The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1892-03-15
HOUSES UNDERGROUND.
Two Unique Features of Prairie
Landscapes.
THE DUGOUT OF THE PLAINS
Prairie Dog villages-Jolly Little Eel
lows Who Burrow for Their Homes
Primitive Modes of Human Exist
ence-Some Odd sights.

The westward course Of civilization is
| driving out of existence two unique feat
ures OF prairie landscape, the dugout,
where the settler makes part of his farm
serve as walls for his home, and the prai-
RE dog village, which is almost counter
part, though on smaller scale, of the
dwellings used by the settlers.
Travellers by the great transcontinental
railway lines see, far out toward the hills,
the prairie-dog towns, but they are fewer
and fewer each year. When a visitor is
at distance the Jolly little prairie dogs
are seen frsiking about among the num-
berless mounds that are entrances to their
homes. But show yourself inside the
municipal boundaries and in an instant
every dog is scampering for his hole as
fast as legs can carry him. On reaching
the open door, a siX-inch hole running
down through the mound of earth, the
little animal stops, rises on his hind legs
and, stretching himself upward until he
appears tall and SLENDER waits. AS you
come nearer he begins to talk.
"Chit, chit, tit" he remarks, and then
"chit-tit- tit-tit," the black eyes gleam-
ing like beads. Every time he says 'chit"
the stumpy little tail jerks up his back in
response to the motion of the vocal
chords.
AS you enter the town there may be
two or three dozen of the noisy little fell
lows yapping at you each one producing
about 100 yaps per minute. One by one
they grow alarmed and with a final
"chit tumble Historically into their
holes, and you hear them skurrying away
downward as il they were bent on a
journey to China.
lie is at home The billiards may come
down from Manitoba, freezing even the
coyote in his den, and the wild horses and
steers may be paving frantically for food
upon the sleet-covered plain, but the
prairie dog is perfectly happy. He is in
the bosom OF his family far down in
deep, rich soil, and has literally pulled his
hole in after him-for he has " holed up"
as the frontiersmen say, his home. Fresh
earth from the bottom of the hole has
been carried to the top and the mouth of
the orifice stopped solidly, as il the in
mate was to remain until the crack OF
doom.
How far the holes go is problematical.
Some who have attempted to dig out the
little rascals have penetrated eight or ten
feet with no more indication of reaching
bottom than when they started. 1t is
stated that each town-for the holes are
hole that goes down to water and is the
water works system of the place. The
towns are usually in elevated and dry To-
calities, miles from surface water; so we
can well believe it.
A dog town is barren of grass as city
street, as the inhabitants nibble down the
verdure, roots and all. When caught the
creatures make fine pets and are very
tractable.
AS a matter of fact. they are not dogs at
all. They are about as much like dog as
they are like a camelopard. Instead of being
a carnivorous beast, thirsty for blood, he
is prairie marmot, chubby ground
squirrel, lively, jolly, and apparently as
happy as the day is long.
The dugout" " OF the settler is also
passing away. II, too, while not so unique
as the prairie-dog town, has been a fea-
ture of the prairie not soon to be for
gotten.
Look of southwark across Kansas or
Nebraska plain some summer day. APP
parently, there is not another person
within dozen miles. But smoke
comes up from the grass. Is it an Incl.
pient prairie fire? You go to it and find
some dirt thrown up and sod placed
above. The tall gxass has made the
mound unnoticeable. Go around to the
south side. There is depression in the
ground and a door is seen at the entrance
of the settlers home. Perhaps there are two
windows; oftener only one. Go in and
there may appear a cosy room with a rag
carpet on the hard, earthen floor, stove,
rocking chairs and bed, all as neat and at
tractive as New England kitchen. You
will hardly notice that the walls are au
ndturel, and that the roofshows support
ing poles for a covering Of earth. | have
seen in one or two such cabins organs and
book cases that would have graced a
" residence" of much greater pretensions.
The dugout is the settlers first refuge.
As ne moves on his claim with a large
family, each member with a rapidly de-
veloping appetite, he feels the need Of
using his ready money for food and tools.
Perhaps he is miles from lumber yard or
railway station. He digs into the earth
four feet and piles up around the edges Of
the cavity the dirt taken out and uses the
original sod for a roof, and he has a cheap
and durable home. Cyclones cannot in
lure IL nor blizzards penetrate its warm
recesscs. There are no draughts around
the floor and no crevices in the walls.
The dugout has been the starting place
OF more prominent men OF the prairie
country than one would believe. Men
who now occupy proud positions on the
bench, in editorial chairs, even i'm Con-
gress, have struggled against fortune i'm
tho duoout of some early claim. Chi