The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-06-14
GRAND OLD TIMES.
when Two Base Hits Were Made with
Broomstfc1xs.

Broomsticks.
SUMMIT, N. J., June TT had been
taking a walk through the woods and
over the winding roads of this beautiful
but very much overbuilded place and
happened to mention the fact that this
once romantic spot was being ruined by
the march of progress. which from the
poets point of view is veritab1e dead
march
Yes said bystander at the rail
road station where happened to be at
the tilne, "the place is simply spoiled
for me, because it is built to death.
Why, can remember when I used to
catch six pound pickerel in beautiful
crystal lily pond that used to be right
where one of the big hotels now stands.
OF course the pond was drained and
filed in, that the Land might be sold by
the square inch. -
''Those must have been great days, :"
I remarked to draw the old man out.
f'Well, I just guess they were,'' re-
piled the mossback, with a smile that
told me he was on his favorite subject.
s'Those were the days when you could
go out and knock partridges down with
a broom if they happened to fly near the
ground I have often jumped as a base
ball player does for a bali with broom
stick in one hand and knocked a par
fridge coming on a curve to what was
about equal to a two base hit. / have
even jumped and caught them on the
fly, but this was. of course, owing to the
fact that they were very plentiful. "
''They were never as plentiful as that,
were they?" asked the man at the news
stand.
ST guess they were, . replied the Sum-
NIT pioneer. ''Why, they were so
plentiful that sometimes they few
around in swarns Why, often in the
dusk, when they could not see very we'll,
they would fly into each other and drop
to- the ground. have often gone out in
the morning with good sized basket
and gathered them as you would chest
nuts"
''Were the rabbits pretty thicl1?'' ask
ed the keeper of the newsstand.
-"Were they thick?" repeated the old
man, with dilated eyes and an express
sion of wild surprise at such an inter
rogation. ''Well, should say that thick
is not the word to give you a fair idea
of it. have seen the earth almost gray
with them, and it was common pre-
caution to have ones garden supplied
with a couple of beagles to keep the rab-
bits from coming in and eating the
green stuff. I remember once when I
fell down stairs in the dark one
night
Here the old man paused to re1ight
his cigar, and asked to start him
again:
How did you come to fall down
stairs in the dark?''
st stepped on rabbit and slipped at
the top Of the stairs. After that 1 al
ways set rabbit traps all over the house
just to be on the safe side. Sometimes
I'd come down in the morning when
the front door was carelessly left open
the night before and find that had
caught more squirrels and rabbits than
my family could eat in a week.
''What did you usually do with them
if you didn't eat them?'' asked the news
dealer.
Used them for fertilizing the fields
Every fall we set nets and drove them
into it. After we thought we had
enough we scattered them over the
fields like seed and plowed them I'M
DER
1.-THE quail must have been album
dant, I remarked.
''Well, rather, - replied the old man,
warming up afresh. ''They were so
plentiful that only colored people would
eat them. These birds were considered
the cheapest and commonest kind of food
to be had. High toned, prosperous people
ate salt pork, which greatly excited the
envy Of people whose circumstances COM
PEELED them to consume quail and wood
cock. have seen the air fairly black
with them, and when 7 sat on my piazza
at night had to use fan to keep them
from flying in my face. -
Here the old pioneer heaved sigh for
the present condition of Summit and
away, probably to lose himself
in happier thoughts and visions.
r. K MUNKITTRICK.