PARKY

Maoriland Worker, Volume 6, Issue 243, 13 October 1915, Page 2

PARKY

: ♦ Hy COMUS. Ono night in tho store, a few of the cockiest and squatters wero discussing Labour troubles. There really was not much discussion, it was more of a unanimous growl against the workers generally, and particularly against the | Labour-agitators. The c'ockfes to aj mzn were absolutely certain that there, v/ouid be no Labour trouble 3\i not for .the a_ita'tor.-j. ; . • J At'thU.time 1 hid. bean -bout three I months in the. store,, and having heavy; 'financial obligations banging over my head:-did not consider it advisable to j push' forward --any cf my ' Sedansue , ..i'de*?'. , Hgweyej,' fhese'.cccEks' tried] -my- patience tyw,/ir..' > 3ci i .iorgetti»g | for i the time being all the piouii^scry.notes, .'.faliing due,, T-';iiterally. ttire.tr,..my self \ iato ibt discussion •''-■• .' ' ",' -' '■ ] in _ v*iy short time I _.ad-j.ii ttsse i ■ ... • | cookies en mc like a swarm ot cess. The argument ."lasted ior ' about two | hours, and was getting gradually warm- j er. when th« cockies discovered it was getting late and- they..had' to-get up early in the morning t<> rniik. -'. ■As a parting shot,-on* of-them said, ■Iryou have Ideas'like that,, you won't do any good here.'' • '-•.'. Parky and his-particular chum, Aleo. I Black, had been, -admiring; .spectators j all the time. Parky, turning to Alec., 'said, "What the hell .is-thi'. Socialism, anyhow ■■'.' Xever heard of the damned -thins; before,- did-you, .Alec.:'.',... .Alec.' confessed-he never did. •Tho curiosity ..oiV-both'..had,,.. been aroused, • however.;, and nothing.'would, satisfy.: them, -but, late, though it. was>.l must.'give. t.be_- : .some-.ideas,.of the, subject. ■'■•• Alter listening to- mc explaining in a rough waj;-.ho.w- ths-intention oi-. ■ Socialism' was that every.-, man. should' .work for his hying and no man should live on the earnings ot-other men. Alec. .-Black asked .'what-.;.would yotf-'do with . old men- who * couldn't work? ;• .- ; lieioro J. hr.d ;tittie to explain,; _>arky interpolated that they-would b^-hit- over, the head with anaxo. • -. ~- ~ From that time, .and ; for; many i months, nothing uas d.isc-us.Sed in the j storo of an evening but, Skwialisrn. I Alec. f3lack and his-chum Pa.rky were j enthusiastic • supporters ;.;, ( . | Although Alec, couldn't : do- much talking, Parky did enough for both of them. . - - . - : .■ ' . '.

Nothing: could, stand-against- Parley's j. eloquence. He had a very fluent de- : livery, of a strikingly lurid character, and amongst his own • circle of milk j hand? and cockles' .sons/, he, -.simply,-- --■ smothered-all opposition: • When they;. had conquered all-the ordinary Evening jscore crowd, they used, to scour round-j the roads in the evening looking fprj fresh victims. As Parky said, this isia sample of what- happened- many a j night. s j "• Parky' and- Alec.. would be: walking j along on tha outlook for victim?. I Meeting a manthey hadn't tackled: before.. Parky would a'ay, "Good even-j ing, Bill. Are--you a believer in So- ' ciali9m?" . ~,; . ,;. ~v .-,-.:- ; - \-,-..-• ". : ".'No b-—y- --fear-i., Sc-?ial.i;m is, all j damned .-talk'-''. ~ .- ... . • • ! .-is it:-': Parky*yv&u]d say,...,'' Come i .on down. ,t.o, the. store, . .and\ ■) you'll i b—y .well see," •• •;...• •.-,•'•, ;•'• ; j - 'Entering the =to.rV- with their. Vic-1 I tim, Parky would■ address- mc: ' 'Here j '.is- another d -'d- fool., that -doesn't j 1 believe in. Socialism; have.: a go atj him, Skip.". -...-, 'I j Parky christened mc Skip, and tiie j J name stuck. j | .Nothing pleased Parky so'much as. jto get;6n.one of the boss's horses and I try to get it to jump fences or drain 3. These farm horses were mostly heavy cart horses and totally unfit for jumping. Dut this fact made no difference to Parky. .-.:.-'' • 'I'll make them jump/he would say "'or break my bleeding neck." -. I remember on one occasion seeing him try to jump a drain with one of these cart horses. -This, particular dj'ain was-a very filthy one. All the recuse, from a large butter factory' ran into it. It was about six feet jdeep end four- feet wide. Parky, started wiifh a twenty-yards' run for this drain.- ' lashing the poor eld horse for all' he was worth- On it came as Bard 3,'z. it could right to .the -bank of the Idifin where it suddenly stopped dead, Parky, shooting over its head into the ijpjtom of the drain. It took two of j U3' to pull him out. What a sight he > I was, covered' from head to foot with spoking filth, I 'We led' him over .to'the butter fac-j toiy and turned.the water hose on to him. Parky filling the. 'atmosphere with some of the.choicest bits from his. ; extensive :. swearing vocabulary, . : ' '

.On another occasion he : wa.s;- driving one of his-boss's-.c&ws- along; the road,--when-it suddenly .-took-it into ; its head; to jump-over, a barbed-wire" fence into a neighbour's paddock.. It ,Was a very warm' day in midsummer, and Parkyhad only an old pair, of pants : and a shirt on.

Parky could have easily got--into the paddock through the gate, which was only a few yards away, :but ho reasoned "that Providence had undoubtedly arranged the .matter solely in order to give him an.excellent excuse for jumping the old horse he was riding, over the feDce- ...

"So here goes," says Parky, putting the hcrse at the fence. The- horse bauiked at- the fence and Parky flew over its head falling on his stomach on the top of the barbed wire, and. there he hung, his feet on. one side; of the fence and his.head on.the other,, •and his old. p.ant3 with the sitting-down part' torn; completely ou G. -'• - ■ To ecrhplete'.'his -tlisiressf ul condition, ;t'_§ lady school teacher :eame along.the road, witnessed his predicament, but was too shocked, apparently, to .take jny notice . I

Attention has already been drawn to the changed proprietorship of the .Vtovai 'Tiger Hotel ' Notwithstanding, v,,?'would like our readers to know that the ban under which this house fall during the strike period, when Taranaki Sheet and tins house. was tilled with ''specials,' is now removed, and once again good unionists associate freely there over a cheer- bowl oi the _cld«_ ala-UW-il'h*