The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1895-07-20
THE MORAL OF 1T.

1t was after sunset before Calkins
succeeded In recapturing the two ex-
perienced burros, who, desiring a
break in their journey toward the
desert. had withdrawn during the
night and found restful seclusion in
the dense pine oak brush on the
neighboring hillside.
Thus it came about that the ruddy
light of Calkins' campfire again at
tracted us. The conversation took O
wide range at first, but approached
q focus when one of the party, the
old lady with the black mits, refer
red to the generally prevailing
drought She mentioned in this con
ncction a recent newspaper report of
a church meeting in some arid sec
ton of the northwest, where general
prayers for rain were offered with
such immediate effect that the con
%gtegation, who were unprovided with
umbrellas, were drenched on their
way home.
Purely a coincidence, fippantly
suggested Manton, a recent importa.
ton from the effete east.
Il regard it as a most striking il.
lustration of the efficacy of all sin
cere and earnest prayer, "%reproving-
ly remarked the old lady with the
mits
What do you say, Mr.. Calkins?:"
inquired Manton unabashed. I'm
sure you'll agree with me-"
Our host stirred up the fire before
expressing himself. You're dead
right, ma'am!" he at length replied,
ignoring Manton. There's nothin
prayer won't do if you're in earnest
and pray hard enough, and don't
pray for too much nor too little, and
stop right there But you can handi.
cap a good, strong, willin prayer,
same as you a anything else, and it's
bound to balk and make trouble.
Il fear | do not grasp your mean
ing, Mr.. Calkins," said the old lady
with the mits, laying down her knit
ting and regarding Calkins with a
look of puzzled inquiry
'P'r'aps | wasn't very clear,
ma'am, but | had in mind a queer
experience of my in the arrest
prayer line somo years ago, way up
north in Trinity, which'll illustrate
my meanin better'n any explanation
| can give" Calkins settled himself
again out of the line of the sparks
and smoke, which his late attention
to the fire had provoked, and began:
1T was in tho winter of 1875, and
| was carryin mail from Gorman's-
over to the Brown Bear and Round
out camps-and made the round trip
once a week on snowshoes When |
was at Germans, which was four
days in the week, l stopped with a
Frenchman named Prot, who work
ed a drift claim on the river. We
bunked in O shake cabin, back of the
hotel corral, and got along middlin
well for the first month we was to-
gether. Evenin's we'd generally turn
up at the hotel, and after sittin by
the fire with the rest in the saloon
for awhile we'd finally drop into old
mar Germans private parlor and
listen to Kittie German playin on tho
parlor organ. Always liked music,
but hadn't no faculty at producin
it, so I'd just sit and listen while
Kittie'd play, and Prot, who had a
big, throaty voice, would now and
then sing to Kittie's accompaniment
This was all well enough at first,
but after two Or three weeks l found
it dull and uninterestin, just sittin
there on the cold, slippery, black
haircloth sofa, with never a word
nor a chance for one with Kittie, who
seemed all took up with Prot and
the music, and only'd speak to me
when she wanted another stick on
the fire. Then, after awhile, ! stop
ped goin into the parlor and would
sit in the saloon until bedtime, feel
in mad all through to hear Prot
singin and Kittie playin away for
dear life to keep up with him on the
gaspin old organ in the next room
Then | grew bitter, because | knew
that while naturally Kittie liked me
best of the two at the same time
she was worldly minded like her ia
ther, the old man German, and felt
Prot was a better match on account
of his river claim, while | wasn't
much account, from a ready money
point of view. Then of course l had
a fallin out with Prot about nothin
in particular Oh the surface, as l can
recollect of. l did pretty much all
the quarrelin. I'm free to allow, for
Prot said nothin, but just laughed
in a way that made me madden, and
moved out of the shake cabin to an
old adobe higher up the hill.
Next day | started off before sun
up on my regular trip with the mail
for Brown Bear and Roundout. l al
ways got the best start l could, SOS
to gel we'll up the range while the
crust was hard, and before the
had been up long enough to mellow
things up and make it awkward for
me, for wasn't very handy vel yet
With them long Norwegian snow
'hoes never stopped on the trip