Old Timers

I’m 80 years of age. I’m a member of a pioneer Iowa family. When we came to Iowa from Denmark great herds of buffalo were still roaming the Midwestern plains. I remember the hands of my grandfather, calloused from holding the plow that yearly upturned the prairie soil of his homestead. They walked tall and proud in those days.

Today the newcomers laugh at our gray heads, wait for us to fall by the wayside. Today the great desire of a great number of Americans is to become disabled and get a government check. A cane and a limp will get you $600 a month. God grant that there are some Washingtons and Jeffersons among those many coming across our borders.

LELAND JENSEN

Santa Monica