COURTESY UNDER TRYING CONDITIONS 



135 



Raisins are not made from American 

 grapes; no kind at least that will com- 

 pete commercially with those in the 

 market, though some maintain that the 

 Indians of America made raisins from 

 wild grapes. California has now be- 

 come the greatest of the world's raisin 

 producing regions, the climate being 

 almost perfectly adapted to the indus- 

 try. So to sum up : the Vitis vinifera 

 succeeds well in California for wine 

 and raisins ; the Concord is the big pro- 

 ducer in the Eastern United States for 

 grape juice, and is fairly well esteemed 

 as a table grape ; the Delaware is un- 

 doubtedly the best in the United States 

 for the table. 



For valuable suggestions in the pre- 

 paration of this article we are indebted 

 to "The Grapes of New York" by U. 

 P. Hedrick of the New York Agricul- 

 tural Experiment Station. This book 

 is a large volume of five hundred and 

 sixty-four pages, beautifully illustrated 

 with full page plates in colors. 



The passenger gave the railroadman 

 a severe and most profane tongue lash- 

 ing for having motioned him back when 

 he first started to alight. 



But Peter Hunt maintained absolute 

 silence, remembering the New Haven's 

 "Courtesy" principles : 



"The railroad officer and employee, 

 above all others, should be courteous 

 because the railroad is a semi-public 

 institution. Those who patronize the 

 railroad expect and should receive 

 courtesy and helpful treatment." 



Dark clouds are overspreading all the sky, 

 And yet the woods o'erflow with sunshine 

 bright; 

 The autumn fairies, passing swiftly by, 

 Have filled them with their radiance 

 overnight. 



— Emma Peirce. 



Courtesy under Trying Conditions. 



Peter Hunt is station master for th< 

 New Haven Railroad at Bridgeport. 

 He is a favorite with both the patrons 

 of the road and his fellow employees. 



Like most railroad men Mr. Hunt 

 realizes the dangers of taking chances 

 in getting on and off moving trains, and 

 he is always on the lookout for passen- 

 gers who disregard ordinary safety pre- 

 cautions. 



Recently an express train pulled into 

 the Bridgeport station and after dis- 

 charging and taking on passengers was 

 given the signal to proceed. At this 

 moment a passenger who had evident- 

 ly been dozing awoke and grabbing his 

 bag rushed to the door of the car- As 

 he started to get off the train he was 

 seen by Mr. Hunt, who motioned him 

 to get back on the car. The passenger 

 started to do this but changed his mind. 

 He jumped off the train and as he did 

 so he fell. 



Mr. Hunt was right after him and 

 pulled him up on his feet. Had he not 

 done so, an eye-witness asserts, the 

 passenger would have lost both legs. 



The point of this story is the behav- 

 ior of the two men after the railroad 

 man saved the passenger from a ser- 

 ious accident. 



Why Percy's Chicken Hops! 



BY E. W. POMEROY, D. D. S., STAMFORD, CONN. 



Willie Mendoza, the Mexican jumping bean, 

 Crossed the border after swimming the 



stream. 

 Willie was a bold jumping bean 

 And hopped about stealthily unseen. 

 A bandit bean, and robber bold 

 In search of trouble and lust of gold. 

 As he hopped the soil of Uncle Sam 

 A song burst forth and thus it ran: 

 "Yo ho — yo ho — and some kerosene! 

 I'm Willie Mendoza the jumping bean. 

 Who'er interferes will get a bump." 

 And bv this noble song he sung 

 An old hen's heart was sadly wrung. 

 "Whoe'er could sing a song so sweet 

 Would sure be mighty good to eat." 

 And she sought the singer of this lusty song 

 For Willie her heart did sadly long. 

 At lensrth he hopped into her sight 

 And she swallowed him down with all her 



might. 

 In her throat she felt the beanish bump 

 And was thereupon seized with a case of 



jumps. 

 She jumped for days upon both legs, 

 And jumped so hard she laid some eggs. 

 Hardly had the eesrs been laid 

 When she ceased to hop and felt repaid. 

 But one of the eggs disappeared 

 As along the road it hopped and reared. 

 Apparentlv Willie was in the egg. 

 For it hopped and jumped like a bandit 



yegg. 



It hopped North. South. East and West, 

 And landed finally in Percy's nest. 

 The nest he set the hen upon. 

 And there it stayed and batched anon. 

 It hatched one day with a loud report. 

 Willie hopped out and with a snort 

 Of disgust at the soil of Uncle Sam, 

 Hopped back to his beanish Mexican land. 

 But the chicken from the egg that Willie 



broke 

 Has hopped ever since, and that's no joke. 



