The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1898-09-24

SOAA LII w W.
cinder path, five feet in width, ran
along the fence to the right, to dart at
irregular intervals, zig-zag across the
road and back, when a ditch would bar
its straight-away progress.
Shall we take the path?" 1 said to
Phyllis.
NO." she answered. II would rather
shun all works of man and stick to ma
ture on this occasion. You don't find
much nature in a crowded, bustling
city, human or otherwise, so when it
is observable, I prefer it to artificial
ity." Phyllis always was more or less
OF a philosopher. We chung to the
center of the road.
Past the Water Works park-with it's
Arabian array of flowers and foliage
designs and it's gateway, as chaste a
bit Of monumental architecture as one
may see in a half weeks journey in
Europe-we sped.
The air was soft. and though the sun
shone brightly, warmly, the. breeze
from h north, blowing across fields
and farmyards, was so filled with the
odor Of spring and flowers and growing
things that in deep inhalations of the
fragrance we forgot the heat and rode
on and on, oblivious to it.
Il wonder how many persons there
are in Detroit" remarked Phyllis as
we slipped by a farmyard at whose
gate, a mere opening in the hedge.
grew a great lilac bush in full bloom
that thrnry Gtccor -
us as we passed-"who know how to
ride a bicycle?"
Il have understood that there are
81 ,O00," l said.
She locke at me strangely for an
instant, as though trying to determine
the manner of my answer, and then
she said, II do not mean that. mean
how many are there who get all the
good that can be gotten out of riding.
There are those, l am sure, who would
never think of whirling into the coun-
try as we are doing, between fields of
waving grain, over a road as good for
tires and muscles as their pavements.
and into the very heart of peace and
happiness. They think Of their wheels
merely as contrivances to hurry them
to n from their business. Thew do
not know them as little winged gods
who in a trice can take them out of
their sordid and commonplace world
into the dearer, sweeter world OF
dreams and country life. The country
to them is a sort Of indistinct land
where the women wear calico and sun
bonnets and the men blue jeans and
heavy cow-hide boots, and all have
chores to do. They forget the fra
GRANGE of the flowers, the beauty of the
fields and the tranquility of life itself.
They know nothing of the wild things,
the bleating of the peaceful sheep. and
the far away lowing Of cattle that
stand all day knee deep in some cool
running stream beneath the dropping
branches Of a gently-waving willow,
and ~contentedly chew their cuds and
whisk at flies. What an education it
would be to many city men and wom-
en-, tired with the noise of the town,
yet bearing up under it by sheer ex-
erted will, to come out here in the
quiet open country and spin along
awheel as we are doing"
When Phyllis had ceased her rhap-
sody. to which I agreed in every point,
she said, falling to the commonplace
with the gentle art of a true poet.
There are some COWS over in that
stream. Why don't you AXE them?"
We both dismounted, and Phyllis,
~steadying the camera on a post, took"
the cows.
Behind us We had left a long stretch
of beautifully smooth country road one
of the best to be found anywhere for
wheeling and before us lay the cycle
path now answering and stretching
away to a thin strip of black ribbon
that finally converged to a point and
disappeared. into the horizon beneath
the branches a long way ahead. From
the point where we managed to take"
the cows the road was beautiful. The
green fields spread away as far as could
be seen on the left, and on the right
was the lake a great expanse of green
ish blue with a black dot here and
there far out, a cloud of smoke over
hanging it to tell us OF the passing
of a ship. Straight ahead we caught
a glimpse now and then through the
trees of homes of almost palatial mag
ni1cence. To the right again between
the road and the lake shore were little
places like the tiny toy houses OF the
Tyrol only not so gingerbready. Their
back yards raj to our highway, and
tAey were set far down ON the shore,
close to the water, that, it seemed,
miaht almost reach the window stills in
q storm.