Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1872-06-13
Thar STEAM WuIsrLE.-Those o


"atties as many are wont TODD At.
ter the cares Of the week are land
aside, were suddenly aroused from
their sleep, cositat;on or reverie, by
a howl that woke the echoes, and
made the old pine forests culver.
(rhe forests havn't told us 50, but
we kaoac ~, We don't know what
other people did, but zoe proceeded to
git" which we did with wonderful
alacrity blinking Of 6rr.)
We endeavorel to jump into our
habys shoes, got our propeiiers into
our coat sleeves, threw our wite's
Dolly Warden over our shoulders,
thrust our head into an old felt ha.
long appropriated bv Mrs. Thomas
Warden for the bring rs up of a numr' :
GUS progeny, and lrabing an old
pewter syringe -sqniit gun t hat our
boy uses for bombarding potato
bugs, made for the supposed scene OF
action. The old monster filled the
air with its howlinys, and our mind
called up visions of burning Mos,
COWS and Chicago conalgrations, as
VIC hurried on regardless Of expense.
The first ten rods carried us through
the pitch darkness over a dairy of
reclining tarrow cows, now enbrac'
| ing soft wool stump or a fancy
!btching post, now applying lubrl'
eating ponltice to our troiterS or max
llny obelsance to hazel brush that
never enquired whittier we were
bound at snch tearing speed.
One minute, we thought Of fire, the
ne&t, of some lost urcmn IN the pclt-
ing rain and out in the cold night,
aud then we thought, can 1t be
has "Oh B,eswax come with his
railroad and without ceremony is
whistmg f5r his bonds ? This
thought p,cascd us, aud we said
= Welcome, Becswax." A twenty
inmates stretch and we ordered u
halt for recnperation, though the
bowling monster never wCaried. w Z
wished ace were bowling monster.
We sat down to rest, i'll the darkness,
We 60, up very quick tor it was dark
and one Of RabIin's jack as,cs isn't
accustomed to being mct9morphosed
INTO u sofa. When We got up We
we're some forty feet from where we
sat down, aud We heard or STA
pW, rods and rods away TO the
northwest OF the editorial ruins. We
gathered up the pieces of our editUrl-
al organism aud took a reckoning,
We were in Wood County but the
section, rangc and township we were
entirely ignorant OF. While cogitat,
Ing aud wondering when the funeral
would be, we dlsrrncd something
approaching, aud whistled.
Who be dem out dare dis tunes
ob night" We told him Eyes" and
then asked what had broke loose.
What You means, dem steam
whistles p sad Tie ghost. " Steam
whistles - said we in broken english,
"yah, dat is Mr.. Necves new steam
Whistles" Our ambition was yatis.
fed, our anatomy walked along with
the " ghost " homeward, IL saying
marry a word for fright, aud ice max
my Just the same amount Of noise for
disgust and madness.
Oar ghost vanished in the dark
ness--we were hor,ie, and in bath
Of glycerine and sweet oil, aud with
a dranght of hot chickery, consoea
our bruised tenement and nurscd our
tripping 'pirits. Wen bet our wiir's
Dolly Warden tina. the red skins Of
the Rocky Mountains can hear that
whistle when it only tohiSpers. Mr..
Neeyes, we forbid your blowing that
toy only or state occasions, and then
with only an ounce of steam.