The Calling of Dan Matthews | Page 9

way by which,
as he put it, he might, when Dan needed him, "stand by."
CHAPTER III.
A GREAT DAY IN CORINTH
"'Talk of the responsibilities of age; humph! They are nothing
compared to the responsibilities of youth. There's Dan, now--'"
Corinth was in the midst of a street fair. The neighboring city held a
street fair that year, therefore Corinth. All that the city does Corinth
imitates, thereby with a beautiful rural simplicity thinking herself
metropolitan, just as those who take their styles from the metropolis
feel themselves well dressed. The very Corinthian clerks and grocery
boys, lounging behind their counters and in the doorways, the lawyer's
understudy with his feet on the window sill, the mechanic's apprentice,
the high school youths and the local sporting fraternity--all imitated
their city kind and talked smartly about the country "rubes" who came
to town; never once dreaming that they themselves, when they "go to
town," are as much a mark for the like wit of their city brothers. So

Corinth was in the midst of a street fair.
On every vacant lot in the down town section were pens, and stalls, and
cages, wherein grunted, squealed, neighed, bellowed, bleated, cackled
and crowed, exhibits from the neighboring farms. In the town hall or
opera house (it was both) there were long tables covered with almost
everything that grows on a farm, or is canned, baked, preserved,
pickled or stitched by farmers' wives. The "Art Exhibit," product
mainly of Corinth, had its place on the stage. Upon either side of the
main street were booths containing the exhibits of the local merchants;
farm machinery, buggies, wagons, harness and the like being most
conspicuous. The chief distinction between the town and country
exhibits were that the farmer displayed his goods to be looked at, the
merchant his to be sold. It was the merchants who promoted the fair.
In a vacant store room the Memorial Church was holding its annual
bazaar. On different corners other churches were serving chicken
dinners, or ice cream, or in sundry ways were actively engaged for the
conversion of the erring farmer's cash to the coffers of the village
sanctuaries. In this way the promoters of the fair were encouraged by
the churches. From every window, door, arch, pole, post, corner, gable,
peak, cupola--fluttered, streamed and waved, decorations--banners
mostly, bearing advertisements of the enterprising merchants and of the
equally enterprising churches.
Afternoons there would be a baseball game between town and country
teams, foot races, horseback riding, a greased pig to catch, a greased
pole to climb and other entertainments too exciting to think about, too
attractive to be resisted.
From the far backwoods districts, from the hills, from the creek
bottoms and the river, the people came to crowd about the pens, and
stalls and tables; to admire their own and their neighbors' products and
possessions, that they had seen many times before in their neighbors'
homes and fields. They visited on the street corners. They tramped up
and down past the booths. They yelled themselves hoarse at the games
and entertainments, and in the intoxication of their pleasures bought ice
cream, chicken dinners and various other things of the churches, and

much goods of the merchants who promoted the fair.
The Doctor was up that day at least a full hour before his regular time.
At breakfast Martha looked him over suspiciously, and when he folded
his napkin after eating only half his customary meal she remarked dryly,
"It's three hours yet till train time, Doctor."
Without answer the Doctor went out on the porch.
Already the country people, dressed in their holiday garb, bright-faced,
eager for the long looked for pleasures, were coming in for the fair.
Many of them catching sight of the physician hailed him gaily,
shouting good natured remarks in addition to their salutations, and
laughing loudly at whatever he replied.
It may be that the good Lord had made days as fine as that day, but the
Doctor could not remember them. His roses so filled the air with
fragrance, the grass in the front yard was so fresh and clean, the flowers
along the walk so bright and dainty, and the great maples, that make a
green arch of the street, so cool and mysterious in their leafy depths,
that his old heart fairly ached with the beauty of it. The Doctor was all
poet that day. Dan was coming!
It had worked out just as the Doctor had planned it on that fishing trip
some three months before. At first Martha was suspicious when he
broached the subject. Mostly Martha is suspicious when her husband
offers suggestions touching certain matters, but the wise old
philosopher knew what strings to pull, and so it all came out as he had
planned. Sammy had