The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1882-07-28
4 Private Forest,

[[-----.-@-.@-~--aa=@ $50
A Private Forest,
Some years ago we had large sum OF
money that we were not using, and as it
lay idle in our Golfers, we decided to
purchase fine building site in northeast
Larimie, improve land sell it at a. large
profit. Being considerably struck with
the pritneval beauty and solemn mag
nIticence Of the evergreen, we decided
at first to secHre some spruces and make
that corner kind Of spruce gum orch
ard, which would naturally be the envy
and admiration of the West Acting
upon this impulse we purchased load
of this vegetable, setting out the trees
on two sides of the plantation, and Dig
ging an irrigation ditch g64 feet long by
which to water them. For two weeks
the irrigation ditch failed to connect
with the central Office, and we carried
water to the trees through the agency of
mechanical arrangement known as the
patent pail.
All these trees died of the pinkeye
but one.
We then sent East and purchased 100
seedlings Of the Norway spruce variety,
and fringed the ditch with them, pro-
tecting them from the hot sun by means
of wide shingles placed on the south
side. These trees staggered along
through the summer, and when winter
sat in were pale and emaciated, but
cheerful and hopeful for the future. The
winter was an unusually severe one, and
toward spring a large, lonely COW,
known throughout the west as DR.. Tan
ner, in an unguarded moment got over
the inclasure and ate the entire forest.
We had almost decided at that time
to abandon timber culture in Wyoming,
but when vernal spring opened we de-
adjacent mountains and make one grand
farewell effort One pleasant day we
consented to make picnic excursion
into the Black Hill with a small party
of friends, and while others packed the
large lunch baskets we put into the
barouche, spade and some other burg
lars Tools. The picnic was not finan-
cial or social success Picnics very
rarely are.
A bottle of glycerine that had been
brought by one of the young ladies to pro-
tect her hands from the rigorous climate,
got broken and worked itself into the
sponge cake, and pint of campher got
mixed up with the pie. A rain storm
came up also and created lunch basket
full of chaos which we emptied out un-
der tree.
While the rest of the party gathered
wood violets and a rare indigenous
plant vulgarly termed "beggar's lice, !"
we skirmished around and gathered
small spruce trees.
1t was a glorious day for all. The sun
came out just long enough to peel the
noses Of the party and then went under
cloud, followed bya cold rain and hail
All that had been brought along to eat
was spoiled except some candy with mot
toes on the side. When you have been
riding all day in the vigorous air of the
mountains and have to fill yourself up
with drink of warm water and lozenge
on which is printed 81 can never be
thine" it tends to hush the frivolous
laughter Of the giddy throng and make
people get acquainted with each other
in a way that is not pleasant. The
mountain picnic has broken up more
engagements and shattered more loving
hearts than grim visaged war and the
angry parent combined.
There are two prolific causes of crime
in this country. One is rum and the
other is the picnic.
But we defect from the original line
Of thought.
Our trees were brought home and
planted in the same old hole where we
had been in the habit Of killing ever
green's.
By this time unemployed men had
learned to look to us for steady work
One man wanted us to hire him at a
salary to replace trees and haul away
the deceased.
The new forest thrived during the
summer until August when we were
called away from town to put up polit,
ical job for the good of the country.
We were absent two weeks and while
away a neighbor who was erecting a
croquet lawn, composed of wild buffalo
grass and velvety sweep of red sand
turned the humid contents of our ditch
into his luxuriant gravel patch where he
was trying to promote the guileless
game of croqnet.
On our return, the sombre green of
our little wilderness had changed to a
dazzling sorrel color that looked like the
big Michigan fire.
People sometimes ask us this season
why we do not go into the tree business
with our old enthusiasm, but we answer
them rudely and Earshly, for who can
chat gaily of that which tears out his
heart and grinds it into the grave OF
buried hopes. Blu Nye'S Boomerang.