Page:Frank Owen - Rare Earth, 1931.djvu/23

 hammers? What changed the color of the sky? Why should the sunset be such a splash of lavish color? But to the planting and productive aspect of the soil he never gave a thought. Always he had considered his father a legendary figure, less real than the Pied Piper of Hamelin or Pinocchio. The gaunt silent man who spoke so seldom failed to awaken in him any paternal love. He looked up to his father and admired him but it was upon Hung Long Tom that he lavished his affection.

Jethro could not believe that Scobee would never turn to the soil. Hope is the hardest thing to kill in a man. If it were not the world would soon die out. Somehow Jethro believed eventually Scobee's attitude would change. As the years advanced he would grow cognizant of the wealth of the soil. He must. It was in his blood. The call of all the long line of ancestors who had labored in the fields would be heard and answered. Then the War had come and Scobee had gone away to return sightless. He had been home several weeks