New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-07-09


man was interested in this phenomenon and desir-
ors In know ,ts cause 1t was not an easy phrase
to frame in the sign manual language, ana unior-
t,noteIv instead of saving as he aterward learnt
% How has IL como to pass that the DraVest Oh tno
bravo the man of all men. the dearest iriehu
have among the good hearts, has grown sucn
flowing beard ~ there we're seventeen bristles), IN
stead of this. he Blgn-talked I" that his face was
like Young maidens and his heart that OF an ola
sonaw v-the most mortally offensive affront tha0
oouId be offered to an Indian. Tomahawks shone III
that Indians eye as he started up when happily
mutual friend, a young brave who was near
stepped forward and explained matters. Inc
author is not unwilling TO relate his own blunders'
as the following story attests:
We were running very short of soap, chiefly owing
to the fact that some OF our Original stoch vas >
cached together with some spare nOur, ~ po'n,
we could not reach IN less than week 5 tiihe 4
decided therefore to manufacture some OF tnaI MOS.
necessary article, and was rather Prouu vi III
chance of showing the men that while they .oul1
and did teach me q lot of useful domestic arts
would have opportunity OF teaching then sVi NJ
thing. My introduction You Just watch anu see
me MAKE soap it's easy enough. was uatu NY
needed for they were all attention so, WINE tne
storm laged and the wind howled, 1 oegln NY, ny
manipulation But as the sequeI waa yerv little
knowledge is worse than none, proved true.
fancied that | remembered to have once peen
taught that soap was mauc OF UlllOW Yo hn" my >
but being neither a chemist nor geol0gist, COM
united the grave error OF supposing that the AKA
line earth of the usual bad-land 1orlnation con,
tanning a large percentage OF SODA or alKaI "ouIu
act os snbsf itute for lime Alter filing the camp
kettle with I've OF wood ashes, concentrated W seN
eral hours boiling, began to mix IL III me euiu-pa
with some elk tlllow and alkaline earth, using my
hands for this purpose To my surprise the result
was a sticky, tar-ike, greasy, black mess, Oh tne
consistency of thick glne-in TACT, $nytnlng ou :
soap; end when | finally gave mp the attempt l
fonn1 TO my horror that the black stun coating my
hands resisted all attempts to remove IL | iTieu
every conceivable means to get IL OIL paitpollne
them IN steamng water rubbing them with gun
rowder salt pitch from the trees, earth, asnes,
steepng them till could bear II no longer III tno
hot I've; but everything failed TO remove tne 10
fernal tarry stun from my nanuS' Even hdh d pun
of pTecious whiskcy was wasteh IN my VAIN en-
deavor to subdue the boss's soap as OF course IL
at once was nicknamed. The men Iaugnea vi,
tears coursed down then cheeks: and threatened
TO trv some OF hcI if they did not deslst flnaily,
lust as | was getting heIcely desperate, q sudden
thought AS the sequei VIII snow ueCcGf moV ~
soapsud-den thought-croSsed my BRAIN IL was 10
nse salcratus" which we used instead OF yeast
powder for baking bread. Henry put lot IN the
washhand bdsin-fOr of course | could NOT touch
ANYTHING while my hands were in the state they
were inland when it had dissolved IN the not
wafer which we poured on the white powder, pro-
ceeaed to steep them in II. 1t made matters not
better but worse. There was distinct " M Oh
immersion: and some wretched chenlcai process
must have been enacted, for the STUN hau Souceh-
trated itself to the consistency OF melted lhlia-
rubber For hours | sat III n most helpless manner
on a snowbank. nursing my hands. Ihey hau me
appearance OF having Oeen steeTed In pitchtr Vi
Tar: and as the men, not without some truth re-
marked "that soap had indeed gone 6dck on the
boss and funerallzed him IN Ihe most all-hTeu ue-
ci-sivest manner =; while the idotlc young HoilIy
pr0prOs of nv takiRg root on that snow bank began
telling that old story OF frontier maiden, VINO al
dance remained for "a long time paltneGioss, ana
when finally some kind being did ask her Tor turn
she electrified him by her Yes SIR rec Tor We sou
and sot and sot till have about tux root Fortunate
y was among Americans so was spared the unlllcI
tion of choice dOggerel where Tears and Pears ana
Soap and Hoap Western spelngl were lmpressed.I o
cut short a long days misery nad 10 sdCTIuCe oho
of the two pairs OF winter gloves had WIN me
and draw them on SD as at least 10 he abe 10 eat,
and use my hands for the most necessary purposes.
The next day / cnt them OIL and as the stun hau
got dry managed with blunt SHINING knife 10
scrape of the worst part, leaving my skin raw ana
sore; but 1T took months to remove the ast Iraces,
indeed not till reached the Fort and stepped them
in some antl-soap- generating acid
practical and suggestive chapter the bust
ness of stock-raising and some interesting reml-
niscences of Western ways, conclude this pleasant
volume The author can hardly say too much OF
the power which woman holds in these distant
regions Her word is never disputed. Her dignity,
sGroir-fdire and independence make her the master
of the most pulling situation. In remote settle -
ment two husbands, close neighbours had some
trouble, and " shooting on sight had been threat
ened and threatened One morning one of
lie
a formidable armory was in waiting to receive her
husband. and the unexpectedness of her coup
resulted in a grand victory for her. Going up to
the unfortunate man she began to belabor his face
and head with the Drawny fists Of n frontiers
woman. The victim a huge fellow who could have
crushed her with one tap of his sledge-hammer
bceps, never raised himself from the chair on
which he was seated, but presently drawled out
Meow you'd better skin lleayel or iX for a squar
fight for she be a coming" abiding to his own
wife. who was approaching the hut. The next
day the promised shooting did come Oft, and the
man who never raised bis finger to stay the sum
mary chastiscment inflicted By a woman Killed her
husband. The first strong impression which the
author received Of the boundless, the ingenious and
the Independent West. was not however, from
majestic woman, but from a squealing baby:
There was nothing very peculiar about the appear
ance of this baby. Not over-burdened with gar
ments it was strapped in Indian fashion TO board
about two feet long and one foot broad. lhe BOARD
and the baby were leaning against tue Log wall %
n frontier shanty on its shady side. There was
nobody near; and as | had heard o good deal about
the cute lodges employed Ey WesternerS when
pre-emptng" locations, the letter OF the land
laws obglng them to mark possession by some
visible and unmstakable "sqnatters sign, / I'M
aglned this possibly might be a new way OF demon,
strating ownership to would-be claim, jumpers
always ready 20 pOunce upon unprotected property
The baby seemed very happy; It's little arms were
free, and kept up constant movement-tne only
sign of life on the arid, dusty plains that sur
rounded the miserable sOd-roOfed shanty with OPP
pressive vastncss Urging my horse LITTLE closer,
remarked that some strings were dangling about
the baby's neck, and that one was tied to the big
toe of ono of the rosy little feet of the infant l
was puzzled. DIsmOuntng from my tired saw
buck" proceeded to examine the arrangement IN
tape. The child was complacenty sucking at Dlt
OF raw pork, about the size OF large walnut tied
TO one end OF the string vi e the other was las,
tened as / nave said. to the little foot a second
piece of Irvine, knottcd TO the board over its head,
prevented the piece OF meat falling 10 the ground,
should the child loosen its clutch. Nine men out of
ten would, fancy. have Immediately detected the
connecting INK between the toe and the pork.
was however, the tenth for at that time you could
not have seen anywhere n more brilliant specimen
nf IL ..nnna o tnndnrfnntn than | Mas- So whit