Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1897-11-18

| ever divulge how many quarts Of wa
| ter were surreptitiously added to the
| lemonade and iced tea.
1t was a glorious September day,
and the soft brown tints of early aut-
LINN were beginning to paint the hills
and valleys. Goldenrod was gently
waving in the soft air, and the bril-
| liant yellow of it's blossoms was here
| and there thrown into sharp contrast
| by the nodding plumes of Flora's
| Paint Brush, with the purple Of the
wild aster, or by the delicate pink of
| the blooming heather, for the Copalm
| Golf club boosted that theirs were the
only links in this country where
heather grew in it's wild state. But
beautiful as was the splendor of the
autumn, it attracted far less attention
than did Miss Cissy Prescott, who had
donned a brand-new golf costume to
grace the occasion. To say that she
locker ravisning in her Tam o'Shan-
ter cap, her bright plaid shirt waist
and skirt, with her crimson golf coat
thrown lightly over her arm, would
be telling but half the story, for the
Grim son made wonderful setting Tor
her dark beauty. She was bewitchlng,
bewildering, enchanting. She could
not play golf, to be sure, but she could
play golfers, and the havoc which she
wrought among the players assemb-
ling at the starting point was pitiful
oTtn X
IL essed it, she was terrible with her
maShie."
AS for Jimmie Bryce, he was in his
element, busting about, talking to
one, Joking with another, and eXpostu-
lating with a third. Blake looked on
in moody silence, leaning against his
bagful Of clubs. Presently 3 o'clock
rang out from the village church, and
Bryon stood up on the sand box of the
teeing ground and explained the terms
of a mixed Lonesome"
Each player was to draw number
and to receive a badge with the num-
Der inscribed upon it. The number Of
holes should be one less than the num-
Der of players. Each player was to
start in the order of his number and
play the first hole, the player hollng
out in the greatest number Of strokes
losing both hole and match. So on,
at each successive hole, a player
would be dropped, until the contest
should narrow itself down to two play
ers. These two should play out the
last hole, and the winner-on the
principle of the survival Of the f1ttest
should take the prize.
Bryce's address was greeted with
burst of enthusiasm. All agreed that
the new game promised sport, and
were eager to begin.
Billy Blake smiled grimly to him
self as Bryce announced the terms of
the contest. 1t was exactly the sort
Of match to make a club champion
smile. He pictured to himself another
cup added to the long row of trophies
on his bookcase. He almost laughed
aloud as he thought to himself how
favorably he should compare with his
rival in the coming contest-with
Bryce, who had always been regarded
as one of the poorest and NOSE erratic
players in the club. This was his
chance, and he meant to imprive it.
He would show Miss Cissy Prescott
which of the two was the better man.
Presently the club secretary came
forward and announced that as there
were thirty-six entries, it would be
necessary to drop two players at every
hole instead of one. This would leave
but two contestants at the eighteenth
hole. or ''the home" Then followed
the customary hustle of the drawing,
the confusion of explaining everything
over again, the calling of caddies and
the clashing of clubs. At last all was
in a wide semi-circle at the first tee
ing ground
The first hole was one of the most
difficult Of all the holes on the Copalm
links. 1t was generally known in the
club vernacular as the Horse ira
dition having it that wnen the huge
bunker of sand which crossed the
course had first been erected, the
skeleton of a horse had been I'M
earthed. In front of this bunker was
a trench which was justly dreaded
even by the most experienced golfer.
AS luck would have it, Bryce drew
the first number. He walked forward
to the teeing ground with the smiling
air of one who is self-conscious and
i'll at ease, and he haZarded a few
laughing remarks to the bystanders as
he stopped down to prepare his tee.
An experienced golfer would have Sc
lected him at once as one who was
sure to come to grief. It is always
bad sign when a player divides his at
tention between the audience and the
ball. But when one reflects that Miss
Cissy Prescott in her new costume
was standing in a group of girls and
eagerly watching the play Off" he
will surely find an apology in his
heart.
Bryce swung his driver once or
twice, and then stopped down and al
tered his tee a little. There was
a breathless pause. Up went the 1.-THE
and waving wooden club, and down it
came with a mighty swing. plump
| in the bunker!" was the cry, and, sure
enough, there was the new Silvertown
| ball lying in the middle of the bunker
| If he had tried he could not have driv-
en- it in a nastier place. Every one
! knew that it was all up with him, but
! still he played it out, and did the hole