The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1889-03-07
DR.. Wroten's Letter.
~. BAxNrrr, DAK,, Feb. goth.

Gro tuc AoHs lIOn biio Otdtc vi Git
tie Blaine, for his evident partially
to my communications from thi
barren spot, and am willing TO de
vote an hour or two Of my time t.
giving him and my other Lawrence
friends my continued experiences
and impressions. | have some viz
id memories of Little Blaine, ano
Big Blaine as we'll Some very hol
days and some very cold nights
have travelled up, down and across
their sandy bottoms and breezy
ridges. | have ushered into this
vale Of tears more than one of the
| young people of that region, and il
may be that some of my pills and
powders were leetle strong tor
others. A more hospitable, kindly
people than these Blainites you will
not find, and / hope that by some
dispensation of Divine Providence
they may all get rich.
But, my friend Old Hickory
wonder if you are Andrew Jackson,
whose last name is Thompson?-I
have written so much from Dakota
that it is hard to find anything
about which to write. Twas sing
ing rather monotonous song once,
when | was a boy, and man said,
"Bub, your piece is something like
a grindstone-same thing over and
over That's what the readers OF
the News will say about my letters.
Well, if they arelike the life we lead
cut here they must be of the grind
stone order. Nothing could be
more regular, more routine than
life at an Indian Agency. Every
employe knows exactly what be is
TO do; and, barring accidents, he
will do that thing at the appointed
time and In the appointed way.
Each season has its general work,
and each day OF the season its spe-
cific duties. Day by day the big
bell in the Agents Office calls the
employees to their labors, evening
after evening it tells them to drop
the hammer, the saw, the pick or
the spade. An idle employee is an
unknown quantity whoss value is O.
If perchance there is nothing to do
in his department he is put to work
in some other. When school clos
es on the Both of June the teachers
become copyists for the Agent.
When all the beeves are killed and
the meat hung up In the big ware
house the butcher becomes the man.
agsr ofall tie laborefs about the
Agency. And SO throughout all the
various departments. fan employe
gets SO much per annum he is sup
posed to do something during the
year for his pay, and our Agent sees
that this something's done. If any
employe leaves the Agency he must
first obtain permission from the
Agent, or from me, il he is a school
employe, and the days of his alb
sence must be accounted for. So
you see that a position In the Civil
Service of the United States is hot
a life Of idleness, at least hot out
here, where tie Agent demands that
every man shall do his duty. Yet
a more considerate, kindly man to
his subordinates does not live,
| said that each season Lad its
particular work. A large portion
of this winters work consists of put
ting away ice for summers use. l
have just finished filling my ice
house with solid GOODNESS, and al
though the work was hard and dis
agreeable it is compensated for by
the thought of its usefulness in the
hot months to come, We open the
ice house as soon as the weather
gets warm and use itwithout stint.
IN account of the unheard of mild
ness of the season our ice this year
is only eighteen inches thick. Last
year it was thirty-six.. We get it
from the Missouri, the muddiest
stream in the United States, but the
ice, except when the sand has blown
upon it, is beautifully clear.
] began this yesterday, and to-
day, the. 21st, am writing while a
fearful storm is raging. One who
has never seen one Of these storms
can form nojust conception Of their
violence,a Some you have doubt
less stood on the top ofthe town
hill at the intersection of the Big
Blaine and Paintsville roads, on
what We call at home a cold, windy
day, and thought it the coolest place
in the, world. l know have thought
SO when returning from a sick call
for which neysr got q cent Well,the
intensest cold you ever experience
ed there was 'balmy compared with
L ! r r