Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1901-06-21

He could work up to something big
by degrees. she told him, if he found
that the business paid.
He purchased 90 hens, and they
went right to business at once and
scratched out SO worth of dahlia-
bulbs and about a peck of gladiolas
and all the choice seeds which Mrs.
Perkins had planted with SO much
care in her flower beds
And by and by Perkins thought he
would set a hen. Chickens were such
lovely and interesting creatures! So
he put Is eggs in box, and caught 4
hen and put her on them, and she
pecked the skin off his wrist and
then few into his face and broke five
of the eggs and screeched bloody muir
der and exhibited signs of total de-
prayity of temper, and finally flew
through the wood shed window into
the top of the horsechestnut tree,
where she sat all day, and would not
be poked out with fishing pole or
stoned out by a number of stones
hurled in her direction. And Mr.. Per-
kins told his wife that probably the
reason she would not "set" was that
the man who sold her to him had
been cheat and sold hens that had
never been taught to "set."
Perkins next venture was a COW,
ga gentle creature and a mixer and
pet for women and children" said
the mild-mannered old man of whom
| our hero purchased her.
So, when Perkins got her home, Mrs.
Perkins and the hired girl and the
| two boys and the baby all came out
| to see her.
We'll have bread and milk for sup
| per-" said Mrs. Perkins. It'll be so
| nice to know just what we're eating.
No filthy adulteration. declare,
am quite in love with her already
| She has beautiful eyes and such hand
| some amherst"
"Them is horns, ma'am," said Biddy,
the hired girl. land foine ones, too!
And faith, I never seen any finer in
this counthry.''
Can you milk her?'' asked Mrs.
Perkins, addressing her husband a lit
tie doubtfully.
milk her? OF course I CAM said
Mr.. Perkins. "Here are the directions
| in this book on dairying." And, pull
ing book from his pocket he began
| to read: Always be gentle with a
| cow. Never speak loud or cross. She
| will yield her milk more readily if
| the mixer sings or whistles while per-
| forming the operation of milking. Sit
| well forward and keep the pail just in
front of the hind legs. IF the animal
whisks her tail SO as to be trouble
some, tie it to the leg There, Anna,
what can be easier than that? You
car hum some soothing tune, I will
| whistle, and we shall succeed as well
as if we had been born farmers"
| Perkins placed himself in a position
| on an inverted fecd-box and started up
his whistling, and Mrs. Perkins began
to hum. The hired girl stood with her
hands on her hips, and the two young
members of the Perkins family looked
on with eager delight.
| The COW looked surprised. She
stopped chewing her cud and turned
out the whites of her eyes, as she
glanced ap3rehensively behind her.
She fetched her tail a vicious switch
and knocked the glasses out of Per
kin's spectacles and filed his eyes
with strong-smelEng dust.
81 must tie her tail,'' said he, after
he had got his eyesight rubbed back
again. 'That is what the book says.
Strange did not do that at first
So Mr.. Perkins proceeded to tie it.
The COW evidently did not relish this
method of being anchored to herself.
and lifted her foot and sent the milk.
pail spinning across the yard, and the
half-pint of milk that was in it spat-
| tel ed over the front of Mrs. Perkin's
brown silk dress.
l ss0h the h11rninD Shonoio
Bridget Cali that illigant milk vast
| ed"
'sThere is enough more,'' said Mr..
Perkins, "but the cow does not like
having her tail tied to her own leg
Let me see; is it possible I have mis-
| understood the meaning of the author
OF this hook? I must have. It reads
thus: Tie the tail to the Leg It must
mean to the leg of the mixer. OF
| course that is what it means! How
strpid Of me not to understand. Bird
| get, you bring me piece of line and
Ill fix her"
Bridget brought the line and Per
kins took twist with it around the
animals tail and secured it to his own
leg.
'sNow she's all right said he
"Anna, you may sing a little, guess.
Something soft and soothing, to show
| her thai we are her friends
As he spoke he put his leg forward
to sit down. and the motion frightened
the line on the animals tail. She
| gave leap forward and upward, vent
ed loud and angry roar and over the
wall she went, and streaked it through
the back yard with Perkins in her
| wake like the tender to locomotive
"Tarnationi" yelled Perkins, fran
tioaIly.