Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 53, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 March 1916 — Kin Hubbard Essays TH’ WORLD T'DAY [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Kin Hubbard Essays

TH’ WORLD T'DAY

By KIN HUBBARD.

It's been about thirty-five years since ole Marsh Swallow used t’ drop in Cale Fluhart’s sanctum of a mornln’ an’ look over th’ only daily paper that come t’ town an’ then put his steel rimmed spectacles back in a tin case an’ remark: "Well, Cale, It looks like th* world wuz goin’ t’ h-1.” I reckon a good many folks arrive at th' same conclusion t'day after they skim over th’ newspaper headlines. Yet Ipok back at th’ things that have happened since ole Marsh Swallow's day—things that threatened th’ very life o’ th’"nation —an’ then look at th' world t’day. She chugs along as merrily as you please without even a loose fender. We’re all too ready t’ view with

alarm. We give up too easy after readin’ th’ newspapers. Jest because some feller kills his wife an* shoots himself in th’ arm is no reason why we should all prepare fer th’ worst. Fads an’ panics an’ crime waves come an’ go' an' are soon fergotten. In spite of all th’ newspaper headlines to’ th’ contrary th’ world is growin’ better an’ It’s a great privilege t’ live in it even if you’re peddlin’ lead pencils. There’s an ever increasin’ demand fer croquet sets, an’ skilled scientists are devotin’ ther best licks t’ th’ prolongin’ o’ human life. Th’ softenin’ influence o’ women an’ girls in th’ trades an’ professions tends t’ sweeten labor, easy modes o’ transportation brings friends an’ relatives t’ th’ closest intimacy. It’s some world. This is th’ age o’ runnin’ in debt, which proves our confidence in th’ future. Th’ elimination o’ waste has

made such gigantic strides that even a cold baked p’tato may be utilized. This is an age o’ supervision an’ inspection. Even folks who board know what they’re eatin’. Civic pride an' 3 Idve o' personal adornment is penetratin’ fer in’ th’ rural districts. Red ramblers cling about th’ most brnnhW homes, while th’ farmer who’s unacquainted with th’ twists an' turns of a loud four-ln-hand la th’ exception. Life savin’ machinery has replaced th’ ole time churn an’ washboard. Carpenters quit work in th’ middle o' th’ afternoon, an’ primes are kept under glass. Great charity organizations look after th’ cold an’ starvin’ who fergit t’ work in th* summer, an’ scheme*

o’ ever’ sort are provided fer those who neglected t’ iearn a trade. It's a great world. An industrial relapse bas been scheduled t’ foller ever’ labor savin’ invention, an’ moral ruin has been in-, variably linked frith ever’ social spasm, yet here we are. Don’t git a warped view o’ life on account of a few scattered crimes. Don’t lose interest in life because some wife murderer gits paroled, or a bank wrecker gits a new trial. Don’t become a sallow calamity howler with a clogged liver an’ a vibratin’ Adam’s apple on account o* th’ tango, ankle watch an’ isinglass stockin’s. Ther’s still lots o’ good in th* world outside th’ case belt Wear th’ smile o' optimism, even if it does make you look like a young widower.

"Ole Marsh Swallow Used t’ Drop in Cale Fluhart’s Sanctum of a Mornin* an' Look Over th’ Only Dally Paper That Come t’ Town an* Then Put His Steel Rimmed Spectacles Back In a Tin Case an’ Remark: "Well* Cale, It Looks Like th’ World Wuz goin’t’ H I.”