The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1900-192?, 1902-08-12
AND THE BAND PLAYED ON.
From DemersviIle to Big Fork, There
and Back Again.

| anu BACK again.
Three hours in the romantic groves
at Big Fork were passed in comfort
and pleasure by the city band and
their guests, who accompanied them
from Kalispell on the good ship
Klondyke, Sunday. About 125 people
all told enjoyed the excursion down
| the river and across the lake, the
| day being a perfect one and not an
untoward incident marring the en-
| ioyment of the occasion. At Egan.
Hodgsons, Plummer and Holt the
party was materially increased by
our country cousins" mostly of the
| female persuasion, fully a dozen ladies
| boarding the boat at Egan and at
| Hodgson the bevy of beauty already
| in possession of the quarter deck
was augmented by , the arrival of
more of the fair sex.
Leaving Demersville at about $50
| the trip down the river was delight
fully cool and invigorating, and the
musical selections with which the
| band accompanied the rhythmic throb
of the engines made the time pass
| quickly. The band, too, seemed al
most as indefatigable as the monster
OF steam, and probably played tune
every ten minutes outward and home
ward bound, besides rousing the
echoes from the beetling cliffs and
dense woodland at the side of the
Big Fork.
Basket lunching was the order Of
| the day, and the fortunate ones who
had wife and family along enjoyed
the same in true picnic style, only a
| few of the worst of us, and one or
two young couples who had no time
| to devote to a topic so sordid as
grub" until they felt hungry, trudged
over the winding road and up the hill
to the hospitable Sitter mansion
where a dinner was served which full
ly repaid the exertion to get to it, but
Mr.. Sitter has erred in having his
| house set so high upon a hill if he
expects to make much profit off of
| tourists, for after climbing that hill
one becomes possessed of an appetite
which draws no lines, not even on
onions, though accompanied by a
dainty miss-in fact the onions were
accepted for what they were worth by
at least one of the aforesaid young
couples. But like the holiday there
was an end to the dinner, and the
next two hours were absorbed in
wandering along the banks of the
glorious stream, visiting the power
house, fishing, boat riding and loung-
ing about in the shade listening to the
music of the band.
The band colors were White and
Brown for this day, applause greet
ing their every appearance across
the horizon, tho they were always
losing them, and when Captain Hodge
sounded the gel away signal of course
the White and the Brown were anx-
iously expected. btu s5j 81.
Unfortunately Il no. passenger list
was preserved and the full list of
excursionists is not u obtainable, but
besides the wives and daughters of
the band members, nearly all of
whom attended, there is remembered
Mrs. Mcintosh and daughter, Mrs.
Dick, Mr. and Mrs. Robinson and
children, Miss Peters, Miss Tate, Mr..
and Mrs. Hodgson and the Misses
Hodgson, who were picked UP on the
river, Mr.. and Mrs. Plummer, Miss
Dodds and a dozen other ladies from
Egan, besides few scattering ones
who gave the signal from the various
| 4ho
: Those who had neglected to bring a
, full supply of refreshments were
, served with excellent lunches, ice
cream. lemonade and other bric-a-brac
! from a booth on the boat.
The trip up the river was a little
/ warmer than comfortable when you
could not avoid the sun, but the
scenery was at it's best and the mir
ror-like surface reflected green trees
and messy banks to behold which de-
lighted the eye Demersville was
sighted at O'clock and the tired but
extremely well pleased and satisfied
excursionists regretfully said adieu
dyke and faced the dust of the worst
road that any country was ever
cursed with, getting home by convey
ance as rapidly as the dust pits and
other pitfalls would permit. ....,-,
The band boys were very much pro-
d voked by the avarice displayed by the
various livery stables. excepting only
Johnny Gravelle's, who instructed
their drivers to collect SO cents each
way from the passengers, to and from
: the boat landing, after they had
agreed to charge only the customary
- fare of % cents. AS no one inquired
= the price until they had made the
- trip, and wished to get home again
- protests were vain, but the thrifty
g stablemen will not get the chance tt
= play that sinche game again on the