Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1897-06-11
LOVE IN THE DESERT.

/ lJON IL i " i III L. DLCLIl i t.
One day boy came running to his "a
ther with book. what does this word
mean?" he asked for he believed that
his father knew all the world and most
Of the things beyond. The parent be-
lieved that, too. and that is how the
child had come 10 imbibe the idea The
man looked and saw the word love. :"
do you know what that word means,
papa?" asked the boy
"Oh, yes, said the father And he
began thinking He thought for "A long
time, for there were so many things
love is that he hardly knew where To be-
gin defining And the longer he remain
eel silent the harder it seemed to find "a
beginning 1t is difficult to answer, ="
ne observed, and the boy interrupted
aim.
When we find difficult problem az
school, he said, 1--WE go TO the rule.
What is the rule about love?"
The father looked at him, but did not
answer He thought. Then he gazed
lnxiously about. and ont through the
window he saw man passing
"Ah, he said, there is Mr. Brown,
md | want 10 see him.
And he hurried out TO speak 10 the
man, and the boy never heard what love
g or what is its rule.
Ford. being quite satisfied that the
story was lie from the b. ginning and
that his search for the wonderful lost
desert tribe would result in no benefit 10
the Smithsonian institution, stopped to
rest in the shade Of the water wagon.
the wheels of which were sunk ] s inch
es into the roasting sand.
Look out, " he yelled 10 one Of the
drivers, "or this Nevada sun Will get
action on you and you viii pop like
corn Lord, ism It il hotl" And he looked
about at the blistering white and blue
and cudgeled out of his memory certain
verses:
And when grim spirits come to that cursd
land.
70 be where wanderers fell,
They look IN terror at the burning sand
And hurry back to hell
and that's desert Nevada, and where
we are driving and swearing and sweat.
man, who is lie. "
by the powers, it ism lie!" yelled
Graves, his assistant Look"
"A Chinese boyl" roared Ford. And,
ye gods, a redheaded Chinese boy, and
ON a camel, and in Nevadav'
Hong FOy was "A dismal failure. Nc
Goggin told him so daily. He could not
lamp Southern Pacific ties half as we'll
as 70 Heave, OF whatever the pockmark-
ed Chinaman S name was, and Fon kee
could almost carry IA $50 pound to tho
yard rail by himself, while Hong Foy,
being young and pale and calm, found
it difficult TO lug even the spike maui or
the pinch bar Wherefore the invest
ment Of the Southern Pacific Railroad
company in Hong Foy was denominated
by Mike McGoggin, the section fore
man, as weird and wonderful failure
only McGoggin used words of the
same import, but Of different pronuncia-
ton. Hong Fox, however, could cook,
and he showed Maggie McGoggin how
to make sorD out Of potato sprouts
which McGogc u declared to be the tri-
umphant work Of the devil. Soup, by
the way, is thing not to be expert
mented on when the section boarding
house is at place in Nevada where the
water is brought i'll tank from sta
tion so or 100 miles away. McGoggin
appreciated the soup, and because of il
RETAINED for two weeks from discharg
ing Hong Foy But on Saturday night
Of the month Of June, III the year 1881,
he threw bolt at Hong Foy, hit him
with crooked spike and made a run 70
the Toulouse to get wrench TO kill
him with He bad seen Maggie when
she kissed the young Chinaman III the
kitchen.
In the shade of the Toulouse, after
McGoggin had retired, Hong Foy crept
like dog which had been whipped out
of its kennel but knows not where TO GO
He knew two lines Of steel over which
Cinnamon labored while "A redheaded
white man swore volubly at them. He
knew a blue horizon, and these things
were all he knew in that land-except-
ing the sun Where could he go? AS he
leaned deJectedly against the Toulouse
and thought of his love making he
wept, and weeping, Maggie found him.
Hong Foy had not dreamed of the flu
ture. and had not expected the coming Of
the girl He had expected to sleep i'll
the Toulouse that night and be beaten
again III the morning. But Maggie had
planned. The best part Of her plan was
that she had brought huge bottle, and
it had alter in it, 1--WE will go that
way. she said, pointing out into the
desert
1t is not so bad TO walk all night
through the desert if you are sure you
are going TO have shade in which &c
rest the next day But the next day
Game, and as Maggie and Hong Foy
looked about them all they saw was
what couple of ants in plasterer's
box of lime see. Far, far, far away,
round about and near il was white