Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1885-09-03

pleasure of the party in the sizzing
hours OF the day. About the
time would get back into the wagon
and become comfortably fixed in my
seat, she would begin to brood on terri
ble consequences sure to happen q lit
tie farther along, and it wouldn't be O
minute until she would be about ready
to break down with presentiment that
the cork had already come out of the
Jug. So would have to climb down
again, and Irove by personal observa-
tion that she was wrong, as is generally
the case in the clash of intellect between
man and wife. But it was not until we
finally drove into camp, and she had
sat SIZED eiself by overhauling the
cooling apparatus IN person that my
numerously repeated statements were
correct as usual, that anything like
tranquility of mind or placidity of de-
meanor was possible to the woman
who had such an important RESPONSE
bility resting on her delicate shoulders.
Most of the party we're equipped with
poles and lines, and expected to dip a
hook for the fun of the thing, but two
men had come to fish in the literal
meaning of the term, and after spend
ing an hour in securing the country in
search of bait, they secured limited
supply, and, finding place where the
sun could pour down on them without
hindrance, they spit on their hooks
and commenced business in scientific
earnest.
took position on my cot in the
thickest shade / could find, and pre-
pared to enjoy myself without unneces-
sary fatigue. In fifteen minutes the
camp was thrown into most intense ex-
element. The rod headed man had a
bite! Everybody held his breath and
stood on tiptoe to wait the result. 1t
weighed three pounds, according to a
rumor that diffused itself through the
community next day, but ii you insist
on scriptural accuracy in such matters.
divide by three and let it go at
that. OF course the lucky man
was not troubled with solitude for some
time afterward. Everybody else
brought his pole and got as close to
him as possible. His society was in
demand from that moment, but he lost
his luck and his jaw dropped until the
solemn.faced mans cork began to bob.
The crowd then went over to him in a
body. and his hopes were blasted. The
man with the flaming ringlets pulled
out another bass, and the crowd stam-
peded back to him. The sad-faced
man readiusted his bait, spit on his
hook, tossed it back into the water,
and sat motionless for two hours.
Just as l was beginning to feel my
self borne by angel hands to the land
of dreams, a new diversion aroused me.
1t was female shrek of most robust
amplitude and unmistakable earnest
ness, followed by a rush of air near me,
and resounding splash in the water
that threw a cloud of spray several
feet above the rivers bank. A female
shrek is something to which l gencr-
ally pay more or less attention, depend
ing somewhat as TO whom tise-sl.ss@lziat
may happen to be. When it hap
pens to be the companion of
my woes, as it generally is, L
never excite myself with precpitate
rashness. take things cool and look
around for something on which to base
con .ecture before sweating myself
without urgent cause. When q man
has had his blood brought to q stand
still more times than six-year-old can
count, by wall from the wife of his
bosom over nothing more terrible than
the unexpected appearance OF spider,
or at most mouse, he will learn to
keep his coat on and wait for develop
ments of more dreadful nature.
When the screamer is young and fair,
and has taffy-colored hair banged in
both hemispheres, it alters the case,
and go to the rescue at once, without
caring q noodle for particulars.
When the aforesaid shrek struck me
my first impression was that the part
ner of my triumphs had made the awful
discovery that the cream jug was cork
less in spite of all my efforts in its be-
half, but moment later l saw that l
was mistaken. The gusher from the
city had sat down on a log and was try
ing to compose poem to nature when
she espied q small snake. and at onco
became so demoralized with fear that
she instantly become as crazy as her
own poetry, and jumped into the river
for want of knowing what else to do.
Being the only man in the party at leis-
ure at that moment, of course had to
jump in and pull her out. The COM
plexion Of the poetess and my own raj
ment were q good deal the worse for the
ducking, but it took all the nonsense
out of her for the remainder of the day,
and l had reason to feel grateful to the
serpent who had slaughtered the muse,
for the misguised woman had somehow
become impressed with the delusion
that the greatest pleasure l could know
was in listening to the reading OF her
own sad, sweet melodies,
BY this time the solemn-faced man
came into camp, looked at dinner
basket and sighed. Whether this sig
nal had been previously agreed upon or
not, / don't know, but at all events the
women took the hint and began to
spread out the dinner, having some
time before commenced the preparation
of coffee on small coal-oil stove in a
very large boiler. The stove had seemed
discouraged from the start at
the size Of the job, and took its
own time to bring the water to the boil
ing point. Everybody stood around
watching the coffee and wondering why
it didn't boil. 1 suggested that matters
might be hurried little by hanging
the boiler on the limb of tree and get
ting the red-haired man to stand under
it, but he didn't seem to take kindly to
the proposition and it was not adopted.
} When IL was discovered that the light
in the stove had died out probably an
hour before and somebody had put q
| n 4 e =. q. l. 4