National Republican., 1884-03-03

appropriation was made-a large sized ono
and two officials got possession Of the money
and were about to build the bridge when
thoy had some happy thoughts. 1t was in the
fall of the year. and the river would froezo
over soon, and no bridge would be needed
until spring. Moreover, it was a bad sea-
son of tho year to begin building
bridges. In profitable speculation the
money ought to double itself before spring
One of the men took the money, went up into
Michigan and brought back the worth of 1t
in sheep. In the spring those sheep ought to
be worth double their cost. Unfortunately
for the custodians, ii was hard winter
for sheep. The sand was too deep for
picking living, and the sheep all
died. Their frozen carcasses wero scattered
about and the spectators were in deep
trouble. Neither of them had money TO
build the bridge. Exposure and prosecution
seemed certain, but Providence came to their
relief. The Indians on one of tho reserva-
tions fell short of meat and the agent adver-
tised for cattle. The governor and the Judge
persuaded the agent to decide that there were
no cattle to be bought in the country, and to
advertise for sheep. Then the governor and
the judge sold to the government the frozen
carcasses of their deceased Gocks. They did
not make any money out of it, but they got
enough money to put up kind of bridge.
1t is known to this day as the growing
bridge" because the timbers sprouted before
it was finished, the wood was SO green. The
story got abroad somehow, and, according to
| tho delegation which tells it, neither the
| judge nor the governor, who are still resi-
dents of Dakota, can make speech in that
territory without being frequently inter-
rupted with cries of sheep, sheep" or 'ba,
ba-a," from tho audience.
30
Prof Eugene Field the distinguished lit
| tcrateur and art critic who has been devoting
some days to the study of people and things
in Washington, is, like some other men whose
thoughts dwell mostly on great subjects,
somewhat absentminded. Yesterday he took
off his velvet coat, knee brooches, and silk
stockings and put on ordinary
wearing apparel-tho professor has a
shrinking almost maidenly, dread
of being conspicuous or attact-
ing attention while traveling-and otherwise
prepared himself to take the evening train
for New York. Just as he was about to enter
his carriage he heard the church bells ring.
The familiar sound aroused him to the fact
that it was the Sabbath day. Most people
know that, on account Of religious scruples
the professor never works writes, or sings
on Sunday, and will understand his horror at
the thought of what seemed to him the sacri.
lege he was about to commit. He will go to
Now York this morning.
IA. A. ~ A..
friends that his latest work, entitled "Chest-
nuts; or, Old Stories Retold,' which created
such furore in literary circles of st. Louis
and Aurora, ILL.,, is really the joint production
of himself and Sir Wyllis Haskins. Prof
Fields name appears alone upon the title
page, aud he alone has received all tho credi
for tho now famous work, not from any desire
of his nor from any ungenerous disposition Il
claim the glory justly belonging to another
but simply because his patrician collabora
teur declined to permit his name to be asso
ciatcd with the book 1t is due to Sir Wylli
to explain that, notwithstanding his nobl
lineage he scorns all distinction of caste, an
would willingly allow himself to be classe
with tho common heard of ofstruggling author,
but for the preudices of an aged and infrl
maiden aunt, who retains all the aristocrati
pride of race, and is horror-stricken ut tn
thought that one of her family shoul
be associated in any manner other tina
as muniflcent patron with the denizen
of "Grub street." With generous deferenc
to this feeling, although he does not sympl
thize with it, Sir Wyllis declined to appea
. as an author. The work itself is a collectio
!, of charming long stories 1t has delioiou
flavor of the sixteenth century. Severe
euvious critics of the Aurora Qll.) press hav
even charged that several Of the stories hav
been simply remodeled from those of Bandell
and other Italian novelists of that centur!
= This, of course, is the carping criticism
!, green jealousy. There is simply in all
' the tales a sweet suggestion of things onc
, enjoyed, but long since forgotten.