Nevada County picayune., 1889-09-18

two herders all they wanted to do to hold them. By this time one-halt or the heavens to the south of us was overcast with huge masses of deep tinted, blue-back. surging clouds. tossing and tumbling like the pillows on the ocean.
 Look! look therer' cried one of the boys By jingo! There's a bat tie for your at the same time indi- eating what he meant by pointing southwark One look, and my atten- tion was riveted upon the most singular sight I had ever before witnessed in my experience on the great plains. The great surg ing body of clouds had been rent in twain midway. and while one body re- tained the deep. blue-black hue, the other had assumed deep orange tint at the center with light saffron-hued spots constantly changing position, while the entire western line of the mass was illumined by rapid and vivid flashes of lightning. Midway the ad- vancing, threatening clouds the sky lay n clear expanse of azure, while mounting rapidly like beetling crags the blue-black masses were 'erlapping the slower moving, luminous clouds. The whole was taken in by me in moment, and in the same moment the wind from the northeast had died away and dead calm ensued A mo- ment later, and ere we had reached the now restive cattle, sound like distant thunder and steady gale of | hot wind from the southwest caused me to again note the approaching storm. can compare what l beheld to nothing save the bubbling masses of rapidly boiling caldron of soap so intermingled and sudden were the evolutions of the lightish- tinted with darker hued tossing vapors. Almost as quick as thought the panorama of battling elements changed. What had hitherto formed the base or heavier masses of the clouds suddenly shot upward, leaving 8 long pendant train, the center Of the body black as night-the outer rim filled with electric hashes-the whole gyrating, whirling, bounding upward and then, as the wind began to blow gale, approaching us with the speed of race-horse and a sound represent ing distant cannonading. Ten mln- utes did not elapse from the moment of its assuming its funnel shape ere we were enveloped in clouds of hail, mist, dust, flying pebbles and thick. sulphurous vapor. Riding like mad, our shouting, whipping, screaming and all were vain attempts to hold the thoroughly frightened cattle, and the best we could do was to let them drift" and, If possible amid the blind. ing storm, keep pace with them. The famous ride of John Gilpin was ip no way equal to ours that Gay. and by five o'clock we succeeded in stop ping the stampede and found ourselves eighteen miles distant from our start ing point-sore and bruised, hungry and drenched to the skin-minus one of our number who had ridden to death," he having been caught by the frightened cattle, unhorsed and trampled into shapeless mass of flesh and bones. Poor Christover! A more faithful lad never bestrode a bronco. The return to camp next morning exposed situation by no means encouraging. Five of the huge Government wagons, freighted with from 6, 800 to 1000 pounds, were com pletely wrecked and their valuable freight scattered for miles over the prairie. Harmon had had his left shoulder dslocated, two drivers were seriously injured by contusions, and four valuable mules killed outright. Still, savants contend cyclones to be of recent origin, and some people re- ligiously believe them to be confined to Kansas Poor Kansas, like the girl with many tribulations. finds the least of her to be the greatest in other folks eyes. Chicago Times.