The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-03-22
A FIDDLE FOR A FARM.

! It's the day OF Judgment. guess.
1 growled Lee Hail. scTambling out OF his
/ attenuated bed and scowline at the sun
which flooded his shack with brazen SPLEEN
dor, Il might as well quit. I've got 70
cult Its a country OF sunlight and starry
alton"
He dragged on his threadbare garments
I with the languor of Respondent WEAKNESS
and went ont into the day. The sun
was just spurning 2 din bank Of scat
tering fog and sailing boldly forth across
+ a sky OF dazzling blue South. north and
west not q fleck Of Vapor oulled or di-
versilied the terrible monot0uy cf azure.
From the east came Il CRY, warm wind
that curled the loose. red SAID Of the
prairies into spirai ghosts that waved
and fiuttered as il tauEting the faniish-
ing farmer IL his dry desOlaUon.
Han walked around his warped. un-
PAINTED shanty and leaned weakly against
the wall. peering sleepiiy through the
dust for some sign OF hope. There vas
+ none. The mountains rose ike dua reefs
above the sec. of purple air that stretched
from his feet to the west. stirred only BIZ
the eddies of wind-blown dust-s.fting,
scattering, singing dust. that blurred his
I eyes. chafed his nostrils and choked HIM.
NO use" sighed the broken boomer.
1T Will never rain. I'm all In. III
get back TO Gods country-if can
he hshed a small piece Of bacon out u
ii DlQ ldLl can ara U44Nl titiltA a t4tAt4>
/ or stale bread. Then ne broke UP an ola
soap box. his only piece Of furniture ex-
/ cept his bed. and made a fire. With the
/ fetid water he had husbanded for days he
made some coffee. and having baked his
( bacon, sat down on his bed TO breakfast.
IN eat il all. he said. speaking aloud,
+ a lonely men must do. If poor Dexter
+ i5 able TO carry me I ought To reach
town by noon. If he isn't, u have 10
walk it today
/ Having bolted his coarse meal he took
+ the old rope bride from its nail and went
} 70 catch his horse. Walking across his
red wheat field he kicked away the loose
ridges and saw the dried-up grain, inno-
! cent of the quicSening nourishmeut OF
snow or rain, scatter like chan before
I the grooming wind The rolling plain OF
brOwnish-red burrows looked ike an I'M
dulous sweep OF corrugated iron. its loos-
ened surface disintegratng into useless
rust.
"Oh. Christ. he murmured. for he loved
+ the very dirt which ne had toiled over in
the days of his hope oh. God, II II
would only rain
+ But in a parched valley ne found Dexter
his old horse. stark and still so he threw
away the useless bride. and with his
hands behind him and his head bowed on
his breast, went back TO his shanty. From
the wall where he had tackled them ne
thrust them into his pocket and sighed
+ Then to the last, the picture OF his sweet
heart, he looked up and said:
Come, Tilly it ali off; we must go. /
+ was game because knew YOU had your
I heart set on the new country. but You
don't want me to starve, do you. Tiliy?
He took down her picture. tenderly
! wiped away the dust and wrapped IL In
a bit of old newspaper. Then he got
down the faded green bag which held his
fiddle, fondled il a moment and took It
out. He PLAYED, Home Sweet Home
wandering again into the sunlight and
scanning the horizon for a glimpse Of rain
clouds But the sky from rim TO rim was
/ fiat and radiant now with harsh, staring
/ light and as the wind rose and enveloped
him with a geyser Of suffocating dust he
/ struck up THE Devils Dream and went
( back into his house. Then. with only
/ his photographs, his fiddle and the load
Of conscious defeat, he passed out of his
abandoned home and set forth for Som
eTset. sixteen miles away.
Two miles off on the crest of a hill
/ doomed the shack of his nearest neighbor.
If higgins is home, thought Hail. IN
OFFER him my claim for $50. Ny shacks
worth that.
But higgins wasn't home His door
was locked and on its middle panel was
q notice Back tonight" Tired already
/
into the bed Of dry creek and followed its
meanderings IN the hope of coming upon
n pool that had escaped the sun and wind
but the bed Of the creek was only a dry
slough Of dazzling sand, through which
he floundered for miles without hndinr
even a sign Of verdure. It was March
and rainless autumn and winter seemed
to have baked the world into brick with
its warmth and ground it to powder with
its rushing winds.
At dusk. footsore and famished. Han
was yet five miles from the town. Then
nc met Higgins, lettering homeward on
his mule, laden with packages Of grub.
What ye goin', Hall? Amt quittin'
are ye?"
yep; quitting. Higgins. Got any wa
teri
cot a sup or two" said Higgins.
dropping off his mule and handing over
his bottle Hungry? Go ahead. eat
en- They're soda crackers. So Yer
quittin What's the matter? Couldn't
ye hold out a spell longer. It's got 10
rain one o these days
No use. Higgins. / can't get any more
grub. Wilkins won't stake me for another
bin till it rains. My horse died yes
teTday and l can't haul water. m all
in Whatll YOU give me for the place."
so yer goin TO relinquish. m darn
sorry. Oh I don't want no more land.
/ Chances is I'll relinquish, too. II il don't
rain fore June. Let's sit down.
They sat in the shade of a great rock
which shielded them from the sun and
dust. Han, eager 70 get at least 50 for
his claim, described his shanty and his
farm in language that seemed mockery
even TO himself.
''No. I won't buy it." declared Higgins.
''but in tel we what I viii do Han; I'm
) tired O. ridin and the suns hurtin my
ewes. III set here an play we seven-up fur
your claim. Bet sc twenty agin the place
/ can beat Sc
How many gamesT Five?" Han was
sweeping the sky With his feverish eyes
Moo. Higgins. It's getting dark We
haven't time. but III play you one
game
-Au right. twenty agin the fsrm?'
"No. The fiddle against ten.
Go ye
And as they played in the fading light
the wind changed round 70 the north.
so that they must put little rocks on the
cards 10 keep them on the fat stone
which was their table. Bat Hal. lost. and
though his neighb0r leased him 90 play
. FOR the claim 'agfn' twenty the Young
fellow. sulleu now and dtspirted. refused
and passed over the old fiddle which had
been the solace ~ his months of loueli-
ness BE borrowed a dollar and some
crackers. and as Higgins mounted his
mule and set off with. Better luck ueXI
time. the tired youth let his chin rest
unon his knees and slept. When he woke
his back was sore with leaning against
the bowlder and his Mruhs ached- He
Clent away fnto the dry sand. set warm
with the heat OF the san, snd- starlrE into
tre cl0udless riEhr. counted q thousand
stars and dreamed 81 his home ia the
e. $1,000 . ----+r- --frf,- r..- 4r.- -A-s