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first, you should know this John Gadsby; a man of "around fifty;" a
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family man, and known throughout Branton Hills for his high standard of
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honor and altruism on any kind of an occasion for public good. A loyal
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churchman, Gadsby was a man who, though admitting that an occasional
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fault in our daily acts is bound to occur, had taught his two boys and
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a pair of girls that, though folks do slip from what Scriptural authors
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call that "straight and narrow path," it will not pay to risk your own
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Soul by slipping, just so that you can laugh at your ability in staying
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out of prison; for Gadsby, having grown up in Branton Hills, could
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point to many such man or woman. So, with such firm convictions in his
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mind, this upstanding man was constantly striving so to act that no
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complaint from man, woman or child should bring a word of disapproval.
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In his mind, what a man might do was that man's affair only and could
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stain no Soul but his own. And his altruism taught that it is not
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difficult to find many ways in which to bring joy to such as cannot,
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through physical disability, go out to look for it; and that only a
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small bit of joy, brought to a shut-in invalid will carry with it such
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a warmth as can flow only from acts of human sympathy.
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For many days Gadsby had thought of ways in which folks with a goodly
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bank account could aid in building up this rapidly backsliding town of
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Branton Hills. But, how to show that class what a contribution could
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do? In this town, full of capitalists and philanthropists contributing,
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off and on, for shipping warming pans to Zulus, Gadsby saw a solution.
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In whom? Why, in just that bunch of bright, happy school kids, back
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from many a visit to a _city_, and noting its ability in improving its
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living conditions. So Gadsby thought of thus carrying an inkling to
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such capitalists as to how this stagnating town could claim a big spot
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upon our national map, which is now shown only in small, insignificant
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print.
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As a start, Branton Hills' "Daily Post" would carry a long story,
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outlining a list of factors for improving conditions. This it did; but
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it will always stay as a blot upon high minds and proud blood that not
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a man or woman amongst such capitalists saw, in his plan, any call for
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dormant funds. But did that stop Gadsby? Can you stop a rising wind?
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Hardly! So Gadsby took into council about forty boys of his vicinity
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and built up an Organization of Youth. Also about as many girls who had
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known what it is, compulsorily to pass up many a picnic, or various
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forms of sport, through a lack of public park land. So this strong,
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vigorous combination of both youth and untiring activity, avidly took
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up Gadsby's plan; for nothing so stirs up a youthful mind as an
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opportunity for accomplishing anything that adults cannot do. And did
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Gadsby _know_ Youth? I'll say so! His two sons and girls, now in High
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or Grammar school, had taught him a thing or two; principal amongst
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which was that all-dominating fact that, at a not too far distant day,
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our young folks will occupy important vocational and also political
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positions, and will look back upon this, _our_ day; smiling kindly at
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our way of doing things. So, to say that many a Branton Hills "King of
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Capital" got a bit huffy as a High School stripling was proving how
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stubborn a rich man is if his dollars don't aid so vast an opportunity
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for doing good, would put it mildly! Such downright _gall_ by a
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half-grown kid to inform _him_; an outstanding light on Branton Hills'
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tax list, that this town was sliding down hill; and would soon land
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in an abyss of national oblivion! And our Organization girls! _How_
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Branton Hills' rich old widows and plump matrons did sniff in disdain
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as a group of High School pupils brought forth straightforward claims
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that cash paving a road, is doing good practical work, but, in filling
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up a strong box, is worth nothing to our town.
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Oh, that class of nabobs! How thoroughly Gadsby _did_ know its
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parsimony!! And how thoroughly did this hard-planning man know just
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what a constant onslaught by Youth could do. So, in about a month, his
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"Organization" had "waylaid," so to say, practically half of Branton
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Hills' cash kings; and had so won out, through that commonly known
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"pull" upon an adult by a child asking for what plainly is worthy,
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that his mail brought not only cash, but two rich landlords put at his
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disposal, tracts of land "for any form of occupancy which can, in any
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way, aid our town." This land Gadsby's Organization promptly put into
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growing farm products for gratis distribution to Branton Hills' poor;
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and that burning craving of Youth for activity soon had it sprouting
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corn, squash, potato, onion and asparagus crops; and, to "doll it up a
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bit," put in a patch of blossoming plants.
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Naturally any man is happy at a satisfactory culmination of his plans
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and so, as Gadsby found that public philanthropy was but an affair
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of plain, ordinary approach, it did not call for much brain work to
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find that, possibly also, a way might turn up for putting handicraft
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instruction in Branton Hills' schools; for schooling, according to
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him, did not consist only of books and black-boards. Hands also should
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know how to construct various practical things in woodwork, plumbing,
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blacksmithing, masonry, and so forth; with thorough instruction
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in sanitation, and that most important of all youthful activity,
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gymnastics. For girls such a school could instruct in cooking, suit
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making, hat making, fancy work, art and loom-work; in fact, about any
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handicraft that a girl might wish to study, and which is not in our
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standard school curriculum. But as Gadsby thought of such a school,
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no way for backing it financially was in sight. Town funds naturally,
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should carry it along; but town funds and Town Councils do not always
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form what you might call synonymous words. So it was compulsory that
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cash should actually "drop into his lap," via a continuation of
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solicitations by his now grandly functioning Organization of Youth.
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So, out again trod that bunch of bright, happy kids, putting forth
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such plain, straightforward facts as to what Manual Training would
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do for Branton Hills, that many saw it in that light. But you will
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always find a group, or individual complaining that such things would
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"automatically dawn" on boys and girls without any training. Old Bill
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Simpkins was loud in his antagonism to what was a "crazy plan to dip
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into our town funds just to allow boys to saw up good wood, and girls
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to burn up good flour, trying to cook biscuits." Kids, according to
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