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Modern Parable!
" A True Story ." A Lady of Faith & Prayer".
This is a modern version of the parable of the workman who, on being given the talents, multiplied them...
only the workman is a widow, Myrta Clutts Of Cobden Illinois... and the talents are not pieces of precious
metal--they
are pigs.
But we are a way ahead of our story. When Wayman Presley, the mail carrier, with the Rev. William H.Lirely,
his friend visioned the great Cross on Bald Knob mountain he undertook to raise the purchase price
of the site from people of the common walks of life. Myrta hearing of his efforts, volunteered a "Faith"pledge
of $100. Her children objected . "Where will we get the $100. ?" they asked. Myrta replied--- " I have
the faith,"
Now one of Myrta's talents was a old sow. One day the sow farrowed. Myrta looked at the soft, squirming
mass of squealing new born pigs. it seemed there was awful lot of them...she counted--twenty one. There
must be a mistake. this was more than three times the average litter. She counted again...Twenty one.
Never before had the sow given such
a litter. " An answer to my faith."Myrta told her children.
Already they were pushing and shoving for a nipple. They were born Hungary. Twelve nipples was all the
sow had. that meant that some of them would stay Hungary. Myrta knew enough about pigs to know that
the least ones are shoved out and stunted, even where there are a couple of extra pigs...but nine extras---
why, they'd just starve if she didn't figure something to do.
The sow became restless . She didn't want to be bothered. so Myrta went to the house. Of course she
could rig up bottles and nipples --- but fill nine bottles four or five times A day? She'd get nothing else
done.
Then she thought of Flossie, her old mongrel dog that had just lost a litter of puppies.--- just maybe she
would take them.
When Myrta went to get the extra pigs, the sow had rolled over and killed three of them---still leaving six extras.
So she caught that many in spite of the snorts and warnings protests from old Besty, the sow... poor
little things-- they were so hungry that they nudged her hands and arms, blindly seeking a nipple.
Flossie sniffed at the queer shaped animals Myrta put down beside her. they had a foreign smell--- not at
all like her puppies. But they set to work and were soon shoving and sucking and there little soft sides filled out
and soon the pigs slept where they had fed all curled up against her she snuggled protectively around them.
She raised ever one of them.!
The sow also raised her twelve. Myna sold 14 of the hogs paid her $100. pledge and had more than
$400. left. The remaining 4 were kept for brood sows.
Pigs! Help Raise The Cross.
Myna, remembering her successful Faith pledge. pondered. "Isn't there some
way these talents can be multiplied for the Cross." Presley belived they could.
" The pigs will do it." he told Myna "You let me have the pigs from old Besty and the
framers will raise them to help raise the Cross." We will make a beautiful dedication Room
in the Cross and exhibit metal plaques in it showing the names and address of all who raise
pigs. This will cause The Cross to have even more meaning down threw the years as
descendants of those who raise the pigs will be reminded that great. great grandfather and
grandmother so and so helped to build it--They raised a Piggy."
Using the four remaining brood sows from the big litter as a beginning . Presley was soon
in business.
hogs multiply rapidly. They will farrow two litter per year. working often far into the night after
completing his rural mail route. he built , a large barn on the hillside farm of widow Clutts.
Farmers along his 67- mile mail route allowed him to glean corn from there fields for feed.
The University in Carbondale let him have garbage. soon pigs were all over the place and
Presley was in business.
Using a home-made trailer tied to his model-a mail car, he distributed small pigs to
farmers in 11 counties in the south half of Illinois--- more than 1,600 of them in all. when
they reached market size the farmers sent the sale price to the Bald Knob Christian
Foundation's bank in Carbondale.
The pigs grew alike on Protestant and Catholic farms. Children raised them in special pens.
One newsboy in Centralia, Illinois Mike West, build a pen in his back yard and bought feed
from money earned on his paper route. he watched the little piggy grow into a great porker.
It sold for nearly a$100. which he donated to the Cross. there were many other similar instances.
The project netted some $30,ooo.oo in a little over three years. All this done on his spare
time after 6 days a week on the mail route. he had used up all his vacation and leave-
without-pay time and had to temporarily abandon the pig project, but Presley, widow Clutts
and Old Besty (the sow) have shown what can be done if you will only try. They have also
demonstrated which kind of prayers have the best chance of being answered.
Dads Way (A poem healing of Child abuse )
Rose Bud ( A poem and Rose applet)
Eternal
Life (A poem and Flower Applet )
For the Young and Young at Heart.
Snowball fight 99 (Get them First)
Thanks To Buck Deitz for all his help,Could not have done it without you.
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