The Iola register., 1896-12-25

no one who knows Funston doubts
but what he meant it as he wrote it
for he is master of the picturesque
language of his native state. This is
what Scott said about him:
"Fred Funston is a mighty unique
and picturesque personality. 1 have
known him ever since he was born.
He went to school at Carlyle and later
came to lola and graduated from the
High school, Then he went to the
university at Lawrence, off and on,
for two or three years. He always
had the newspaper disease and had
various experiences along that line.
He worked for several months on a
newspaper in Fort Smith, Ark, and
then came back to become collector
on the Santa Fe trains between Kan
sas City and FL Paso. He used to
tell a funny little story about one Ofhis
first days as collector. He had just
received and put on mis- bran new un-
form, aid felt eight feet high. Soon
after the train pulled out of the Kan
sas City depot it stopped at Turkey
Creek. AT that instant Funston
threw open the door of the Pullman
car and entered. 1t was still as death
until a small boy piped out: Say
NAV, say. Look at that funny little
sawed-Off conductor Fred imme-
diately shrunk back to life size.
"In 1890 FunstOn got an "ppOint-
ment from the Agricultural depart
ment at Washington to go into Mon
tana to collect grasses and other
characteristic fora. He knocked
around the country and acquitted
himself so we'll that the following
year he was sent with an expedition
iuto Death Valley, in the Mojave
desert, to collect the flora of that
region.
"In Death Valley he had some hor-
rible experiences. The party he was
with all returned mentally or physic-
ally wrecked from the hardships, and
from the heat and thirst. Funston
was the only one who escaped. Here
is story of Funston in Death Valley
that illustrates the characteristics of
the man. One morning he started off
across the desert to ride to pOstoffice
12O miles away to mail some important
letters. He rode all day and found
that he could not ride all night. He
had no forage for his horse and his
supply of water was one quart in the
hanging by his side. He
decided to go back to camp.
"He picketed his pony and lay down
and slept until 3 O'Clock in the mOrn-
ing. Then he awoke to retrace his
steps. He calculated that the water
in his canteen would give him three
sups of water every hour until he was
'afeIy back. He rode slowly along |
until the sun came up aud cooked the
air. Then his horse gave out. He
iismounted aud walked, leading the
jhIrsty, exhausted animal He was
along, ankle deep in the al
Kali sand, OH the edge of the Death
Valley basin. when away across on
he other side he heard two shots.
InvoIuntarily he started in the di-
'ection of the sound which seemed to
promise relief and human companion
hip, but not seeing smoke rising any,
where he stopped and waited. Soon
here were two more shots fired ap-
but little in front of him,
md he ran madly to where he thought
he sound came from. Nothing was
here but the binding alkali, shim-
nering under the pitiless sun. He
vent back to the trail where the
Exhausted pony had lain down, and
began to coddle it and talk to it as if
t were human. Soon his eyes fell on
he canteen of water; and he drained
t to the last drop. The refreshing
lraught brought back his senses, and
le realized that the sounds he had
leard had come, as he expressed it,
rom something popping in his head,'
md that he had been delirious. He
ealized also that he was likely to get
n the same condition again, and that
lis only hope was to keep going.
And so he coaxed the tired pony to its
eet and again set out upon the trail,
aging to himself over and over, Il
must keep going' Il must keep GO
ng.' NO matter what 1 see or hear,
must keep going The effects of the
Vater passed away, and again and
Or hours he was delirious, laughing
nd joking with friends who were a
hOusand miles away, petting and
alking to his pony. But through it
II the sentence that he had stamped
pon his brain while he was yet sane
'as sounding in his ears and he
Kept going 1t was four o'clock the