Winesburg, Ohio Sherwood Anderson (free novels txt) đ
- Author: Sherwood Anderson
Book online «Winesburg, Ohio Sherwood Anderson (free novels txt) đ». Author Sherwood Anderson
âNot that I think that has anything to do with it. There it is, you see. You understand how puzzled I was.
âThen an idea came to me. I laughed. Youâll laugh, too. Of course it rained over in Medina County. Thatâs interesting, eh? If we had no trains, no mails, no telegraph, we would know that it rained over in Medina County. Thatâs where Wine Creek comes from. Everyone knows that. Little old Wine Creek brought us the news. Thatâs interesting. I laughed. I thought Iâd tell youâ âitâs interesting, eh?â
Joe Welling turned and went out at the door. Taking a book from his pocket, he stopped and ran a finger down one of the pages. Again he was absorbed in his duties as agent of the Standard Oil Company. âHernâs Grocery will be getting low on coal oil. Iâll see them,â he muttered, hurrying along the street, and bowing politely to the right and left at the people walking past.
When George Willard went to work for the Winesburg Eagle he was besieged by Joe Welling. Joe envied the boy. It seemed to him that he was meant by Nature to be a reporter on a newspaper. âIt is what I should be doing, there is no doubt of that,â he declared, stopping George Willard on the sidewalk before Daughertyâs Feed Store. His eyes began to glisten and his forefinger to tremble. âOf course I make more money with the Standard Oil Company and Iâm only telling you,â he added. âIâve got nothing against you but I should have your place. I could do the work at odd moments. Here and there I would run finding out things youâll never see.â
Becoming more excited Joe Welling crowded the young reporter against the front of the feed store. He appeared to be lost in thought, rolling his eyes about and running a thin nervous hand through his hair. A smile spread over his face and his gold teeth glittered. âYou get out your note book,â he commanded. âYou carry a little pad of paper in your pocket, donât you? I knew you did. Well, you set this down. I thought of it the other day. Letâs take decay. Now what is decay? Itâs fire. It burns up wood and other things. You never thought of that? Of course not. This sidewalk here and this feed store, the trees down the street thereâ âtheyâre all on fire. Theyâre burning up. Decay you see is always going on. It doesnât stop. Water and paint canât stop it. If a thing is iron, then what? It rusts, you see. Thatâs fire, too. The world is on fire. Start your pieces in the paper that way. Just say in big letters âThe World Is On Fire.â That will make âem look up. Theyâll say youâre a smart one. I donât care. I donât envy you. I just snatched that idea out of the air. I would make a newspaper hum. You got to admit that.â
Turning quickly, Joe Welling walked rapidly away. When he had taken several steps he stopped and looked back. âIâm going to stick to you,â he said. âIâm going to make you a regular hummer. I should start a newspaper myself, thatâs what I should do. Iâd be a marvel. Everybody knows that.â
When George Willard had been for a year on the Winesburg Eagle, four things happened to Joe Welling. His mother died, he came to live at the New Willard House, he became involved in a love affair, and he organized the Winesburg Baseball Club.
Joe organized the baseball club because he wanted to be a coach and in that position he began to win the respect of his townsmen. âHe is a wonder,â they declared after Joeâs team had whipped the team from Medina County. âHe gets everybody working together. You just watch him.â
Upon the baseball field Joe Welling stood by first base, his whole body quivering with excitement. In spite of themselves all the players watched him closely. The opposing pitcher became confused.
âNow! Now! Now! Now!â shouted the excited man. âWatch me! Watch me! Watch my fingers! Watch my hands! Watch my feet! Watch my eyes! Letâs work together here! Watch me! In me you see all the movements of the game! Work with me! Work with me! Watch me! Watch me! Watch me!â
With runners of the Winesburg team on bases, Joe Welling became as one inspired. Before they knew what had come over them, the base runners were watching the man, edging off the bases, advancing, retreating, held as by an invisible cord. The players of the opposing team also watched Joe. They were fascinated. For a moment they watched and then, as though to break a spell that hung over them, they began hurling the ball wildly about, and amid a series of fierce animal-like cries from the coach, the runners of the Winesburg team scampered home.
Joe Wellingâs love affair set the town of Winesburg on edge. When it began everyone whispered and shook his head. When people tried to laugh, the laughter was forced and unnatural. Joe fell in love with Sarah King, a lean, sad-looking woman who lived with her father and brother in a brick house that stood opposite the gate leading to the Winesburg Cemetery.
The two Kings, Edward the father, and Tom the son, were not popular in Winesburg. They were called proud and dangerous. They had come to Winesburg from some place in the South and ran a cider mill on the Trunion Pike. Tom King was reported to have killed a man
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