r
1
OPENS BIG MEL
PRESIDENT TAFT SWINGS GATES
' OF GUNNISON RIVER BORE.
MIGHTY WORK IS FINISHED
Waters cf Mountain Torrent Are
Brought Six Miles Under a Granite
Ridge to Revive Beautiful But
Semr-Arid Uncompahgre Valley.
Montrose, Co!.. Sept 23. As many
thousand people cheered themseh'es
hoarse and cannon hoomed this after
noon, President William H. Taft
opened the gates of the Gunnison river
tunnel and admitted to the Uncompah
gre valley the waters of a mountain
torrent brought from its rocky bed
'".'""''.'.xi
t 5Y- KVv-v0. . X
-x: .';: r-
ZV V -.: a
Concrete Drop on
six miles underneath a great granite
ridge. As the flood that henceforth
will make incomparably fertile this
lovely valley came pouring through
the canal that conducts it to the Un
compahgre river, men and women fair
ly wept for joy, and the president him
self was visibly affected. The open
ing of the gates was preceded by
prayer and followed by national airs
played by a band.
Mighty Project Completed.
Thus was fittingly signalized the
completion of the Gunnison river tun
nel, the first project undertaken by
the United States government re
clamation service. Work ou the pro
ject was begun four and a Lalf years
ago and bad progressed steadily ever
since. Together with its main and
distributing canals, the tunnel will ir
rigate 150,000 acres of land in a val
ley naturally one of the most fertile
in Cqlorado, but which has been semi
arid because of the annual summer
droughts and the inadequacy of the
Uncompahgre river.
This day of the opening of the tun-
Along the
nel was made the chief day of the
Western Slope fair, now being held
here. All the morning special trains
kept coming in, from various parts
of the slate, and at 10:30 there was a
parade of the visitors. Early in the
afternoon the explosion of a bomb
told the people that the special train
bearing President Taft and other gov
ernment officials had entered the city
limits. A second bomb announced his
debarkation at the station, and a third
was sent up as the distinguished
?uest, escorted by a great procession,
started for Elks park.
President Taft Welcomed.
At the park, after introductory re
marks by F. D. Catlin, chairman of
the Gunnison tunnel opening commit
tee. Mayor J. Q. Allen turned the
key of the city over to the ' guests.
Then John C. Bell delivered the formal
address of welcome, to which Presi
dent Tatt responded briefly and
happily. The exercises here con
cluded with remarks by Senator
Charles J. Hughes and Gov. John
Shafroth. At four o'clock trains start
ed for the west portal of the tunnel,
where President Taft opened the
gates, and speeches were made by I.
W. McConnell, consulting engineer of
the reclamation service, and Senator
Horace T. DeLong of Grand Junction.
After the return to Montrose there
was a reception to President Taft and
others, and this evening speeches were
delivered by a number of well-known
Coloradoans, the celebration winding
Robins' Curious Nesting Places.
The two robins which have built
their nest in the cover of a meter at
the Market Drayton Electric Light
works have, many precedents in the
choice of unconventional nesting
places A year or two ago a robin's
nest was built on a book shelf in a
night nursery at Chiselhurst which
was occupied without interruption by
a nurse and child. Four eggs were
laid, and two young birds were
hatched out Two other robins built
their nest on the axle of a colliery
m-ismm&imjMm
si?
srxs&ff3E
up with an illuminated parade and py
rotechnic display.
Story of the Great Tunnel.
First of the big government recla
mation projects to be undertaken, the
Gunnison river tunnel has been one of
the most difficult to carry through.
The ample waters of the Gunnison
flow through narrow valleys unsuit
ed to agriculture or through deep,
rocky canyons, while only a few
miles to the west the lovely Uncom
pahgre valley has been suffering for
water. The Gunnison, descending in
ever deepening gorges, finally plunges
into the Black canyon, one of the most
magnificent mountain gorges in the
world. This unpromising spot was se
lected as the starting point of the
tunnel. Brave engineers lowered
themselves into the Black canyon at
points where the granite walls rise
almost perpendicularly hundreds of
feet, and after their surveys were com
pleted active work was started on the
immense propect
At great expense and under enor-
the South Canal.
; mous difficulties, a wagon road was
built to the east portal of the tun
nel. It is 15 miles long, and. climb
ing the granite ridge between the
canyon and the Uncompahgre valley,
descends the rocky wall on shelf
work. Bore Built for All Time.
Simultaneously work was begun at
each end or' the tunnel and at a point
several tiiousand feet from the west
end, where a shaft was sunk. As fast
as the tunnel was driven through the
shale and solid rock, it was timbered,
and then the heavy timbers were
covered with impervious cement. This
gives a tunnel of solid concrete built
to withstand the wear of ages. All
the Humes, culverts, division gates,
drops and other work along the lines
of the main canals are built of steel
and concrete.
There is no dam across the Black
canyon at the point where the river is
turned into the tunnel. Instead of
this the tunnel itself taps the river
from beenath its granite bed. By
this plan neither floods nor slack wa-
South Canal.
ter can prevent the tunnel taking
from the river all the water needed.
Has immense Capacity.
A few statistics of this tremendous
project are worth setting forth. The
tunnel is 30.G00 feet long, and 11 by
13 feet inside measurement. The main
canal is 30 feet wide at the bottom
and S3 feet wide at the top, and the
average depth of 'the water is ten
feet. The capacity is 1,300 cubic feet
of water a second. After the water
leaves the west portal of the tunnel
it is conducted through 12 miles of
canal to the Uncompahgre. There is
a drop of 214 feet in this distance, and
this great fall will be utilized for cre
ating, power. A series of concrete
drops has been constructed and the
immense body of water rushing ovef
them is capable of generating at least
10,000 horse power, which will be util
ized in lighting the entire Uncompah
gre valley by electricity.
The cost of the tunnel and distrib
uting canals is over $5,000,000. and
perpetual water rights will be sold to
actual settlers at about $35 an acre.
Boer War Cost Many Horses.
Tremendous was the drain on the
horseflesh of the world caused by the
'.oer war. In that war England sent
;J9,329 horses and 103.000 mules to
I South Africa, four times as many ani-
lals as the Germans took to France
i August, 1870. Tamerlane led 93,000
orses over the Hindoo Koosh in the
conquest of' Delhi.
wagon in daily use at Seghill. i
Northumberland. Among other cur
ous recent nesting places have bee
the breast pocket of a scarecrow a
Ashbourne, a nail box in a villag
forge, the skeleton of a crow, and tht
rifle range butts at Ticehurst, Sussex
Westminster Gazette.
Monopoly of Oil Supply.
The world's entire supply of the oi1
of bergamot comes from a small sec
tion of Calabria, fronting on tht
Straits of Messina.
NEBRASKA NEWS AND NOTES.
Items of Interest Taken From Hers
and There Over the State.
Stromsburg is about to put In a
complete sewerage system.
A movement is on foot In Hebron
for beautifying the town by a park
and other improvements.
Wm. Ramsey of Johnson county was
badly hurt in a runaway, started by
bumble bees attacking his horses.
Tecumseh 'is in great need of more
school room and some provision must
be made to care for the increase.
Plowing and sowing wheat is now
the order among farmers. The land
is in fine condition for the work.
The citizens of Fairbury have taken
a hand in the fight against a renewal
of the franchise of the local electric
light company.
At Crawford eight men went down
.twenty feet by a scaffolding giving
way. One of the men will probably
die from his injuries.
Mrs. Jones of Table Rock last week
celebrated her ninetieth birthday,
there being a large attendance of
relatives and friends.
George Brewer of Gordon was ar
rested by Sheriff Rosseter and
brought to Valentine and landed in
jail on a charge of horse stealing.
A gattling section is to be organized
at Beatrice. Adjutant General Harlin
has assigned two gatling guns of the
Nebraska National guard to that city.
The county commissioners of Jef
ferson county have just paid the bills
incidental to holding Jefferson's prim
ary election and in round numbers
the expense was $900.
J. B. Smith, a dairyman of Beatrice,
took ten first, five secpnd and four
championship prizes on his herd of
Jersey cattle at the Kansas state fair
at Topeka.
Los Angeles (Cal.) dispatch: The
body of James T. Cleary of Grand Is
land, Neb., who was drowned here re
cently, was recovered by the life sav
ing crew.
The peach and grape crop in the
section about Dorchester is plentiful.
The farmers will have thousands- of
bushels of peaches for sale. The ap
ple crop there is also large.
In the land drawing at Lake View,
Ore., W. R. Stewart of Dorchester
drew an eighty-acre tract and a town
lot The land lays about seventy-five
or eighty miles from the town.
U. G. Chapman purchased the J. W.
Roberts quarter section farm four
miles south of Wyniore for $130 per
acre. This is the top price paid for
farm land in that section.
Richard H. Burritt of 2720 Norman
die avenue, Los Angeles, Cal., aged
about 27 years, died on the overland
limited, west bound, just as the train
was pulling into Sidney.
A large shipment of sheep from
ivestern ranges were quarantined in
North Platte and are being held in the
old stock yards. The inspector found
them affected with mouth and hoof
diseases.
Ray Martin, who was arrested in
Belgrade a short time ago, charged
with criminal assault on his 14-year-old
niece, had his preliminary trial
and was bound over to the district
court
The home of Gene Edwards of
Hastings was burglarized and then set
on fire at 3 o'clock in the morning.
The family were not at home during
the night Every door in the house
was open and everything had the ap
pearance of being ransacked at the
time of the arrival of the firemen.
Deputy Grand Master J. Robinson
of the A. O. U. W. was at YorK for
two weeks and with the assistance of
members secured nearly fifty applica
tions for membership in the local
lodge. Arrangements will be made to
take in a large class and at the time
Grand Master A. M. Walling will be
present
Miss Ada Castor, a Lincoln soprano,
who is well known throughout the
state, has been married to Gregory
Passover, a nephew of a dean of neid
elburg university. The marriage was
secret and was discovered through ac
cident while the newly married couple
were spending a part of their honey
moon in Denver.
The fifth year of the Kearney Nor
mal opened with about 300 students
enrolled for the work of the coming
year. The main building has been re
decorated and thoroughly renovated
and the dormitory has been carefully
gone over and improvements in the
way cf paper and varnish applied, so
that the quarters of the students will
be most comfortable.
The county of Richardson has ap
pealed to the supreme court from a
judgment for $18,500 obtained by
drainage district No. 1, Richardson
county. The judgment was given on
the theory that public highways were
subject to tax within the drainage
district The county alleges that the
roads are not owned or controlled by
the county, but by townships.
Relatives of Will C. Phillips, former
district clerk of Lancaster county,
who killed himself in Kansas City re
cently, have started a fight to see who
shall be the executor of the estate.
Mrs. Phillips had recently secured a
divorce from her husband and she is
an applicant for the position, holding
that under the new law the divorce
is not absolute for six months.
In York county there would have
been thousands of bushels of peaches
of the best varieties, but owing to the
dry weather in August and the wet
weather in September peaches did not
ripen as they should and most of the
crop is not marketable by reason of
the peach breaking open, exposing the
stone and rotting before getting ripe.
The state Christian Endeavor con
vention will be held in Fairbury Oc
tober 29, 30 and 31. The local com
mittee held a meeting and appointed
subcommittees to arrange the pro
gram and entertainment for the dele
gates while in the city.
Sturgeon (Mo.) dispatch: L. M.
Strong, aged about 27, of Kearney,
Neb., was killed by a Wabash train
about one mile west of Sturgeon. It
is thought he fell from the train.
Statistics show that in the year just
closed Cuming county shipped out
496,515 bushels of corn! 2G.400 bush
els of wheat, 339,000 bushels of oats,
4,000 bushels of barley, 69,623 hogs,
4,800 sheep, 220 horses and mules, 19,
890 cattle, 10,655 pounds dressed poul
try, 223,975 pounds live poultry, 9,010
pounds dressed meat, 53,450 dozen
eggs, 52,760 pounds butter and 24,840
gallons cream.
NOTES.
-jnDAAk
fy0n(ffir
Keep the feed yards clean.
Pure water for the animals must
be the rule.
A dull sythe is poor encouragement
to rapid work. ,
Breeding from the best is the surest
way of having the best
Clean up the hen house and then
keep it clean by regular attention.
When pastures are short give the
sheep a small grain ration. It will
pay you.
The time to harvest the onion crop
is when the tops wither and turn yel
low and fall over.
Sponge the back of the horse after
removing the saddle and you will
have no swellings or sore spots.
One pound of tobacco steeped In
two gallons of vinegar is said to be
a most excellent remedy for lice on
cattle.
Scatter the fertilizer well away
from the trunk of the trees, for it is
there that the feed roots will be
found.
A balky horse may offer good op
portunity for the cultivation of pa
tience, but that is about all. It won't
pay to keep him.
The early frosts are the foretaste of
the weather which will soon be upon
us. Take a look ahead and be sure
that you are ready for winter.
Next the fair, then the fall plow
ing and sowing and finishing up upon
the harvesting and then the .winter
time of reading, studying and plan
ning for the next year's work.
Wrhat you put into your farm rather
than what you take out determines
how good a farmer you are. Ex-Gov.
Hoard of Wisconsin put it about right
in a recent speech when he said:
"The way we look at farming is all
wrong.. Our philosophy is false. We
do not see that, we must build up
rather than destroy if we hope to add
to our fortune in the end. I must do
two things on my farm and do them
constantly: 1. Build up my soil; spend
money, time and labor on it. 2. Build
up the efficiency and productiveness
of my herd by wise breeding, feeding
and care."
Average milk of good quality should
contain about 87 per cent, of water
and 13 per cent solids. Milk con
tains bacteria of many kinds and in
varying numbers. They cause the
souring of milk as well as the ripen
ing of cream and cheese and produce
many other changes in the appear
ance and flavor. The number pres
ent in freshly drawn milk varies enor
mously with the conditions of milk
ing, and, as they are greatly in
creased with dirty and careless hand
ling, cleanliness in all matters per
taining to the milking and marketing
of milk and keeping it in the home
cannot be too strongly insisted on
Disease germs, notably those of ty
phoid, diphtheria, scarlet fever and
tuberculosis, may also be carried in
milk, so that the purity of the sup
ply is of vital importance to every
family and community.
Early and late blight on potatoes
are common in most sections. Effec
tive treatment is preventive rather
than curative and must be begun
early. If your fields have suffered
this year either from early or late
blight study the conditions carefully
and then plan another season to
spray thoroughly. The vines should
be sprayed every two or three weeks,
or oftener if rains have come and
washed the coafing of Bordeaux off.
Late potato blight is often respon
sible for wet rot of tubers in the bin.
Its progress on stored potatoes is
checked by dusting them with air
slaked lime. The cost of spraying
potatoes is about $1 per acre and the
gain from five to six sprayings
amounts to an average of about $25
per acre. When potatoes are thor
oughly sprayed they not only pro
duce much more of superior tubers
but the tubers are less liable to rot
and future infection of the potato soil
is reduced.
The lousy hog will not fatten up.
It is little use to clean up the hogs
without cleaning up the sleeping
quarters also. The manure and bed
ding material should be burned. If
one dislikes to do this, it is all right
to haul it onto land some distance
from the hog pens and plow it under
immediately. The pens must then be
disinfected by scrubbing them with
lime milk. Any other disinfectant
would do, of course. As lime milk
is cheap, the disinfecting should be
repeated once or twice. The hogs
must not have access to the pens in
the meantime. If the hog-pen can be
made fairly air-tight it may be fumi
gated with sulphur. If properly done,
this will certainly kill the lice. The
fumigating must be repeated in
three or four days. Having cleaned
the hog quarters, get busy on the
hogs themselves. The most effective
way to free them of lice Is by dip
ping. Dip a second time in a week
or 10 days to catch those missed or
which have hatched out since the
-first dipping.
t
Good machinery la well worth tak
ing care of.
A wrong date on an egg does not
change its contents.
Dry shelters and beds for the hogs
are essential to best results.
Now is the time to cull your stock
and get the flock in shape for the win
ter run.
Don'ts as well as dos are a conven
ient and proper thing to have around
the 'farm.
Never be so busy that you cannot
be friendly and lend a helping hand
to a neighbor in trouble.
Rotation of crops gets the fields out
of the rut of deterioration and makes
for enriched soil and greater crops.
Yes, it is too late to build and fill a
silo. Let your disappointment at your
lack spur you on to better deeds next
season.
If the colt lets its tongue hang out
of its mouth, you may be sure there
is some reason for it. Find the cause
and remove it.
A little spray on the cows the past
summer would have given you many a
pound more of milk in the pail. Spray
is cheaper than milk.
After a day's work or a long drive
over the roads sponge out the horses
mouths and noses with cold water.
Also rub down the legs and body well.
Boil the small potatoes and' feed oc
casionally to the chickens. That they
enjoy them is only too evident from
the manner in which they go after
them.
It will not hurt the beets to be left
in the ground until freezing weather
comes. Then they should be pulled,
packed in moist sand and placed in a
cool cellar.
Watch the hired man when he is
tending to the stock. If he is rough
and brutal you can well dispense with
his services, for the animals will not
thrive under his care.
The National dairy show will be
held at Milwaukee October 14 to 24.
B. II. Rawl, chief of the national
dairy division of the agricultural de
partment of the government, will co
operate with Manager Van Norman
of the Dairy association in making
the show a success.
The bureau of animal industry,
which has been conducting experi
ments for the past three years, has
concluded that better butter can be
made from cream pasteurized and not
ripened, that is, churned sweet, than
by the old processes, and better than
from the new process of pasteurizing
and ripening with a pure culture start
er. New butter made in this way,
without the addition of a starter and
unsalted, has too mild a flavor to
please most dealers; but it undergoes
fewer changes in storage than when
made in the ordinary manner and
may be sold, after being held in artifi
cial cold storage, as high-grade butter.
The Ontario experiment station has
been treating winter wheat in differ
ent ways to kill the stinking smut
and the results have been very satis
factory. Untreated seed produced an
average of 3.6 per cent, of smut in the
crop of last year and 9.3 per cent, of
smut in the crop of this season. Seed
wheat which was immersed for 20
minutes in a solution made by adding
one pint of formaldehyde (formalin)
to 42 gallons of water, produced an
average yield of grain per acre of 50.4
bushels, and that which was untreated
produced only 46 bushels per acre.
The treatment here mentioned was
easily performed, comparatively cheap,
effectual in killing the smut spores,
and instrumental in furnishing the
largest average yield of wheat per
acre of all the treatments used.
Look out for weevils in the grain.
Thresh as' soon as possible. Fresh
grain should not be exposed to attack
by being placed in bins or granaries
with that already infested. Before
storing, the old grain should be re
moved and the floors, walls and ceil
ings of the bins thoroughly cleaned.
If the granary has been badly infest
ed, it should be fumigated. Cleanli
ness is very important in preventing
injury by these insects. Dust, dirt,
rubbish, refuse grain, flour and meal
serve as breeding places. Frequent
agitation or handling of the grain
will destroy many of these moths, be
cause they are unable to free them
selves from a mass of It and perish in
the attempt. The simplest, most ef
fective and inexpensive remedy for
all insects infesting the farmers' grain
stored in tight bins, is careful fumiga
tion with carbon bisulphide. Use
.about one pound to 100 bushels of
grain. Pour the bisulphide into shal
low receptacles and place them on
top of the grain; then close the bin
tightly for 36 hours. Do not breathe
the vapor nor allow lights or fire near.
The balanced ration for cows Is
set forth by the New York experi
ment station as follows: The nutri
tive ratio, or, In other words, the pro
tein supply for feeding milch cows,
is a subject which is just now re
ceiving a great deal of attention.
There is undoubtedly a reaction
against feeding standards, largely, I
feel sure, because the place and func
tion of these standards were so long
a time misunderstood. Much is said
about a balanced ration, as though it
were a nutritive formula which is to
be applied to all animals under all
conditions. There is, however, no
such thing as a balanced ration uni
versally applicable. The needed pro
tein supply for the 40-pound cow, cap
able of producing 14 pounds of but
ter per week, is entirely different
from that of the average cow pro
ducing 200 pounds of butter per year.
Equally true is it that 30 pounds of
rich milk make a much larger de
mand upon the protein supply than
30 pounds of poor milk. A balanced
ration, then, in the true sense, is one
that is adapted to the work of a
particular individual animal.
HAIWBST
M Interlude,
FOR MILES and miles, as far
as the eye can see, stretches
the cornland; heavy golden
wheat breaking upon a shim
mer of oats, and oats fading
to the whiteness of barley,
with never a hedge or a fence between
to limit the sense of distance. Here
and there a clump of willows bends
to the breeze; and here anc there a
mass of rock, scattered and seamed
in all directions, rises above the crop.
For the rest, all is a glorious blending
of gold and silver burnished by radi
ant sunshine a plain of plenty reach
ing to the southern horizon. On the
north a line of dark forest sweeps in
a semi-circle, with a little gray vil
lage sheltering within one end of its
deep curve; and a mile away an ave
nue of plane trees, seen across the
waving corn and bleaching stubble,
shows where runs the straight high
road the road that takes one to Paris.
The corn grows up to the walls of
the village, only a sandy track divid
ing them. Here and there a cottage
stands on the edge of the crop, em
bowered in vines that climb to the
very chimneys. Over the i,un-baked
meadows are scattered little orchards
of heavily-laden apple trees, and oth
ers crimson with plums; and every
where at the cottage doors, among
the wheat, almost in the dust of the
lane rise the feathery fronds of
asparagus. Poppies and cornflowers
are mingled with the corn, and rosy
stained soapwort and the dainty blue
of chicory fringe the path. Here and
there the vivid azure of borage gleams
above the general tangle of color,
varied with masses of pink-spurred
blossoms, not unlike columbine, but
even more delicately fashioned and
tinted. The weather has set in fair
and harvest is in full swing. In the
great French plains machinery is still
the exception rather than the rule, and
the rhythmic swish of scythe and
sickle mingles with the sighing of the
wind among the corn stalks, and
makes a gentle music fitting for an
August afternoon.
We see a little plot of perhaps half
an acre actually enclosed, that is to
say, its limits are defined by a wav
ing green belt of asparagus; and with
in it an old woman, in the spotless
white cap which characterizes the
peasant of northern France, is slowly
gathering together the reaped oats
with her curved hook and binding
them in little sheaves. Her son cut
her oats for her days ago, she says,
but it has been too hot for her to
work In the field. Only to-day the
breeze has come, and by and by, when
he has finished carting yonder, Pierre
will help her again.
In the next field, if one can say
"next" where everything seems to
blend indefinitely, carting is in prog
ress. Three big Normandy horses,
wearing high wooden collars faced
with brasswork, stand patiently under
a half-empty wagon from which the
men are pitching on to the stack; and
the women and children are gleaning
in the stubble. As the day wears
on and they escape from their house
bold duties more women flock to the
fields, big, sturdy women, some of
whom turn up their sleeves and bow
to the reaping with the strength of
men. Others join the gleaners. Here
and there may be seen an entire fam
ily, the father hard at work loading
or pitching, the mother and children
gleaning.
The sun is sinking in a golden hazi
that rises like the dust from some
jc JMutxnrw-J"''"'l'"'""""'" -"aaa"aaa'a--rYv-flrrrnrjvuvuijuuuu
What Is Rest?
It is strange how people differ in
their ideas as to what rest really
means. According to accepted author
ity the definition of the word it: "A
state of quiet or repose; a cessation
from motion or labor; freedom from
everything which wearies or disturbs,
etc., etc.," but as is the case with
nearly every subject that is worth dis
cussing each individual mind places
its own interpretation upon the defi
nition. What means rest to some per
sons brings no refreshment to others,
and it must be admitted, we suppose,
that each person is the best judge of
his needs. The mo3t widely accepted
theory of rest is to do absolutely noth
ing, to lie quietly in a relaxed posi
tion, to lounge about and give one's
self up to complete repose, to do noth
ing that requires any effort of will or
exertion of body. There are times
when such absolute relaxation is nec
pqsarv for the rehabilition of nature,
'"when mind and body worn and fagged
by a too constant application reach
the limits of endurance and crave
"some sweet oblivious antidote."
- TlMIr.
Cfck
n. )riL
9 m. fa BKm.m
w l-
tremendous threshing floor, and the
white road to Paris is barred with ths
shadows of the plane trees which Na
polcon planted to shelter his march
ing troops. Motorists ought to bless
the memory of Napoleon, for, once oft"
the evil pavee which surrounds the
towns, there are no roads In the world
so good as those he made all over
France. Behind the avenue of planes
are apple and pear trees laden with
fruit, and. although within reach of all
who pass by, apparently untouched
Either the little boys of France are
of superhuman virtue or they get filled
to repletion before reaching the high
way. Coming from the north, the sun
ny road runs abruptly into the for
est and is compelled to curve among
the rocky ridges. Glades branch off tc
right and left losing themselves in
the green twilight distance, and ex
cept for the murmuring of the leaves
utter silence reigns. Here and there
the beeches give way to thickets of
acacia and hornbeam, and sometimes
the tangle is broken by a group of
pines rising from the needle-strewn
soil.
There Is an atmosphere of legendry
about this ancient forest It is not
difficult to picture medieval knights
or richly-caparisoned horses moving
in glittering procession 'between the
smooth trunks of the beeches, or a
merlin chanting incantations and
weaving spells among the crags above
them.
It is a relief to turn under the
acacia and plunge among fallen trunks
and rank herbage towards a lighter
spot, where open sky can be seen. A
grass-grown mound reveals itself as
the remains of a wall of rough-hewn
stones, and beyond it lies a clearing
bearing reassuring traces of human
ity. A crop of green maize is wav
ing luxuriantly in the breeze. Further
on are fruit trees almonds full of
green nuts, standard peaches, apples,
some with heavily-burdened boughs
weighed down almost to earth, others
clothed with fluttering gray moss; and
only green with clumps of mistletoe;
and under these old trees the grass
is hidden in a shimmering cloud of
harebells. Presently the joy of har
vest will even penetrate the sadness
of the forest So when the sun has
set, and twilight is fast creeping over
the vast plain, the village appears
once more. The straggling street is
full of color even after the glow of
harvest fields. Old tiled roofs splashed
with orange lichens rise against the
darkened forest Every step calls
forth an exquisite picture. Rustic
homes nestle among trees, walled gar
dens of dreamy seclusion, leafy lanes
only leading to the deeper leafage of
the forest Nothing jarring, nothing
new; only a little village of old France
a gem of exquisite simplicity set in
the pure gold of the corn. At little
tables in the inn courtyard people are
dining or playing cards in the leisure
ly way that obtains in the country,
while a horde of mongrel dogs, vary
ing from an atom faintly suggestive of
a griffon to a sedate monster obvious
ly claiming relationship to a mastiff,
wander casually in and out among the
tables and solicit scraps with eloquent
eyes or gently insistent paws.
Above the clatter of wooden soles
and chatter of homeward-wending bar-vest-folk
there arises a rumble of
heavy wheels. Up the street comes a
wagon piled high with sheaves, and
drawn by two cream-colored oxen
muzzled and bowing low beneath a
ponderous wooden yoke.
O. K. MOORE.
Roentgen Rays Wagons for Army.
Field, Roentgen rays wagons are the
latest addition to the medical equip
ment of the Austro-Hungarian army.
Careful experiments carried on since
last February have demonstrated the
practicability and value of such wag
ons under all kinds of conditions.
It has been found possible to get
the apparatus at work in seven min
utes. Any sort of electric current in
the neighborhood can be employed,
and, failing such, the dynamo mount
ed in the wagon and driven by a ben
zine motor can be used.
Each wagon carries VI gallons of
benzine, sufficient for 24 hours' work.
Besides the photographing apparatus
the wagon carries 501 plates and films
of various kinds, chemicals, a dark
room which can be unpacked and put
together in four minutes and all the
necessary tools and other requisites.
In no case less than 170 cases of
the most varied character the field
Roentgen equipment has worked with
out a hitch. The photographs proved
most exact and answered all scientific
demands.
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