The Seaforth News, 1926-02-18, Page 2"DOUBLE THUMBS"
BY ANNIE A. PRESTON.
Late one gray afternoon, not long A greater part of the half-hour I
ago, I was waiting at our little Coun- ; was sitting by the window I hadbeen
try station on the D, E, and 'F, Belle greatly amused in watching Double
road foe the five o'clock express. II Thumbs, who had been intently 're-
found myself alone in the small "la- goading and . minutely imitating the
dies' roam," and sitting down on the movements of - this engineer and his
•, single Mari, wooden settee, I busied fireman.
rtysal'f watching from the one window; A large truck which was used for
a huge, steaming, amazing locomotive, I transferring baggage and freight was,
,which was fired up and standing ready , standing on the depot platform. This
to take along the route the northern I to the poor lad was evidently an image.
train when it arrived; for this statien inary locomotive,
He walked about it, wiped it with a
bit of waste he had picked' epee -pre-
tended to turn steam' gatige-cocks on
was the terminus of the D. E. and e.,
and all through trains, changed en-
gines here, "
The northern and southern -bound one of its iron. braces, moved it back
avail trains met here under the then and forth when the engine moved, end
existing regulations, and consequently reached up to the end of one of its
the ten ntinu"tes of bustle when the long handles in'imitation of the engin-
trains eame up was very attractive to eel- when ha was trimming the head-
the few people who dwelt in the small light.
No sooner, however, had the fireman
disappeared itrsiee of the tool -house, in
quest of shears, and the engineer also
had gone out of sight around the sta-
tion ' than Double Thumbs sprang
knot of houses gathered about the
postoffice just out of sight behind a
strip of pine woods.
The engineer belonging to leis wait-
ing locomotive, and whose aety re-
quired that his boarding -plea, should
be in this sleepy hamlet, had n' : yet
across the intervening tracks, swung
himself up into the cab of the waiting
come over to the station, but, his fire- locomotive, and,; before I could realize
roan, Jimmy Steele, a young inan I what the queer boy intended to do, he
had known from childhood, was walk- had opened the throttle -valve, and in
ing around the huge machine with n an instant the huge mncbine moved
wisp of oily waste in his hand, giving: swiftly down the track.
a rub here and a brush there, as a • I ran out of the door and shrieked,
faithful groom would walk around and expecting to see the engine run off the
admire and caress a petted thorough -;turn -out track and pitch down the
bred horse. j steep embankment into the river di-
Jimmy glanced up at my window, redly alongside.
smiled, and touched his smutty fur- But an alert switchman who was at
cap with his grimy hand in response, his post threw over the switch just in
to my bow of greeting, and I was time, and away went the bellowing
amused to see what a weird, unnatuxai' "Governor Bardwell" down the road
contrast his light curly hair, whitea upon the track of the oncoming pas
even teeth and large, sort blue eyes; senger express which had a moment
were to his blackened, smoky face. l'before been heard to whistle some six
I recalled the little, rale, fair-haired 1 miles below.
boy, I hadso often seen at school and' Hardly ten seconds afterwards I
in his own house, and wondered what Saw Jimmy Steele, the fireman/ run
his mother,' who was now dead, would 1 out of the tool -house, which stood a
say were she to see her darling Jimmy few rods below where the engine had
in his present plight. been waiting, cross the high, narrow
His ambition was to be an engineer, I platform near the track, and make a,
and I could understand how the boy, flying leap toward the forward end of
who had always had a liking for ma- !the locomotive.
chinery, and for railroad -life as wel1,1 The engineer, who had rushed to
was patiently .endnrieg the hardness ward the front platform of the station
and drudgery of hie apprenticeship, sol at my cry, gave a loud groan, quickly
that in good time he should hold that : followed by a sigh of relief as he saw
Powerful iron monster obedient to his ' iris intrepid fireman catch his hold
will. [upon the open-work iron brackets
Just then I saw the engineer ape; which held the great lantern, swing
proaclring, He quickly swung himself : himself down upon the forward end of .
up on the locomotive, drew on over his the now rapidly -moving engine, and,
neat business -suit a pair of overalls just before it passed out of sight
and a frock that he took from the' around the curse, wave one hard, as
tonder-lox, and then, oil -can in hand, if signalling an "a'1 right" as he crept;
he made his tour of the panting en. toward the cab.
gine. '•It was only one chance in a thou -
That
duty performed, he climbed up sand," said the engineer, in a trem-;
into the cab, took out .his heavy, open-,barrg voice, "but Jimmy made it. He
faced gold watch, compared the time will be back presently till right if that
with that marked by the shining,' young fiend of a 'blue -nose' don't keep
niekel-plated marine clock near the him out of the cab."
steam -indicator, tried the pumps,. gave We could hear whistle after whistle
each of the gauge -cocks a quick twist,' from the incoming train sounding
and then glancing up and down the nearer and nearer, and the time might
track, moved the engine slowly back have been counted by heart -beats in
and forth a short distance upon the the terribly frightened little group
side-brack on which it was standing. which huddled together on the depot'
All this time I had been interested' platform.
As it was, the titne seemed very
long before the staunch old "Gover-
nor Bardwell" came steaming proudly
,tack around the curve, over the switch,
and came to a standstill upon its own
Turnout.
Then the switch was thrown over,
and the northern express, with its
heavy human freight, wound its sine-
ons length along and stopped in front
of the station.
Presently the southern mail came
thundering in on Its own turn -out, and
there was pretty close work for a min-
ute or two.
I ran across the tracks with the rest
of Jimmy's friend to hear what he had
to say.
"You see," he explained. "I heard
the engine start, and I saw the engin-
eer on the platform standing dazed -
in observing the motion, of "Double-'
Thumbs," as he was calved by the rail-
road men, a green sort of a boy, who,
a short time before, had removed from
Nova Scotia to our village with his.
parents. Besides the peculiarity of
having double -thumb, on both of his .
hands, this boy was deaf and dumb.
The locomotives and cars, the little
station, the round, brick water -tank,
and even the railroad men, seemed to
have a great fascination for the poor
deaf mote, and he could be seen at
almost any hour of the day intently'
watching them;
Everybody said that Double
Thumbs would certainly be killed by
the cars some day; hut, although he
was frequently under the trucks ex-'
anining the wheels and the air -brakes, I
or in various other positions of peril,:
he hada peculiar and reeving knack of
Scampering out of the way when don- ;1
Double -Thumbs in the cab. I took ei
e situation in a flash, and I saw, just
ger was itntninent. I
ike, and then I caught a glimpse of
Sometimes he would quickly creep th
as if it had been a picture, how the
great old `Governor Bardwell," with a
full head of steam on, acid the 'Pow-
hatan' coming down the hill like mad,
away on alt fours, or by a sudden
handspring, or some other agile move
moat, throw - himself cut of harm's I
way, I
Gire.s drat Tout ccs and bends is said:to, be rite star,ttng tnv Or,
Pollak, celebrated Austrian selemtist. This discovery • is expected to+revolu-
tionize tiSe glass industry. J. C. Vredenbierg who slimmed the patent for Eng-
land is drown above with e. quaater-inch rod. -
with that long Passenger -train behind '
her. would clinch and. make, a grand
sm, sh-up. By that time,. the Governor
Bardwell got near enough to me, and
I jumped upon her, of ;course. What
else could I de?
"I clung hold of the hand -rail and
very soon reached .the cab, but the
window was fastened on the inside,
and Double -Thumbs, who was dancing,
with mad delight, would not open it.
At first I thought I would put my foot
through the glass, but I didn't want
to make any expense for the corpora-
tion, so I climbed over the top of the'
cab.
"Just as I was about jumping down
upon the coal it the tender, I glanced
around and saw the express rounding
the curve at'Bartores Woods. Double -
Thumbs seized the grate -bar and tried
to keep my hand from the throttle, but
I put on the most agonizing expression
of rearm, at the same time pointing to
the track in front.
"That double -thumbed, deaf-and-
dumb youngster gave one quick look
ahead, and then sank down in front
of the fire -box door as if he had been
shot. I then reversed the engine,
pulled the throttle . wide open, and
sailed back here to the station in just
the beet time I could make. But where
is Doubie-Thumbs now?"
The poor lad had disappeared, and
I afterwards learned .that he was
never again seen about the station
after that eventful locomotive tide of
his.
After hearing Jimmy Steee's short,
and hurried story, I hastened on board
of my own train, and we went out on
time.
Not one of the incoming passenger)
had the least inkling of the great peril •
they had so narrowly escaped.
At the next station, when the engin-
eer jumped from his cab to light up
the great reflector, he laughed heartily
when Jimmy very gravely handed hila
the newlyesharpened shears, wheel: he
had been carrying in his pocket.
Who's Who in Musical
History.
The great Johann SebastienBacl
Was born in German Etseobach.
No laggard he, his task to shirk,
Or call Iris music practice work:
Els brother was his teacher when
Little Bach was only 10.
But though so young he longed each
day
For notes more difficult to Play.
These notes his brother dict forbid,
And from the boy his music hid;
But through the cupboard's latticed
door
Bach stole the tempting music -score;
And -every night' by moonlight wrote
TIiis patient copy, note by note.
This, secretly, he learned and played,
And thus his brother quite dismayed.
Bach, "master of the Fugue" became,
Which won for him immortal fame;
And though at last he losts hie sight,
His faith in God made darkness light.
M e n d e i s s o h n-1809-1 847.
Mendelssohn, in Hamburg born, of a
cultured Jewish race;
Never knew the want or scorn many
artists have to face.
With his sister, Fanny; dear, many
cheerful hours he spent; should play it promptly and not hesi-
With her voice and music near little tate. Hesitation in such a case would
Felix was content. lead your opponent to believe that you
At an early age he .wrote music :of a leave a choice of two or more cards and
beauty rare. might influence his play to his disad-
vantage. Such tactics are not manner-
It was played in lands remote, 'till his isms and are distinctly unfair. Play a
fame spread everywhere. man's game, man fashion, at all times,
Great his wordless sougs, and sweet. One of the types of players that one
Little needs of words have they. meets very often is the player who al-
Language would not thus repeat'. all ways tries to take his partner out of a
the noble things they say:
Not alone musician he; well he sketch-
ed aud'inucit he knew.
'Goethe grew his friend to be. Other
great men loved him, too.
Fortunate in life and heart, dull of
merriment and fun, •
Famous In: his chosen art, him we call
"The Happy One."
Last and�Luckiest,
An angry frown creasing his fore-
head, the schoolmaster addressed the
oys of his Claes•
"Once again have my orders been
disobeyed," he said sternly, "Who
s..the miscreant?"
Silence, awful silence, reigned su-
preme,
"This matter mustbe settled once But how few of ns, whole we take
and for ail," he went on. "And 1f sixty degrees of the delectable dish on
none will own up I shall punish the our plates, and with' sheeplike un-
whole clots;" • 'originality begin to eat it at the apex
Again there was silence: of the triangle, give a thought to its
The master started punishment history and the vicissitudes through
without delay. But none disclosed the' •w'hich it: has passed!
ulprit's identity until auddenly, as the The first mince pies were baked in
sat. boy walked out to receive his per-. deep trough -shaped dishes lined with.
ion, the cane w•as withheld, dough and filled with all kinds of
Fixing; a keen look on the boy, the highly -spiced forcemeate, covered with
masker remarked: a •top cruet; and they were baked only
"Now, if you'll tell me who did this at Christmas time and had a peculiar
wJoked thing I'll not punish you." signidcance, for the shape of the dish
"Tright, sir, answered the boy, with was suppo=ell to represent the man-
grin, "I did it," „..1,,ger in which the infant Saviour lay.
c � .
TI
ID
Z New Sprites .b WYNNE F'EROU$ SON
author f ' ..brV 7.tl.i•Qf�j' ®7a-{%i,.Y. do 2 7`lage
Copyright: 1525 byluyle, Jr.
•
ARTICLE No. 19
A great many. players seem to be in. that his partner has made a bad bid or
doubt as to whether or i)ot'the "are he wouldn't have been doubled and
justified in taking advantage of tli-, that it is his duty to rescue him. Here
personalelenrent;to auction. In. other are' two hands that came up recently
word's; is it fair and within the ethics of which are'excellent examples of what -
the game to note and take advantage not to do:
of the mannerisms or characteristics of Hand No. 1
your fellow players? The answer issim- Hearts -7
pie. You are playing a game with three ; y I Clubs - K, 8 7, 5, 2
other people, your partner and two ; A 13 Diamonds -8, 3
opponents, and it is not only allowable, .; , Z i Spades Q, 10, 9, 5, 3
but. it is your. duty to study them as
carefully as you do your cards. The No score, rubber game, Z dealt and bid
players in the game are just• as impor- no-trump. A bid. two hearts and Y
tant as the cards and shooed be studied doubled. B immediately got- panicky
said analyzed just as carefully. If you and bid two spades which doubled. A
are playing with strangers, it is rather now bid three hearts, Y doubled and-"'
difficult to profit by such analysis, but all passed. A lost his contract by only
when you are -playing constantly with one trick so that if B had left the double,
the same group you should take into alone, he and his partner would have.
account all of the characteristics of the won game and rubber. What 13 failed
different players, when bidding, playing to'consider was: First, that A must
the dummy or playing against the de- have a very strong hand to bid over
elarer. You can bid freely with one one no-trump; and second, that if he
partner but must be conservative with wanted:a spade bid, he would have
another. You can take a chance against doubled -no-trump. Be on the look out
one opponent but must be very careful for such hands and don't. take your
of being doubled with another. If one partner out of a bid just because it has
opponent does double, look out, foe you. been doubled. The following hand is an
are probably beaten; but ifeenother even worse example of what not to do:
doubles, figure on an extra trick or so.
• In the play of the hands, however, a Hand No, 2
little' different point arises. It is not Hearts— J 10, 4•, 3
considered good form to hesitate or Clubs -9 7 2
otherwise indicate by your method of Diamonds i—J,10,8,7,5,8
play, that you do or do not hold certain Spades— none
cards. If a player becomes noted for
doing this as a matter of habit, how-
ever; his opponents are certainly justi-
fied in taking due advantage. One play-
er, for example, always gives a nervous
cough when he holds the missing honor No score, first game. Z dealt and bid
and the opponent leads through his three spades and A doubled. Y never
hand. He has tried hard to cure himself hesitated; a minute and promptly bid
of this,habit but without success. As a four diamonds. 13 doubledanddefeated
the contract 400 popallets while the three
spade bid would
have lost oil '
Pay 200
points less eight honors. This example
man extreme case perhaps, but is a fine'
illustration of what not to do.
Here is a peculiar hand, both in the
bidding and play and an illustration of
the great possibilities of apparently
weak hands,
Problem No. 10
Y
:A 1:
Z
result, his opponents u , p o ants play for this signal
and nearly always get the necessary in-
formation. Another player had a habit
of always redoubling when doubled.
The word "double" seemed to call up
in his mind the word "redouble?i and he
was helpless to refrain from saying ft.
-Every player at the table has the same
opportunity of drawing conclusions that
you• have, so be on the alert at all times
for the human element, Bridge is a
game of wits and the player who can
best match his wits against the others
is the winning player. On the other
hand, always avoid unfair tactics, such
as private conventions or signals. Un-
premeditated slips or mannerisms should
be taken advantage of but watch out
for those that are made with the inten-
tion of deceiving. For example, if you
have a singletoat of the suit led, you
I y i J- b
„�-a
1
`)0 alp
i
•
Barber Shop in Auto. a
A hariier in Wichita, leas.; has his
shop in an auto and calls on his trade
Goat of a Sleeping Car,
p g !t
A slgephrg car costs approximmately ,
$35,000.
No Charge for Questions.
Mr. Freeman—"Guess you w'on't c
charge me for asking a question, 1,11. 1
Laws?" t
Lawyer—"No; the only expense 10-,
volved is in requiring me to give you
an answer, my dear sir,"
double. He gets..the idea into his head
Melee Pie.
Pie, like death, hath all seasons for
its own, rthrl there are dyspeptic souls
who will Sty that -the two are aptly
Bilked. But certain' kiwis i of due are
sacred to certain definite sea -ons --
rhubarb to the spring, cherry to June
alai early July, blueberry to the rum-
mer months anti cr•auberry to lite full
and winter. Only apple pie is perelt-
nial, says a writer in Youth's Com-
panion, We ore now In the Stmt of
the reign of the mince pie, witch In
the beginning was exclusdvele a
Christmas pie, the kind from 'which the
well-known Jack Horner extracted the
equally well-known "plum."
When needed:
,The spices, their a mire and exponetve
New Roller Skate.. luxury, were symbols of the gifts that
With only three wheels instead of the Wise Men brought.
he usual four, a roller skate which' There, carne that dark petioli when
weighs only fifteen ounces has been religious intolerance caul its sombre
nvented in England. • cloak over the joys of Chris,ttuastlde,
:AZ B:
Hearts -9,8,7,6,5,2
Clubs— 7
Diamonds— Ii, r, 9, 7, 6e4
Spades—none
No score, rubber game. Z dealt anil.
passed. A bid one spade. Y passed and
B bid two clubs. Z bid two hearts, A
three clubs, Y three Hearts and B four
clubs, Z bid four hearts, A five clubs,
Y doubled, B passed and Z bid five
hearts. A•. doubled and all passed. A
opened with the ace of clubs andethen
playedtheaceof spadeswhiehZtrumped
How should he plan the play of the
hand? An analysts of -the play and the
other three hands will be given in the
next article.
and mime, pie was: banished as a vain
cud icloletrous tiring. hi 1.644, when
the English Parliament abollshed he
1 observanea of "the three grand festivi-
ties". of C'hrialu)au, La�•ter and whit•
suntltle, minae pie was autcriratleally,
banned, A few Sears '•titer the Bitis-
;sacliusetts Legislature paced a simi-
lar law, and so. for more than a decade
there were no garisineeses and no
Since pies; and when the Icy rigor of
the Puritan conscience beg'arl I o thaw
'a little, and the noble dish returned
'to favor, it _was in a new forms. The
old, manger -shaped dishes were gone,
and- the round plate of -to-day had
taken their 'place.
The change was an Improvement,
for who could est, au oblong pie so
accurately anti Imtiartiully as to sat-
isfy both those who prefer a curlier
lot ansi those win) will have only a
to . fronting on ono street? Trlangu-
TWO NEW -COMETS
JOIN_ SUN'S FAMILY:
ELUSIVE HEAVENLY NO-
MADS DISCOVERED:
One Approaching Earth .and
the Other Retreating -Seen
by European Astronomers.
The solar family has east been lee
oneased by two new members. Onea
may ` may "solar family," fcr it is only
right ths.t the spirit of eolidaett'e
which we see upon tate earth' should
extend also are far as the orbit of Nep
tune. As for these two new comers to
the astral home, they are comets.
Both were d,isoovea'ed near Oh 'end
of the olid year—one by the Belgian
astronomer Van B4esltrook and the
outer by the Foldsh scientist Wilts.
Presented at the astrotiomlcal baptis-
teal font, they Save received 'tlte ra-
sPootive names, 'of 1025-1 and ,1025-j.
Last year appears to pave been a re-
cord one for new comets, for these are
not the only new astral bodies which'
that year saw arise upon the horizon.
One Nearest Earth Thls Month.
The one called 1025-1 was nearest to
the son in September last-otr Septem-
ber 29,to be exact. That was loue.)e-'
fore it was discovered. IIow did the
fact of its exietence become known?
Simply because three observations of
a planet or a :comet, carried out at in-
tervals of a few days• or even a few
houre, are eufdcient to caloulete all
the elements of Its, orbit and notably
the tiltesior movements which ebser-
vatton-verifies. Not least of the, won
dors of modern astronomy is the
faculty which ft gives of following far
into the pant and the future the way
of celestial bodies whieb aro ivaecee-
sibte to the naked eye.
The orbit of 1925.1 is inellnod ak
right half angles on the ecliptic, which
ie the circufaa• line on which the plan-
ets move in an almost parallel man-
ner, Its brilliance recently was al -
moat invisible through the glass, and
each day it has grown less, although
the comet Is approaching the earth
and will reach Its uearee't point this
month. The comet 1925-1 until recent-
ly
ecently farmed part of the constellation of
Berenice. •
Other Wanderer Retreating.
The comet 19251, contrary to the
moventont at present of 19255e, is ap-
proaching the sun and moving from
the eau-th. It le fairly -brilliant, al-
though not clear to the naked eye, It
is to be found in the neighborhood of
the Hercules constellation. One. may
sec it wdlth glasses just before sunset,
although it is due to'disappear at
about this time. But very likely we
shall see It again later, wben it will
emerge more brilliant than before jest
prior to losing itself in the obscure
solitude i+ay from the central eniwer of
the sue.
The most characteristic peculiarity
about 1925-j is that it inclines at an
angle of 144 degrees on the eciiptite
That 3e: to say, these two •c'onie[s- are
stnilar totwo droops almost P'rpon-
dicular to each other.
etlnlel,�exs� by Motor.
The automobiles were now ready to
start Anil T took uiy s' it [ti a rathershabby and olid one.
Tss'o elderly ,men, nteutherii of cur
Cruise, and a tall, BeJouinguide, net:1e
up our party. The guide toll ne Ido
was a native of Syriaand cams f:7?rv:
yearto serve this Cruise oe a guile.
He spoke English . pretty well, and
looked very picturesque in ]lis White
turban and long, flowing white robe.
Ile said also thathe was a Y'lrrl,•llau,
as, his faller had been before hint, and
from 'lits venerable appearance we
could easily' believe.lrls statement
that he was seventy-five rests 01 age.
The long procession of autos' was
•treading toward Bethlehem when our,
oha.mletrr got out and "cranked" our
1 tion, err the other hand, ie. an skeet
matter and cosily mastered.
Ah! Tiia:nk you, Only a small -piece
this time. car. Flames buret out ' immediately
Look Like It. ...
Mie. Jenks was Proceeding through ,
made streamed high above the engine
While' our car was left
burning, we ali ran for empty seats
n other autos. But tor-
t tunately for me, the gentle was also
without a seat and hastened with nee
own tete long street, until we came
o an empty Ford, which we appropri
,ted, and started off at a furious pace
n catch up with the others if we
ould.
I hied imagiwed the place W be a
mein littlevillageon a flat plain.- It
is on a hillside overlooking is charm-
ing valley, with, gardens and olive
retards in the foregr•ouud and blue
ptountains in the distance, I. could
nly' take in the :view at a' glance, for
vo rushed along 1111 we joined the
there on the paved eereet of the via
age, 1 satippe a _crowds as
a
ige as the one here came every diy
lom all: over Cinieteneom'11i isi this
Mee; the devout `.to worehip.4.nd the
worldly to satisfy cuuoaity. '41'.e were
ut deeps in this great ocean of ha
inanity e:wd like the others we were:
urrted away,' As we passed through
outs clean, prosperous -looping outsets
f alai little village ti Bedouin guide
old mo that many of these'streets
vete built in recent soars by old vast-
dents. of Bethlehem., who had gone to
America when they were yonag and
ad brought home big fortunes which
bey had made in the nervi country, and -
ad built these homes in their native
lace. --1 lavia . Camp Canfield, In
Around the World at Elghty."
Bad luck and poor judgment are
e house with her new maid on a
lour of inspection. She litil•tetl ie one
corner and, pointing to a eoleweb, d
d
sa t .
"[lave you seen this?" ut
"Yee, sum." said [he ew nttili:
"That was there when f /•ane: -some- i
thing .to do with your wireless, nut'1
11?"
F °4'9. A,R FFJ,t f X25--Bv Gene Byrnes.
eo5H.\,,00.
KNOW. ALL
THE KIDSoN' H
a UERE:
WHATS THAT
LAD'S NAME?
'ED
COYQ��e�,FF
see
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(Copyright 1955, by The Bell Syndicate, inc,),,
seTc:HA 004)T
CALL 'IM
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You JUST
CALL_q ,114
•, ar0?"
NO b+iE
DONTttoE
,,OLIVE
, CALI.° 'INI
OLI OIL
4M "
FOR BOOR'S!
Traveling Incognito
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