war-dancers over thorough ly harmless wlld-gowers. It became necessary for us to lay violent hands on him, for our own sake as well as his, for his antics were fast taking all of the pith out of our enjoyment of the landscape. For a time he grew more calm, then we found him wandering In a stretch or damp woodland, grubbing up quantities of ft peculiar mushroom growth. We felt Justly fearful lest his sanity might be dangerously Impair ed, but to our questions he replied with some asperity that anybody ought to be able to see that It was flavarla Clinopodlum that he was gathering.' We dodged and took his word for It but we kept a wary eye on him Just the same. ,It developed on gaining camp that The Bo had been In reality, parking Into his handker chief bunches of an old fungus com posed of clusters of tapering fastlgl ate branches shaped on th whole much like tree-coral and of a delicate pink color, which we found of very material advantage to our empty stomachs. Under the late maniac s In st mot Ion we concocted from this, after soaking out the bitter woody fibre and coloring matter, a most pleasant soup for our supper. With "plenty of sweet milk, butter and wait and pepper we nad as good an oyster stew there In the shadow of the Chimney an was ever prepared at the edge of the ocean. Loudly we sounded the prals es of The Bo for his discovery of the rtavarla Clinopodlum and assiduously did we search for Its pink clusters throughout the remainder of our out Ing. A knowledge of botany we found not such a, bad thing after all. After supper we held a council on the question of sleeping quarters. Our experience of the night before had set tled negatively the possibility of four sleeping in our wagon and as a rain was more than nrobable during the night two of the company were forced to dow to tne decree of rate ana sc cept a civilized bed In the hotel. That waa not especially hard on certain of the party; there were attractions op at the pavilion, anvwav, - Before we had half decided The Bo, In a truly self-sacrificing spirit, had volunteered to be one of the martyra, and hla offer was duly accepted. Immediately my companions departed in the Direction fo thepavillon, whence the metallic voice of tho graphophone floated faintly to my eara, tor I, feeling fully tne errecta or tne two days r tramp ing and the night of misery, elected to remain under the wagon cover to write a letter by the light ,ot , the tin lantern suspended from, ' one of the hoops of the frame. , Soon .the sound of wheels smote upon my eara and as the first drops of gentle rain fell uoon tne root another wagon turned tn to camp beside us. Its owner, a heavy set. hottest-faced iMUUJiiser, fUme, with hla little boy, to stand under the shelter of th wat&rMfont, ttni cuss tha -questions at the day, Urt crops and seasons I found hint ft Solo mon, but when it came to blockading hla ignorance was m pathetic M that of our friend of th fflqrHlnjL That his mrtuhtaln-schooner did hot bHr a largo of corn I can vouch, too, for on the morrow we purchased of his store f ihnttevrf gr H ehirken tirunt own aunply before he pulled ottt to ward. Hendersonvllle. tn time my "No," said Mother Hubbard in" hferj downright-way, "I have no patience with this pocket-book question that has been attracting so much atten tion in some of our best magazines. 1 am not afralJ to say quite boldly that there is something wrong with the marriage that manes the question a really serious one." "But it's like this," said Pandora, J rawing her pretty brows together as Is t'ue manner of those who solve deep problems. "I waa at a club meeting the other day where the wo men all talked about it, and I could see qulf e plainly that they all real ly believed in the serious nature ot this teapot tempest. If you ever get a class or set of people to believe that they are being imposed upon there Is Instant rebellion. It's my opinion, and I believe I told them so, that the whole trouble has come from a few magazine writers Who needed a new subject. The idea of a married wo man being humiliated because she must let ler husband know when her pocket-book gets empty! How under heaven Is the poor felldw, who la usually an ordinary mortal with no mlnd-readlng talent, to find it out unless he is told?" "Vell, there Is the allowance ilea, you fcnow," reminded the Plain Lit tle Woman timidly. "That might answer very well for a man who has an Income from lafge investments, or a well established bus iness or even a large and tolerably secure salary," said the Motherly Woman. "But the poor fellow who is pinching along to buy his home, or his partnership, or his practice; the man who ruust count his dollars .care fully and keep In mind the dreaded rainy day, knows that sometimes hli wife needs money while at other times she does not, and It seems to htm a perfectly reasonable thing that she should mention her desire to him whose business in life is the care of her." "I notice," said the Country Bride, "that all these pocket-book suffer ers are careful to say that they have good husbands who provide well for their families, but they are humiliat ed boyond endurance because they must ask for money. There is no reason why a woman should feel like that, v And the men don't understand it. poor things, and If they are sometimes a little slow about responding it is not because they regard the request a unreasonable, hut because of some plan, or venture that requires all the available means. A woman who trusts a man sufficiently to marry him ought to feel sure that he will be fair to her in the matter of money. But It Is true that there Is something wrong when this tiny molehill assumes the proportions of a mountain in a woman s home life. There Is a lack of love, or confidence, or aoa.l fellow ship. Something has destroyed the harmony of the marriage relation." me uoiiege win. who had been driven by the coolness of the fall even ing to her cushion corner laughed In ner pretty way. "Maybe I don't know, but l should think It would 'be pretty hard to beg for every penny. ana never to have a dollar for a bar gain sale, or 3 tiny treat, or a bit of charity without running to a man for it. "But my dear." ventured the Plain 11 tile Woman whose fears for Bobby Shaftoiwere always near the sur face, "it would make such a differ ence If the man and the dollar were really one's very own. if a woman Is quite good friends with her hus band and very much in love with him, If She knows that her nleasiirn 1 hla first interest, it should not be ueh uf iminrui thing Just to hold out her empty little purse, feeling sure that it win oe replenished If there's anv money 4n the bigger one." 0w there's the rub." nut In th Optimist with eager interest. "Some times a fellow hasn't a dime. Why. I know a man that got married a year ugo to a girl he doesn't know very well. It was a very romantic affair, love at first sight, you know. Now I d rather be good friends with a girl, real chums and all that.no weM know each other pretty well first, and then instead of falling in love, sort of stepping comfortably into It by easy ..,,-.. iiini juu ace my wire wouldn't mind so much being chummy with me afterward. Romance is fine in a play, or Doem. or tru Vm tnr the wear and tear of everyday life, you win -ui wno Knows that you are not a hero, the airl who .indr. stands all your moods and tenses and "wj o oit airaia ot you. So this friend of mine who hits to keep the heroic pose all the time gets pretty tired of It. poor f,.iow. u hy u very small salary, but he has an arls- vx-muc appearance, rine eyes, prince ly bearing and all that, m ooesnt know how poor he Is, and he ha really missed ouite u ! , nm opening because he felt obliged to hand over half of his salary to his w,fe; ,AnJ "he, poor little foolish thing, dribbles it away and the other wol men envy her. .ou if h friend were really chums he could tell uu hub wouiu understand. "I don't like to hear marriage spok en of as a business nartneiwhin ul?' Mn. tapping his Observ- nblY . . . V- "hut taese pocket-book agitators liulst upon keeping to the idea. ,0 1 wouli sug. gest that the husband be regarded as the business manager of the concern. He understands the financial condition of the enterprise. He knows what expenditures can be made, what out 7ni? 11 ht not hu- miian in niicni partner it a confer- ence nun niiu men na (wnm. necessary . , 1 tu""!?k'" "5ld th0 Gardener modest to feel his wife a deuendnnnJ; . .th,nk vry likely u reminded Of It. It in ft,,,!, .i..l ... . ' ta Tii . fu mi nepenaence,- so beau tiful that we try to find a word that expresses more. A wife ought to lean upon her husband;. That is her 'ht, na ,hl Privilege. n ,8 0t a question of superiority, not a matter mine ana uine. I think the .......y musi oe defective If thl false note creeps Into it." 4.T' L'" (,id"th kittle Minister. , it Is the old orohlflm nt ..ki.-iJ Ihat Is. a word that has fallen Into uioicpuia m inw aggressive age. But submission l the foundation of re- isiuu, mo corner-stone in the Palace of Peace. It la not fashionable nowa day for women to recognize the au thority of husbands.- But every lnstK . iu, inn man Is the head of his household. -To In 1st upon two heads Is to create a tdmptth departed ahd tieon warn ber, Indued by the dull roar of the rtvat arid th pattaf of, the raltt on the wagon-sheet, had lortg sealed my eyes when Loge aroused me to a semt-con-acldtiii statu, by cratrllnf jtt.bri hU re. torn from , the dance. Ahi utter do i elt id awake from & more refresh ing sleep than that of that August night In the mouth of Hickory nut Aatr-1 brighter dtw - thtrt- that which streamed lit throuili the fiapj of our wagon cover. , - . , , . monstrosity. He is the husband, th house-band," the holder-together of the whole fabric. He is legally re sponsible for his family. I think few women realize what this means to a man. His position an provider, protector, suatalner and general man ager Is often misunderstood. The father of a family has a pretty good emed Job to take care of. He would not yield up an atom of the burde.i to anybody else, for we are talking -aboui decent men. You know i , often wonder at the way many a poor fellow fights and works anq pians for the dioontnted whlney, women wno belong tfiulhem ? I Jo. , Many a time I go to some man who has been pointed out' -to--ma as a great sinner and I nnd him : tolling away for his frowsy, unthdy, unappreclatlve wife and I Just shakiP-hands with him and pray aod"to"piakr"fflo just that brave and faithful-i; For how do I know that I should be able fb .stand the test that is applied to him? We like to think of women as a species of wing less angel, but once In a while s we , realize the truth. - Now this money question grows out of a deeper dlacon-. tent. It is a'dhrcontent that U In fections and the man may get It too." "And what would they think ot us, what would we think ot one another. If we discussed private matters, sa- tred, matters, in clubs and magMine courses?" and the Oracle glared fierce- ly at the members of the lillte group that had gather- ed about the sitting 1 room , centre table. "Suppose we wrote long letters for household pages on such questions as cold b.reakrasts, bargatn aay' dinners, picked up suppers? Sup pose we aired our special grievances every time three or four of us met, at a street corner? Now there are VAr fi u ,m,an u-V, rAaliva fhflf ' money Is not easy to get. And mon, ,. tlcatlon. To a man it Is the aafe -barrier between comfort and distress, respectability and disgrace. And ' when a woman would give this hard, earned treasure for something that her husband regards lightly, it Is no wonder if he doesn't enter gleefully Into her plan. Men and women re gard money from two distinct stand points. It is all not so much a mat ter of meanness, as of misunderstand ing." , - - -"It Is a lack of perfect union," said Mother Hubbard, with the manner of one who believes In herself. "There ought to be no question of Independ ence between a man and his wife. If he is the head of the home, she Is the heart, and there Is need of both, equal ilee 1 of both. Neither li SU- prnor 10 ine otner. lne nome ana the income belong to both, not to . each. Hut the offices are different. Kach has an appointed place In an Interest which belongs to both. For my part. I have no patience with a woman who wishes to cary her per sonal independence Into her husband's home. shj would better remain single as so many such women hava . an excellent change of doing. I may be old-fashioned, but 1 like to think of a woman relying upon her husband. It is a compliment to a man that he appreciates. My mother was that sort of woman. She had beautiful black curls, and she wore them al ways as little girls do Just because father liked It. I remember that father used to buy her beautiful chenlle shawls and lace mantilla'and drawn silk bonnets and lovely em broidered gowns. They were not of ten colors that she would have choa en, but he liked them and she prefer ed wearing what he llkod, what he had thought of aa suitable for her, to what the taste of other people approved. So far as she was concern ed his pleasure was hers. This was not a one-sided management, for mj f it her would have moved mountains, If mountains could bo moved.- to please his wife. I am not ashamed to say, even In a club room, that ' like 11 marriage of that sort. No woman should feel herself a beggar when she asks her Itunband for mon ey. I have known women who pre ferred taking it from unguarded pockets, never guessing that what la there might have been Intended to supply a more pressing neeJ. A wo man who lias sense enough to spend money wisely ought to understand the ronditlons of her husband's business, that she may regulate her expendl- tures intelligently. "At least," added the Quiet Man "It U one of the questions that woh husband and wlfo should settle for themselves. One used to never hear or it. and women wer quite as happy then as they are now. f believe it) getting back to simple, Individual way and not minding what other people are doing. A question of this sort wilt adjust itself If thVe Is the right port of love between. two reasonable people" "It Is a great piity when a woman takrs it Into her rwad that ahe Is be ing badly used by the man who loves her." said the .Motherly Woman, "I think confidence H almost as old fashioned as submission, confidence In the man who Is trying" "And content. In tjiese rousing times Is a rare quality," said the Garden. "One rarely sees the serene woman nowadays, The woman who was content with conditions." "It's the craxe of reform." sputter-i. ed the Oracle, excitedly. "Why can't a woman marry the man who loves her and go with him to his home and live there peacefully, with no thought of all the world's work and worry? Why must she settle ques tions and solve problems when she ought to be minding her babies and making her home pleasant?" But all the hifads shook mournfully anj no one knew any answers to the question. v HKALTH f N"THE CANAL ZONE. -Th high wagei paid mako it a mighty temptation to our young artisans to loin the force of skilled workmen needed to construct the Psinam Cansl Many are restrained."; however, by the fear of fevora and" inalurta It is the knowing on(,thoao - who hove used Kteetric Bit ters, who go trier witlicut this fear, well knowing thv. are: safe from malarious iMAi,-nM -with- Klrwrtrlfl TllHV't- nn hftnri Cures , blood poison, . too. biliousness, weakness sH it- stomach, liver and kld,ney trouble. Guaranteed by all drug gists, we. ' , MEN CAPABLE OF EARNING ftOroiOftOMH YEAR Traveling Salesman, Clerk, Merchant. No Mutter What Your Business! A complete reorganization nf the Eroducing department of Tho Mutual Iff. Insurant Company 9$ New Xwk Ui thli Htiort ifl-orda ft chahctt for few good meat ret varftnelet bn the Agency force remain. bpett ior hicii "f character and abUMyt yoa can ftnd out , by wrttinjr whether , It ' will be worth tthl'e.for yon, In make ft changet tool bloo experlcnc u necJiry, A tour Of professional tustrnctlon given , frw.( ,.':;;'." ''-.O ' STI1F. UtTJTCAIi t.IFE' tN'SritANCE "COMPANY Of SEW yoilK, tut iiAiuus R.,.nmcox, yu Charlotte, N. c.
The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Sept. 15, 1907, edition 1
15
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