Prague Patriot (Prague, Okla.), Vol. 5, No. 33, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 2, 1908 Page: 4 of 8
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SERSAL
STORY
LANGFORD
THREE
U
E
KATE AND VIRGIL D. BOYLES
(Cvp/rlgUt bjr A. C. MoC'lur# ^ Co., 1907.)
SYNOPSIS.
George Williston, a poor ranchman,
tilib-rmnded And cultured, M&roh< • foi
rattle missing from his ranch—the "I«a*y
*>." On a wooded a pot in the river's bed
that would have he en an inland hud the
Mi souri been at hif{h wator, he diacovrrn
a band of horse thlevea engaged in work
tug over brnridH on cattle. He creepa
near enough t« note the changing of tiie
"Three liars" brand on out* aioer to tin'
•'J. K." brand. Paul l.angford, the rich
©wner c f the "Three Itara" ranch ia writ
for by WIIILston and ia Inforinod of the
operations of the kjiiik of.cattle thieves
band of outlawH iieadin! by Jess«? Murk,
who long have delled the law and author-
ities of Kem&h county, Houlli Dakota,
with impunity, but who, heretofore, had
not dared to molest any of the property
of the great "Three Kara" ranch. Willis-
ton shows his reluctancy in opposing u
band so powerful in polities and so
dreaded by all the community. Langford
pledges Williston his friendship ii he
will assist in bringing "Jesse Mark" and
his gang t« justice. Landlord is struck
with the beauty of Mary, commonly
Known as "Willlston'a little girl." Louise
Dale, an expert court stenographer, who
liad followed her uncle, Judge Hammond
Dale, from the east to the "Dakotuhs,"
• ml wlio is living with him ut Wind City,
Is requested by the county attorney,
ltichard Cordon, to come to Kemah and
take testimony in the preliminary hear
.tig of Jesse lilark. She accepts the Invi-
tation and makes her first trip into the
wild Indian country. Arriving at Velpen
•cross the river from Kemah, she Is nu t
y Jim Munsoii, a hot headed cowboy of
:he "Three Bars" ranch. In waiting for
:he train Munson looks at some <sattlo In
the stock pen. In the herd being shipped
:o Hioux City by Kill Brown he deterts
*ld "Mag" a well known "onery" steer
Delonglng to his employer of the "Three
liars" ranch. Munson and Louise start
for Kemah. They take lunch a the lion
Ami restaurant, conducted by ,rs. HIk-
jflns, a great admirer of ltichard Cordon,
the county attorney. I.oulse is told of a
{neat poisoning plot which resulted in the
illness of Williston, l.angford and other
Witnesses for the slate in the cattle thief
:ase against Jesse Black. A buckboard
:ries to block the way of Muuaon's team
it the entrance to pontoon bridge across
'.he river. Munson crowds past the buck-
board team wrecking the buckboard.
They arrive at Willlaton's. Crowds as-
semble in Justice James It McAllister's
Court for the preliminary hearing. Jesse
lilack springs the first of many great
turprlses. waiving examination. Through
lake Sanderson, a member of the out-
law gang, he had learned that the steer
'Mag" had been recovered and thus saw
the uaelessneas of fighting againat being
bound over.
CHAPTER VII.—Continued.
"But what makes you think they are
mixed up In this affair
"They had their eyes on nie to see
what was I a doin' in Velpen. And 1
was a doin' things, too."
Ltngford pave a long, low whistle
of comprehension. That would ex-
plain the unexpected waiving of exam-
ination. Jesse Black know the steer
had beftu recovered and saw the fu
tility of fiKhting against his being
bound over.
"Now, ain't hIio a hummer?" Insist-
ed Jim, admiringly, but added slight-
ingly, "Homely, though, as all git-out.
Mouse-hair. Plumb homely."
"On the contrary, I think she is
plumb pretty," retorted Langford, a
laugh in his blue eyes. Jim fairly
gasped with chagrin.
Unconcerned, grinning. Black slouch-
ed to the door and out. Once straight-
en out that lazy-looking body and you
would have a big man in Jesse Black.
Yes, a big one and a quick one, too,
maybe. The crowd made way for him
unconsciously. No one jostled him.
He was a marked man from that day.
His lawyer, Small, leaned back in his
chair, radiating waves of self satisfac-
tion as though he had just gained a
disputed point. It was a manner he
affected when not on the lloor in a
frenzy of words and muscular action.
Jim Munson contrived to pass by
Jake Sanderson. *
"So you followed me to tlud out
about Mag, did you? Heap o* good it
did you! We knew you knew," he
bragged insultingly.
"Comin*. Dick. 1 dlnn't mean to blah
so much," Jim answered, contritely.
They moved away. Sanderson fol-
lowed them tip.
"Dick Gordon," he said with cool
deliberateness, "you're too damned
anxious to stick your nose into other
people's affairs. Learn you
ment, half of enjoyment of this play
of nonsense, and leading the way to
her suit case and Mary outside. "When
I make mistakes, will you tell me
about them? Down east, you know,
our feet travel In the ancient, pre-
scribed circles of our forefathers, and
r lesson, they are apt to go somewhat uncer-
will you? My favorite stunt is to
teach meddlers how to mind their own
business—this way."
It was not a fair blow. Gordon
doubled up with the force of the punch
In his stomach. In a moment all was
confusion. Men drew their pistols. It
looked as if there was to be a free for
all tight.
Langford sprang to his friend's aid,
using his fists with plentiful freedom
in his haste to get to him.
"Never mind me," whispered Gor-
don. He was leaning heavily on Jim's
shoulder. His face was pale, but he
smiled reassuringly. There was some-
thing very sweet about his mouth
when he smiled. "Never mind me,"
he repeated. "Get the girls out of
this—tpilck, Paul."
Mary and Louise had sought refuge
behind the big table.
"Quick, the back door!" cried Lang-
ford, leading the way; and as the
three passed out, he closed the door
behind them, saying. "You are al!
right now. Hun to the hotel. I must
see how Dick is coming on."
"Do you think he Is badly hurt?"
asked Louise. "Can't we help?"
"I think you had best get out of this
as quickly as you can. I don't believe
he Is knocked out, by any means, but
I want to be on hand for any future
events which may be called. Just fly
now, both of you."
The unfair blow In the stomach had
given the sympathy of most of the
bystanders, for the time being at least,
to Gordon. Men forgot, momentarily,
their grudge against him. Understand
Ing from the black looks that he was
not in touch with the crowd, Sander-
son laughed—a short snort of con
tempt—and slipped out of the door.
Unable to resist the impulse, Jim
hounded out after his enemy.
When Paul hastened around to the
front of the building, the crowd was
nearly all In the street. The tension
was relaxed. A dazed expression pre-
vailed—brought to life by the sudden-
ness with which the affair had devel-
oped to such interesting proportions
and the quickness with which it had
tlattened out to nothing. For Sander-
son had disappeared, completely,
mysteriously, and in all the level land-
scape, there was no trace of him nor
sign.
"See a balloon, Jim?" asked Lang-
ford, slapping him 011 the shoulder
with the glimmer of a smile. "Well,
STATE CAPITAL LETTER
CORPORATION
TERESTED
COMMISSION
IN TELEPHONES
face went
white with I |(>t
The man's
wrath.
"Damn you!" he cried. His hand
dropped to his belt.
The two glared at each like lighting
cocks. Men crowded around, sudden
ly aware that a quarrel was on.
"The Three ltar's a gittin' busy!" , „re -How very nlce
leered Jim.
The Man's Face Went White with
Wrath.
your red headed friend won't bo down
in a parachute—yet. Are you all right,
Dick, old man?"
"Yes. Where are the girls?"
"They are all right. 1 took them
through the back door and sent them
to the hotel."
"You kin bet on the boss every time
when it comes to petticoats," said Jim,
disconsolately.
"Why, Jim, what's up?" asked Dang
ford, in amused surprise.
Hut Jim only turned and wilked
away with his head in the air. The
serpent was leering at him.
CHAPTER VIII.
The County Attorney.
"I too am going to Wind City," said
a pleasant voice at her side. "You will
me help you with your things, will
| you not?'
j The slender girl standing before the
1 ticket window, stuffing change Into
her coin purse, turned quickly.
tainly if thrust Into new paths."
And this laughing, clever girl had
cried with homesickness! Well, no
wonder. The worst of it was, Bhe
could never hope to be acclimated.
She was not—their kind. Sooner or
later she must go back to God's coun-
try.
To her surprise, Gordon, though he
laughed softly for a moment, answer-
ed rather gravely.
If my somewhat niggardly fate
should grant ine that good fortune,
that I may do something for you, I
ask that you be not afraid to trust to
my help. It would not be half hearted
—I assure you."
She looked up at him gratefully.
His shoulders, slightly stooped, betok-
ening the grind at college and the bur-
den-bearing in later years, instead of
suggesting any Inherent weakness In
the man, rather inspired her with an
Intuitive faith in their quiet, unswerv-
ing, utter trusthworthlness.
"Thank you," she said, simply. "I
am so glad they did not hurt you
much that day in the court-room. We
worried—Mary and I."
"Thank you. There was not the
least danger. They were merely vent-
ing their spite on me. They would not
have dared more."
"There's my brakeman,' said Louise,
when she and Gordon had found a
seat near the rear. Mary had gone and
a brakeman had swung onto the last
car as it glided past the platform, and
came down the aisle with a grin of
recognition for his "little white lamb."
"How nice it all seems, just as if
I had been gone months instead of
days and was coming home again. It
would be funny if I should be home-
sick for the range when I get to
Wind City, wouldn't it?"
"Let us pray assiduously that it
may be so," answered Gordon, with
one of his rare smile3. He busied
himself a moment in stowing away
her belongings to the best advantage.
"It gets in one's blood—how or when,
one never knows."
They rode In silence for a while.
"Tell me about your big fight," said
Louise, presently. The roadbed was
fairly good, and they were spinning
along on a down grade. He must needs
bend closer to hear her.
She was good to look at, fair and
sweet, and it had been weary years
since women had come close to Gor-
don's life. In the old college days, be-
fore this hard, disappointing, unequal
fight against the dominant forces of
greed, against tolerance of might over-
coming right, had begun to sap his
vitality, he had gone too deeply into
his studies to have much time left
for the gayetles and gallantries of the
social side In university life. He had
not been popular with women. They
did not know him. Yet, though
dubbed a "dig" by his follow colleg-
ians, the men liked him. They liked
him for his trustworthiness, admired
him for his rugged honesty, desired his
friendship for the inspiration of his
high ideals.
"What shall I talk about, MiS3 Dale?
It is all very prosaic and unterestlug.
I'm afraid; shockingly primitive, glar-
ingly new."
"1 breakfasted with a stanch friend
of yours this morning," answered
Louise, somewhat irrelevantly. She
had a feeling—a woman's feeling—that
this earnest, hard-working, reserved
man would never blurt out things
about himself with the bland self-
centredness of most men. She must
use all her woman's wit to draw him
out. She did not know yet that he
was starved for sympathy—for under
standing. She could not know yet
that two affinities had drifted through
space-—near together. A feathei
zephyr, blowing where It listed, might
widen the space between to an infinity
of distance so that they might never
know how nearly they had once met;
or it might, as its whim dictated, blow
them together so that for weal or foi
woe they would know each the other.
(To Be Continued.)
THE SCHOOL LUND PUOPOSITIOH BOBS UP
1 The ichool land lessees of the
state, employing skilled lobbyists to
represent them, are beginning to
work on the state legislature for the
i Immediate sale of all the school
I N- lands. Petitions are arriving daily at
j Guthrie asking the legislature to lis-
ten to what the lessees are asking and
to grant their requests. In a few
' counties farmers have organized to
oppose the demands of the lessees,
; and insist that no hasty or unwise ac-
lion be taken by the legislature In
. .. .. disposing of the school lands. These
Less-e.-t are Ma.ntain.ng a Lobby «t clt|leng ,M,st tha( ,he state ,9 not
Guthrie—Political Influence Enter* suffering any great travail by reason
Into the Question—Text-Book Com- of it3 present ownership of the
mission is Named | school lands, and that It Is be.t to
, ... „ i.jinii he'd ,he lands awhile and figure
The state corporation commissioni ( ^ ^ ^ ^ tban
ia going after the telephone compv (q ^ < f thpm a[)d theQ flguro
nles of the state, with a sharp sLck„ t m, ht havo been done with
The commission has employed experts ^ ^ to the s&fety o|
and will prosecute Its inquiries a ong (he gchool ]ands ^ (he p0„t,e„ lnflu.
scientific and technical lines until i ence of the 10,000 lessees, most ol
learns exactly what it costs to oper j wh(jm are democraU. By reason of
ate a telephone exchange of a given j fa an(J neighborhoo,i tics they
size and capacity, and will use tueso j ni a voting strength of not
statistics in ascertaining what rates; le3s (han 40 000 The republicans,
should be In larger or smaller ex , there were fewer lessees than
changes. The exchange at Enid, one , m)W saw t|,e political aspect of the
of the moat modern in the world, ac-
cording to experts, will be used as a
test in gaining this information.
The head and front of the telephone
busiuess in the state is the Pioneer
Telephone and Telegraph, successor
to the Missouri & Kansas Telephone
company. The Pioneer company De-
longs to the Bell Telephone company
and its interlocking companies. It
pays to the Hell company an annual
royalty of $2 for each receiver and
transmitter, which rival companies
are offering to sell outright for less
than $2. The Pioneer has issued -4,-
6S3 shares of stock at $100 a share. Of
this number the American Telephone
&. Telegraph company owns 20,2-0
shares. The Pioneer company has 9f>
situation and entered Into an agree-
ment with the lessees that elected
Hird McGulre the last time he was a
candidate for delegate to congress.
The republicans championed the sale
of the school lands In a manner satis-
factory to the lessees, while the dem-
ocrats stood for ail the people, in-
stead of tying themselves solely to
the lessees. The situation now Is re-
versed. In those legislative districts
where the lessees are strongest re-
publicans have the greater chance of
winning. The lessees will vote for
those who serve them best, and toe
democrats hesitate to take chances.
Governor C. N. Haskell said this
week that he had been pressed with
so many other questions that he had
Jest'3 the
Good Shepherd
Sondiy School Lesson for April 5, 1908
Specially Prepared for This Papor
exchanges in the state, 4,9G< miles of j not given much thought to the school
pole lines, 24,721 miles of wire lines, land question. He believed, however,
and 7,073 toll stations, and claims to j that they might be sold, but under
have about 8 million doilars invested j any plan the question would be sub-
in its properties in the slate. The mitted to the people. Speaker Wil-
corporation commission will watcu j liam H. Murray was rather non-com-
to see if this amount of property is i mittal, but was free enough to say
listed by the company for taxation. that he believed the present legisla-
The present Inquiry Is due to a spe- j wo,lld settle tlle Bch°o1 laad
ciflc complaint made by citizens of i question.
Enid against a proposed raise by the " ~
Pioneer company in the monthly ren-1 The state board of education ha.
tal price of business telephones from named a commission to recommend
$2.50 to $.1, and residence telephones | to the board for adoption a umfoim
from $1.50 to $2. The commission list of text books or use in the corn-
was asked to forbid the raise, and ' « schools. Ostensibly to protect
keep the old rates in force. Both tne
commission and the telephone com-
pany have employed experts to rep-
resent them in the controversy. The
telephone company asserts that to
keep a plant like that at Enid in good |
working condition the annual income
the school patrons of the state against
the book trust, the board instructed
the commission not to consider any
books published by the American
Hook company or Its affiliated com-
panies. This resolution was offered
' at a mating of the board by Chas.
from each instrument should be not West. state attorney general second-
,Tr.,:
SI? i "m.Sure!
.. .; • book commission was named twenty-
ally from each instrument and set, . , , „ .
aside as a sinking fund, making the j to be done.
total necessary income from to | ^ ^ out,awlng |he Amerlcan 1!ook
company is regarded by many persons
I at Guthrie, eager to know what was
done.
The action of the board of educa-
$27 a year.
This claim of the Pioneer company j
impulsive and inexpedient. The
- . . , l i , aa luipuiaivts ti
is refuted by the expert testimony of ( j,jstory Df the American Book com-
C. Kelsey construction engineer! oklahoma as made by its al-
for the Kellogg Electrical fcuppl} i jegejj representatives is known to
company of Chicago. He said that for practica]Iy every citizen, and few
an exchange like that at Enid the | persons may be found so foolish as to
annual cost per instrument in keep- j defend it xhere are persons, flow-
ing the plant in good working condi- j everi better acquainted with condi-
tion should not be more t:ian $10, an i ' tlons than most others, who know
that for interest on the investment i that few, if any, book companies are
and for rebuilding the plant the ad-, free from trust restraints. They
ditlonal revenue for each instrument |{now tjlat m()St Qf the companies be-
should be about $1 a year. A total of
long to a community of interests
$17 a year was regarded by Kelsey as i permits their competing with
ample for the purposes named. '',e|cach other in intense rivalry for bus-
Pioneer company probably will ha\e i s0 long as tliev do not trans-
to convince the corporation commis-
sion that
i yond a certain limit, then all the oth-
The commissioner has asked thc jer3 pounce upon it, and whip it into
corporation commission of Wisconsin nn0
gress certain regulations. Should a
Kelsey is wrong bofore it conipany have the temerity to go be-
wlns its case.
for the use of its telephone expert
and al30 for a copy of the ovidence
taken in a town in Wisconsin, about
the size of Enid, on the question of
telephone rates.
At this time the corporation com-
Experience in past Oklahoma legis-
latures has shown that the price of
books, often excessively high, is not
the burden that bears most heavily
| upon the buyer. The great injustice
has been the lack of uniformity, and
mission probably will not do more | a fixed period during which no change
than ask mutual and farmers' tele-1 may be made In the books used. Uni-
phone companies in the slate to | formlty would make it possible for a
"Why, Mr. Gordon," she said, hold-
I ing out a small hand with frank pleas-
ure. "How very nice! Thank you, will
you take my rain-coat? It has been
"Come, Jim, I want you." It was
Gordon's quiet voice. He laid a re-
straining hand on Munson's overzeal-
our arm.
"Dick Gordon, this ain't your put-
in," snarled Sanderson. "(Ht out the
way!" He shoved him roughly aside.
"Now, snappln' turtle," to Jim, "the
such a bother. 1 would bring It right
in the face of Uncle Hammond's ob |
jections. He said it never rained out j
this way. Rut I surely have suffered a
plenty for my waywardness. Don't you I
think so?"
"It behooves a tenderfoot like you \
to sit and diligently learn of such ex- I
Three liars 'd better git busy!" I perlenced and toughened old timers as '
A feint at a blow, a clever little j we are, rather than flaunt your tin |
twist of the feet, and Munson sprawl-J tried Ideas in our faces, responded
*(] on the floor, men pressing back to Gordon, with a smile that transformed |
Ktve him the full force of the fall, the koen gray eyes of this man of j
Tliey believed in fair play. Hut Jim, | much labor, much lofty ambition, and
uncowed, was up with the nimbleuess much sorrow, so that they seemed
■if a monkey.
"Hit away!" he cried, tauntingly. "I
irnow nough to swear out a warrant
'gainst you! 'T won't bo so lonesome
for Jesse now breakln' stones over to
Bluux Kails."
"Jim!" It was Gordon's quiet, au-
thoritative voice once more. "1 told
you I wanted you." He threw his arm
v«r the belll&ereut's shoulder.
for the moment strangely
METHODS ARE TOO STRENUOUS.
Why Yankee Salesmen Have Not Suc-
ceeded in South America.
In the matter of ealesmen abroad,
we must have men who not only speak
the language but who are also thor-
oughly conversant with the customs
j and idiosyncrasies of the people with
| whom they deal, says the Engineering
j Magazine. The South American, in
| ills buying as in almost everything
J else, is a most deliberate person as
j well as a sensitive one. A salesman
i who will call, smoke a cigarette, talk
j inconsequently about the weather, the
theater and the races, and answer
| questions—should any happen to be
asked—rather than make assertions
about his goods, will outsell, five to
one, the liveliest hustler that ever
opened up a sample case. This Is a
thing so contrary to the instinct of the
American salesman that, to date, In
his wanton disregard of it, he has con-
stantly played Into the hands of his
more experienced European rivals.
"Your Yaakee drummers," says the
latter politely, "are the greatest sales-
men In the world—In America.''
Shakespeare a Shylock.
In those districts in which hardly
charge reasonable rates for service
Should complaints be made by pat-
rons. however, the commission will
hear them.
child using a McGuffey reader at
Poteau to enter school at Kenton, way
out close to the New Mexico line,
without buying a new book. A fixed
time during which only certain books
shall be used would prevent a change
in arithmetics or spellers every few
months at the behest of a corrupt
school board dealing with a corrupt
Bankers of the state are propDsiu*
amendments to the state guaranty
banking law that may be accepted,
and which would obviate the objection
cf bankers who are opposed to indefi-1 school book agent
nite liabilities. The amendments, citizens of the state of Oklahoma
proposed would forb d a maximum j g5,ou]d know and realize that the book
levy in a single year of more than 1 , companles are making the fight of
per cent on the da! y average depodU . * ,n ,hp flnjt leK,aIature to
for the year. One-tenth of 1 per cent' „ foothold ln the atate from which
l'hey are
each
ecretly
seeking influence to promote their
. , get a foothold in the state rrom
would be paid annually until a reserve I 8 bp dislod d Th
fund of 1 million dollars had been ac-, * nQW 0uthrl8> ln
cumulated. For this year they are, )n each g
willing to pay 1-2 of cue per cent. \* >• 1nflllHn,n to D1.omot„
If the reserve fund and an additional
1 per cent should be insutT.cIent to
cover losses, then the bankers pro-
pose that the state bani;:ng noaril ls-
8ue certificates of indebtedness for
the uiipald lcsses to be ^deemed by | aU ends are played to
an annual 1 per cent levy. Governor |
Haskell Is opposed to any amend-1
ments that would tend to impair the
new law by bringing it Into the courts
plans. It is not uncommon for a book
company to introduce two or three
bills at a session of the legislature,
each seemingly at variance with the
others. They are drawn so adroitly,
laughing, untroubled; as clear of taint any Jews live the Jewish character Is
of evil knowledge as the source of a
stream leaping joyously Into the sun-
light from some mountain solitude. It
was a revelation to Louise.
"1 will try to be a good and dill
gent seeker after knowledge of this
strange land of yours," she answered,
with u little laugh, half of eiubarass-
spitefully and contemptuously repre-
sented in proverbial expressions.
Thus Shakespeare, who depicted the
Jewish character as so cruel and avu-
rlelous, never, it has been proved, saw
a Jew, as in Ills time no Jew might
reside In England. —Allgewelne !£el-
tang des Judmtums.
[ the middle. If amendments are to be
made, it is known just how to kill
the amendment by a change at an-
other place In the bill. It Is an old
trick to delay the passage of these
hills until the closing hours of the
legislature and then rush them
through when there is no time for
close inspection.
At Miami a full blood Delaware In-
dian has Just died at the age of 184
years.
in connection with bank failures, as
this would destroy its efficacy in
times of greatest emergency.
The Courier at Ponca City is led to
amazed comment because a father
and son celebrated their birthday on
the same day. and the father was just
twice as old as the son, being 56 and
the son 28.
The present legislature In all prob
ability will give new life to the com-
mission appointed by William li.|
Murray, under authority of the con
stltutlonal convention, to ascertain
the extent and value of the segre-
gated Choctaw Chickasaw coal aud
asphalt lands and learn at what price
they could be purchased by the state
The old commission reported to the
legislature several weeks agj, but
beyond saying that It might be desir-
abil for the state to owu the lands
at a prico not exceeding 10 million
dollars, the report contained nothing] the new state. It
of Importance. The committee passed j Express Messenger's
out of existence with its
Kev. F. D. Stevick of Hinton Is
Raid to be the greatest florist ln the
state. Somehow we cannot help but
trust a fellow who loves flowers and
under whose tender hands they nour-
ish, sentimentally observes the Okla-
homan.
A new novel, fresh from the press
and said to be from the facile pen of
one of Oklahoma's most famous pol-
itician,!, Is said to be having an ex-
LKSSON TEXT.—John 10:1-18. Memory
verst'. H.
GOLDEN TEXT.—"The good shepherd
glvetli his life tor the sheep."—John 10:11.
TIME.—September, A. IV 29, at the feast
of tabernacdes (John 7:2). Some commen-
tators, however, consider that John 9:1-10:
21 took place at the feast of dedication
(John 10:22) in November. The latter
part of the third year of Jesus' public
ministry.
PLACE.— Jerusalem. On the second
supposition as to time, the exact place
was Solomon's porch, on the east side of
the temple. "Jesus with His audience
might have seen the shepherds gathering
their scattered flocks If they grazed out
from the courts of the temple over the
neighboring hills."" Public Commentary.
PERSONS.—Probably the blind man
whom Christ had Just healed, some of
Christ's disciples, and some of the Phari-
see#.
Comment and Suggestive Thought.
The Twofold Parable: the Fold, the
Shepherd.—Vs. 1-6. First let us try
to put ourselves back among the
sheepfolds of Christ's time. How were
they arranged? "The fold was a
walled enclosure open to the sky, with
a solid door, which was closely barred
at night by the doorkeeper, and opened
by him in the morning, when the shep-
herds came to claim their sheep,
which they had left In the fold tho
previous evening, in order to lead out
to pasture."—Century Bible. The door-
keeper, or "porter," would know that
anyone found climbing in over the
wall was "a thief" (a sneak thief),
or "a robber" (a moro violent rascal >
The Twofold Interpretation of the
Parable.—Vs. 7-42. What double anal-
ogy did Christ draw from the parable?
lie was the Door (v. 7) and the Shep-
herd (v. 11). Why did he run the
risk of confusing his hearers? Because
truth is so many-sided, and Christ
means so much to men, that many
comparisons are needed to picture It
all.
First Analogy: Christ, the Door
(vs. 7-9). How is Christ like the door
of a fold? Through him alone can
men enter into the peace and safety
that a fold implies—safety from the
ravening beasts of sin, peace in the
consciousness of safety. Through the
door, too, they go out (v. 9) into the
"pasture." "What am a doo' fo', any-
how? Jes' to shet yo' out, jes' to shet
yo' In' or to let yo' thro'. Jesus am de
Doo', de way into de Kingdom: an'
he am de Doo', de way out into life.
He sho' did say, 'If yo' enters in by
me, yo' shall be saved'—no evil can
git by de Doo' Jesus. An' yo' shall go
out an' in!' Honey, dat am de free-
dom what he am all de time promisin'
'An' yo' shall find pasture.' Dat am de
fullness of life what he am all de time
tellin' 'bout. When yo' passes out an'
when yo' passes in, yo' sho' nuf has
to pass right by de Mastali, and look
him plum squar' in de eyes."—J. W.
l.awrancc. "Go in and out" was a
phrase familiar to the Jews. See
Deut. 28: «; Psa. 121: 8; Jer. 37: 4.
Why did Christ say he was the
door of the sheep, rather than "of the
fold?" Because Christ was thinking of
his Individual followers, the sheep,
rather than of the fold, his church.
He is the door of both.
Who were those that came before
Christ, the thieves and robbers, whom
the sheep did not hear? Not the
prophets, who humbly pointed forward
to Christ, but the Jewish leaders of
the time just before Christ, and es-
pecially the Pharisees. They had laid
many heavy burdens upon the people,
who had been compelled to obey tho
severe requirements of formal religion,
but their hearts never yielded to these
false leaders, "the sheep did not hear
them."
Second Analogy: Christ, the Shep-
herd (vs. 10-18, 22-30.) As opposed to
the Pharisees' wrong way of enter-
ing the Kingdom, Christ was the
Door; but as opposed to the charac-
ter of the Pharisees, he was the Shep-
herd. "As mediator between God and
man, he Is the Door; as prophet or
teacher, ho is the Good Shepherd."—
James M. Macdonald. D. D. This is a
frequent metaphor of the Old Testa-
ment, applied to God and to God s
honored servants (Num. 27: 15-21;
Psa. 23; 80: 1; lsa. 40: 11; Jer. 23:
1-4; Ezek. 34: 11-16; Zech. 11: 4-17.)
Homer often speaks of his kings and
leaders as shepherds; see also Plato's
Republic, Book 1. "The figure has
impressed itself deeply on the mind
of Christendom, and is conspicuous
in the ait and literature of the
churches. It Is still the emblem of the
Christian ministry, from the office of
the bishop, with his pastoral staff, to
that of the village preacher, who Is
known as pastor."—Century Bible.
"This is the favorite and most touch-
ing figure in the Catacombs. It seems
to inspire the early Christian painters
with delightful skill.
How was Christ like a shepherd?
In (1) his care of men (vs. 10-13), in
(2) his knowledge of men (vs. 14, 15),
in (3) the breadth of his love for men
(v. 16), in (4) the eagerness of men's
love foi- him (v. 27), ia (5) his dlvina
commission to care for men (vs. 15,
17, 18, 25, 29.)
Two Kinds of Hearers (vs. 19-21.
31-42.) Christ's words, like a two-
edged sword, always divided his hear-
ers Into two classes: those that
mocked at him or raged against him.
and those that went away thoughtful
and impressed If'not convinced. If
the last half of the chapter is to bo
referred to tho same occasion as tho
first hair (see "Time"), the first set
of hearers even tried to stone Christ
for his claim of unity with God This
stoning (Or blasphemy was prescribed
In l^ev. 24: 16, and the Jews had at-
trnord'.nary sale In some portions ol I u>mDtt)d n only two month* beforo.
Is entitled "Tha 1 - - - • • - • -
Temptation,
repuj-t. | Alone With a Car Load of Juge."
Ia which class of heaieis uro youT
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Overstreet, W. S. Prague Patriot (Prague, Okla.), Vol. 5, No. 33, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 2, 1908, newspaper, April 2, 1908; (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc118176/m1/4/: accessed April 24, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.