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OCTOBER 23, 19 0
The Commoner.
13
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&An Autumn Day in the Open
Perhaps you are one of. those who
believe that the only way to spend
a day out of doors- Is to make prep
arations for killing something before
you go. On more than one occasion
the Architect of this department has
given expression of his fondness for
rod and reel, and now and then ho
likes to get out into the stubble and
the marsh and get a mess of prairie
chickens, quails or ducks. He hates
the "game butcher" worse than he
hates .snakes.
But even these delights pale be
fore the glorious sport of a tramp
through the woods, over the mead
ows, through the lowlands and
among the stubble on a gloriously,
bright and crisp October day. With
nothing in hand save a little pack-)
age of lunch and a camera, a pocket
ful of the favorite mixture and the
ohj pipe in mouth, the Architect set.
out one morning this week, prepared
for a whole day's tramp. He was
accompanied by a fellow workman
oy infinite wit and jest, and the pair
A - .tramped far and wide over Ne-
s fertile fields. It wao not
h ..lking, however, for we took
the street car to the furthest point,
and then, waving the car crew a
farewell we started over the fields
towards Salt Creek of historic fame.
Not the Salt creek of political his
tory, however, but the Salt creek
that flows close by the city of Lin
coln. Years ago the antelope, the
buffalo, the Indian and the early set
tler came to the present site of Lin
coln, 'or upon the saline flats they
found plenty of salt deposits. In
deed, the men who founded Lincoln
had visions of a big salt Industry
in the years to come, but the vision
never materialized. There 1s plenty
of salt water to be found by boring,
but there is salt in larger and cheap
er quantities elsewhere, eo Lincoln
never achieved distinction as a cen
ter for the salt industry. But, just
the same, It is great fun to wander
along the banks of the Salt.
For many years the game laws of
""""--ska have protected the squlr
;$, j,j aB a result the woods are
has o bem, and they seem to know
Latr Jey are immune. That is, they
were until last week. During the
laBt ten years they have become so
numerous as to prove a menace, and
so during the months of October and
November of this year hunters may
kill them. But we have our opinion
v. $ian who goes out to kill them
for "sport" under the circumstances.
There would be fully as much sport
in sitting on the front porch and
shooting friendly dogs as they trot
by. The friendly little fellows sat
upon the lower limbs and chattered
at the two passing tramps, as ir to
say: "Hurry along, there. We know
you are friendly, but just the same
we'll feel safer in gathering our win
ter store after you have gone by."
"We scolded back at them, but the
little fellows could out-chatter us,
and we had to leave them in full
mastery of the woods.
The weather has been so pleasant
that the birds have postponed their
migration, and as a result the woods
are yet full of them. The crimson
flare of the woodpecker gleamed here
and there through the trees, and his
loud tattoo made the woods ring.
Now and then a Baucy little wren
flashed by, and ever and anon the
music of Bob Wbite's whistle rang
across the fields. ,But Bob White
Is a wary creature in this section,
and only once did we get sight of
himand then he had it all figurod
out that he was beyond gunshot.
The woods creatures long ago be
came convinced that every two
legged animal entering the woods
was a dangerous creature, and they
failed to Bense the fact that the two
trampers camo with friendly intent.
Jolly Cottontail, with her coat al
ready changing to white in anticipa
tion of the Bnows to come, jumped
out of grass and brush heaps and
went scurrying away when the
trampers approached. Sometimes
she waited until a heavy shoo came
within a nit of touching her and tlien
she'd jump straight ahead, startling
tho tramper and making his heart
beat triple time for a second or two.
Molly Cottontail and her big cousin,
J. Rabbit, live in seeming harmony,
although J. Rabbit is fast disappear
ing before the onward march of civ
ilization and the barb wire fence.
Over- in tho meadow west of the
asylum wo ran across a gopher set
tlement, and scores of the cunning
but pestiferous little fellows were
seen gliding through tho brown
grass. When they reached their
holes they sat up, grinned knowing
ly, gave a sharp little yelp and thon
turned a somosault backwards, seem
ingly, and disappeared into tho
ground. We have heard hunters de
clare that tho gopher and tho prairie
dog could dodge a bullet. But that
may bo because these sprightly little
animals almost always manage to
dodge back into their holes after the
bullet hits them Just over the hill
and on the edge of tho meadow by
the big road, we discovered a colony
of red ants a big and busy colony,
too. And a1 half-hour was spent
watching these industrious citizens
as they toiled away in preparation for
the winter. It's great fun watching
ants. "'Go to tho ant, thou slug
gard; consider her ways and be
wise,' " quoted tho companion. And
then the Architect tried to retell the
old ant story ho studied In one of
McGuffey's old readers some thirty
or thirty-five years ago. We tried to
tell those ants what fun they were
missing by not taking a day off and
tramping it, but they paid no atten
tion to us and went right ahead with
their work. That's one thing we
don't like about ants they sot such
a bad example.
We found a melon field, too. It
was within a dozen rods of a house,
and not a thing between to hinder
the view. We stood in the road and
discussed the ethics of the whole
matter and finally decided upon our
course. We climbed to tho top of
the fence and yelled at the top of
our voices, and in response a woman
appeared at the side door of the
house. We pointed to the melons
and then to ourselves, and the wom
an nodded assent and went back into
the house. We fell off the fence,
alighting on the melon side, and in
another moment each tramper had
a juicy melon under his arm. Back
over the fence, and then down on
the ground by the side of the road.
Remembering that Governor "Bob"
Taylor said that the only way to
carve a watermelon was to "bust
er," we followed directions, and the
crimson core, chilled by the autumn
nights, was exposed to view ex
posed for a brief moment. Then It
disappeared.
We ate our lunches with our feet
hanging over the edge of a little
bridge spanning a rivulet, and then
n.nfnttAi1 mil In tho onn nnrl nnfd
I WW OU WH.U.il . ... v. v -
tribute to My Lady Nicotine After
an hour's halt wo cut across tho
fields towards tho salt marshes, and
finding them wo watch od the jack
mlpo and tho mudhons and an occa
sional wild duck disporting them
selves. A big bunch of Cnnndn. cooao
look to tho water about two gunnhoUi
on, and splashed and fed around for
an hour before they started off on
their long journey. Tho follow who
originated tho Baying, "silly as a
goose," didn't mean wild goose. They
are about the knowiugeat creatures
alive.
Skirting the salt marshes wo got
over to Oak creek, and thoro wo saw
the muskrats. They always saw us
first and managed to got a goodly
distanco away. They watched us
with their piercing littlo eyes, and
tho second wo made a move zip!
All that a muskrat leaves behind
when ho dives Is a little ripple on tho
surfaco of tho water. The fun comes
in trying to guess whoro the musk
rat will como to the surfaco. If you
guess right onco In a score of times
you aro lucky.
Two accidents marred tho pleas
ure of the day. Tho comrade stepped
into a hole and in the resulttnt Jar
ho bit off the stem of IiIb favorite
pipe, and tho Architect leaned
against a fenco and broke his eye
glasses, which hung on a littlo hook
attached to his vest. But tho com
rade said thoro was enough of tho
stem left to last until ho got back
to a pipe shop, and tho Architect
doesn't use his glasses savo when ho
reads or writes. So we laughed off
the accidents and kept on going.
Tho long shadows wero falling
when the trampers struck tho car
line, and it was pitch dark when the
Architect arrived at home. Hungry!
Ho was prepared to eat the tablecloth
If necessary but it wasn't. Tho
Little Woman has learned all tho
kinks of the Architect's appetite, and
she was ready for it. A smoking
hot supper, a long pull at the old
pipe, a hasty scanning of tho ovoj ing
paper, and then bed.
My, Isn't it glorious to go to bed
with that glad tired feeling not tho
exhaustion of a day of grinding toil,
but the fatigue that leaves tho brain
clear, the lungs full of pure air and
tho heart full of peace towards all
mankind
Some day this week or next, if it
doesn't turn off too cold just cast
off all care and worry and hike out
Into the open. Tramp twenty or
thirty miles, commune with tho birds
and the beasts; pay your devotion
to old Mother Nature, and add your
happy thanksgivings that you aro
aHve to the song and tho chatter of
God's little creatures In tho woods
and meadows, It will make a new
being of you.
THE PROPITET
God made me not to stand alone
And hide His message in my heart.
He bids me seek my fellow men
Not pining, whining, stand apart.
He bids me teach whate'er T'm taught
Give forth whate'er He's given mo,
Take part In life, work on in Joy,
And help the triumph that's to do.
No walls can cage my spirit in,
Each day it walks forth glad and
free;
No bonds can check my hands glad
toil,
God brings a thousand tasks to me-
My message doth not hold me lone
It doth not bid me different be
It bids me change the other side
And make my fellowmen like me.
Like me! Nay, free from all my
faults;
And there their message sounds
to me.
We are each other's prophets, and
Work for & glorious unity. v
R. M. Smith.,
Montgpmery, Ala.
Every Democrat
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I JX IPMCMV IV ,j IJMi N19IV
Am tnltl fu hi FI rttlHft ttntt HftchH
Edited by FRANCIS N.THORPE, Ph.DLl.D
AaieH, llinUanrnuhtt, rtn.
a'JHjut.Hia iUith tttf.&tt
tton. JO 11 S If. O AM X 13 H,
Hnv it In "inort uwrul nnd vnlunMo to all
fiturieiiti win with to read of tlw hcrolo rind
patriotic KoIdlnrHtuUinna, Audnw Jack,
son. vrlionhxMl-forlltQ I'lair, and aipUtut
prnfllii nnri plundrrlri?."
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Eox Z3i ytaefiMUr. lndUu
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Tho time for talk Is passed tho
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GUARANTY STATE BANK,
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M. G. HASKELL, Cashier; '
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