Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1901-07-31
Woolly Wisp
By john Horald Hamlin.
THE mere fact that he was sheep
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had not always focked with Virginia's
J ienizens, yet he lived there when that
olace reeked of wild, western life, and
the sheep seemed not at all out of his
element on the gay Comstock Lode.
Woolly was a derelict, lone lamb
when first he entered Virginia's pre-
.incts, abandoned by careless shep-
herd and pursued by coyotes into the
very heart of that busting mining
camp. The miners were just chang
ing shifts when the lambkin darted
down C street, night shadows threw
gloom abroad, and the diminutive, fit
ting white object mystitied the miners
as they trooped homewards. One
thick-tongued individual shouted out:
Look at it, boys! Ills will O. wisp!'
The "wisp' bleated pitifully, and the
merry men laughed loudly as they be-
held a timid lamb. "Not will o. wisp,
S,imps, but a decidedly woolly one,
mani"
In such fahsion did the sheep come
by his name, and from that date
Woolly Wisp played privileged role
in Virginia's circles. No one person
claimed him. He was public prop
erty, and consequently Woolly's
bringing up lacked a certain proper
ton of home influence so essential
to the proper training of young things.
The first real wicked deed Woolly en-
acted endeared him to the whole bevy
of school children. If the sheep had
reasoning powers, one would be in
clined to believe he maliciously
planned his assault against Prof. Wig
site, principal of the Virginia schools.
The principal adhered to the rod
motto, and the pupils hated him much
and feared him more. Prof. Nlgstle
was partial to tan shoes; he cared not
what style they were so long as the
color cleaned yellow. His most recent
acquisition in shoe leather made glad
his heart-a glaring saffron shade, and
so,es that squeaked in a minor key,
thus attracting not only the eye but
! the ear a. well.
Woolly Wisp stood in side street
one bright morning. The hang of his
head bespoken dejectedness; bat
tered tin can. suffixed, explaining his
bad mood. Wooily frequently ratified
tin-ware through the precipitous
streets on Mt. Davidson's slopes. 1t
always ruffled his temper, which was
pretty average bad at its best. While
brooding in this ugly state of mind, a
tall, spare man with wildly yellow and
noisy shoes adorning his pedal extrem-
tiles squeaked by in insolent complai-
sance. Woolly stamped his foot; the
can clattered behind him-off he went
not like, but in reality, a bait erihs
ram. Prof. Tigstie sprawled quite
across C street. Many of his irrepres
sible pupils gathered about the faller
owner of yellow shoes and lost dignity
Woolly Wisp tarried not, but continued
on his career at rafting pace.
After that star performance of the
sheep. no youth in any OF the Virginia
"cliques" ever again attached thing:
to his tail. He was, in their eyes,
Great ure to he revered as the hero wht
"downed" the terrible Wigstie. In sucl
guise Woolly commanded all due re
spect from the younger generation. ant
his future popularity was assured sim
ply by that one daring act.
Woolly wasn't a traditional lamb, TO
he never ventured near the school
house. The truce established between
himself and the school children oc
CURED at a too recent date to carry an.
weight with him. He distrusted impul
sive youth, and many times he betool
himself to the outskirts of Virgini
City that he might be entirely out o
sight and hearing of rough youngsters
hn n
edge. in house that looked three ste
ries high, front view, and a mere sheC
back view The steepness of the side
hill site accounted for this disparity
The small front yard blaZed with bi
sunflowers and brilliant dahlia:
Wool!y admired this rare garden-spoi
and forced an entrance one buckles
afternoon The professor, returnin
from school. espied the trespasser
his wrath f1ared forth, and he Dor
down upon the sheep in a frenzy
Woolly realized that safety lay i
fight, and he Immediately took tina
course. Away went pedagogue an
ram, careening down the mountain
At a moment when the race SCENE
lost to Prof Wigstie, dire calamit
befell the pursued. An old mining
shaft, partially obscured by sage
brush, yawned directly in the sheep
path. He disappeared down its biac
depths. No sign, no sound could Pro
Wigstie detect of the ingulfed tol
ment.
Good enough! That blasted beas
is a hoodoo, and it's good radiance c
this petted Woolly Wisp."
The query: HAS anyone seen Woo
ly Wisp?" went the rounds of all Vii
, ginia City. Many days had elapse
! since anyone last saw the sheep. Th
, miners missed him; so did the children
Perhaps they began to long for the e.
hilarating spectacle of Woolly. wit
can attachment, scuttling madly u
hill and down.
The removing of the $500, o00, oC
worth of silver and gold from til
heart of Mt. Davidson necessitated
wonderful amount of excavation. 7
say that the whole mountain is hone,
combed is plain statement of trutl
A force of men picking in tortuor
drift heard muf1ed ba-a, ba-a. The
; stopped work; caught the sound agail
and, with a few strokes of picks, brol
through into an old shaft. Rather a
emaciated-looking sheep met the
surprised gaze. One of his horns hs
| been broken off: he appeared slight