The Van Buren press. [volume] (Van Buren, Ark.) 1859-1914, 1898-03-05

Il new kind OF volcano. opening
through the wagon-rack. had suddenly
burst into a fierce eruption Of dusi.
hay and dried clorer-heads. Bib. the
burlv. bent his great back and gBarly
muscles 10 keep himself from being
fairly buried. The hay rolled back IN
der the caves in great pillows. and
Teddy and I plunged wildly about IN
the midst painting with heat. choking
with dust. and streaming with sweat.
We thought we'd die.
The air under the barn-shingles was
ike the fiery furnace Of Shadraeh,
Meshach and Abednego. II seemed as
If all the heat Of the tropics was pour
ing in a food on that single roof. The
slow seconds erawled endlessly. 1t
seemed TO US that five. ten, fifteen min
utes must have passed. whole half
hour-a whole purgatorial eyele-and
still the clover rolled in on Us. Oh,
for drink of waterl Ny throat thirst
ed Ike MONDAY sand on the Sahara.
The game vas up long ago.
SAY" gasped Teddy. as his head
emerged from a hay-breaker that had
Just rolled him over, .'can you see the
rack p
Yes. if we could only see The boards
of the rack. That meant a speedy de-
liverance out Of al miseries. gazed
anxiously al Sister Anne on Bluebeard's
tower. great bar of sunlight shot
slantwise athwart the load from
western window, and pierced the eddy
ing dust-eloud.
Full ia the light of it ! saw Uncle
John. his wet, red face comforting. and
his lips COMPRISING as he stretched
his powerful muscles TO his task, the
polished steel of his pitchfork tines
flashing through the hay chaos around
rs like the sword of destroying angel.
No rack was TO be seen, but the hay lay
low on the wagon.
Uncle john was swinging into the
homestretch. Then it was that he
shook loose the reins on his reserve en-
ergy as n racer leaps under the spur.
It was a wonderful sight-that pam
Their tread of his. up and down the load;
the quick plunge of the pitchfork into
the brown bosom of the clover; the
sudden sweep of the hayeock whirling
roofward, the hickory fork-handfe
springing under the strain like violin
bow.
Henry stood, watch in hand, beside
the wagon, utterly self-forgotten, his
eyes shining with excitement, his body
bent eagerly forward and swaying
slightly in unison with Uncle Johns.
All at once | gave great shout: THE
rack the raeki"
Two dozen more great clover masses
shot toward the roof from Uncle Johns
mighty fork, and it was clear from
end 10 end lie turned instantly TO
Henry for the result. A silence fell
as the collegian bent over his watch.
Bill leaned painting on bis fork, his
dripping face bent anxiously down
ward. His jaws stopped their power
full play on his tobacco "cud." We
caught few indistinct words from
Henry.
GLOW is it?" called Bill. impatiently
Uncle John whirled his victorious
weapon three times around his head.
Just three minutes and 50 seconds
he shouted. "Hoorayi"
And Teddy and ], half dead with
WEAKNESS, Strengthened up our aching
legs and echoed through our parehed
throats parched and feeble "Hooray.'
Ever since that summer day, when
Henry, during his summer visits 10 the
country, meets an uncommonly big.
square-built towering load of hay
sweeping along the dusty road, with a
sun-browned farmer perched atop, he
takes off his hat and salutes.-Youth's
Companion.