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Show Rears 25 on Laborer's Wage Progeny of St. Louis Man Range in Ages From 40 Down to Seven Years. TELLS HOW HE MANAGED IT Hard Work and Industry the Secret Never a Brighter, Merrier, Rosier, Healthier Lot of Children Craced a Board. St. Louis. Pureuts, jou who Ilnd,iho rcurlng of een au uverugo family a problem these duys, behold Frederick Wulkenhorst, who Is the futher of twenty-flvo children, anil tells how ho has managed to bring them up on u laborer's dally wuge. The house tn whkh ho lives Is one Index to his methods. It Is it cottage of perhaps llo rooms. Hnck of the house is u barn and hi tho bnni.wird n cow and n flock of chickens. Thero Is a best room .furnished nently ,but scantily, (ho superfluities consisting mostly of homemade linndl-craft, linndl-craft, shelf covers and their tidies of White linen crochet. Tho visitor Is permitted to tarry hero for a moment, but almost Immediately Is Invited Into the kitchen beyond, where three daughters busily scrubbing floors or preparing tho midday meal cannot spare tlmo to sit Idlo ns they tnlk. Indeed, ono Is told that father will be In presently for his dinner, but ho won't have time to tnlk, cither, for several Jobs of plowing aro waiting for him In tho nftornoon. Daughter Runs House. Hilda, tho oldest duughter nt home, apparently has been in authority since (lie death of the second Mrs. Wulkenhorst, Wulken-horst, live jenrs ago. Tho tlrst wife, tho mother of 11 children, died when her last child w'as flo days old. The second wife, n widow with ono child, whom the stepfather also reared, became be-came the mother of 11 Wnlkenhorsts. There nro now 12 children nt home, besides n small son of Hilda's. There nro not enough chairs nny-whero nny-whero vlslblo to seat all tho family at tnblo at once. Hut chnlrs nro to be classified ns luxuries that may bo dispensed with, one observes later when six bright, rosy cheeked, blondo youngsters come trooping In from school nnd take pluces, standing, nil attention, with spoons poised, ready to begin on the soup almost beforo Hilda Hil-da has measured It Into their plates. . The nges of the Wulkenhorst progeny rnngc from forty down to sown j ears. Ilesldes the 12 children now ut homo, five hnvo died at various vari-ous ages and tho others, being older, have married and gone to homes of their own. There are eight grandchildren. grandchil-dren. Threo of those who reside under un-der tho parental roof uro working In fnctorles In the town. "How hnve I managed to take enre of 25 children?" Frederick Wnlken-horst Wnlken-horst echoed ufter my question, nfter ho hnd fed his horses out In the barn and stood rolling up his sleeves nt the kitchen sink. "By working hard every day." Tho hands ho spread to view wero testimony more eloquent even than tho vigorous, clear ring of his voice, nnd his knitted coat, , wet with perspiration, wns further evidence of his henrtv Industry. No Signs cf Worry. IIo Is n tall, spnre man, remnrknbiy erect for his sixty years, fair and rud-dy, rud-dy, and tho lines on his face ,nro not those of worry but of good humor. If his children tako nfter him, dentist bills need not bo one of the family problems. Ills teeth nro strong nnd white. Ills eyes, he says, nro falling, fall-ing, Ono doctor assures him noth'ng can be donu for them, so ho thinks auy further expenditure on them Is useless. Never a brighter, merrier, rosier, healthier looking lot of children over gathered nbont n millionaire's board than those 12. Their heavy shoes mado a lot o'f nolso on tho bare lloors, but otherwise In nn orderly lino about the table, speechless In the pros-enco pros-enco of the strange visitor, their sl-lout sl-lout but radiant smiles reflected their father's pride In them. Somewhere lecontly the writer came upon MutlstJcs to tho effect thnt nt the ngo of sixty-live no less thnn M per cent of parents in this country nre dependent upon their children for chnrlty. Wulkcnhorst's next remark revealed another remarknblo contrast In his attitude toward parenthood. He hnd spoken of Ills dimming eyes. "I llgure nt the rnto they nro going my eyes uro good for nbout llvo years more," ho snld. "I expect to work oery day until I nm blind. Ily that time Helen, the baby, will bo old cuough to do something for herself. Then I shall be through." |