Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1903-01-01
The TenderfOOt
in Wyoming ~
BY E. X. wooLEY.

THE Tenderfoot sidled cautiously
around the half-open door Of the
Managing Editors sanctum, after
which he deliberately and with ex-
treme care seated himself upon the
softest chair therein.
"Well, he sighed I'm back"
Il see, replied the Managing Editor.
"Where you been?"
Casper, Wyoming" said the Ten
derfoot.
"Couldn't you go little farther?'
facetiously inquired the Managing
Editor.
went as far as my pocketbook
would let me-" retorted the Tender
foot Besides, I've got some uncles
and cousins and aunts out there"
Here he shifted his position slight
~, with an accompanying groan.
"Sick?" unsympathetically asked
the Managing Editor
"Riding horseback" explained the
Tenderfoot. Zone Of those measly
little sleepy white-faced bron-
cos Had a back like an arch in a
suspension bridge Kicked in four d.
rections at once. See-sawed with both
ends and made me think Of my happy
childhood, while ! held onto the sad
dlehorn with both hands and said
prayer words in a different arrange
ment from what my mother taught
me- And when he finally lit on the
ground il Jared the marrow in my
spinal column. Say, you ought to see
me! j look like an Easter egg with
my clothes Oft"
The Tenderfoot groaned again. and
the Managing Editor leaned back in
his chair and yelled.
"oh, say!" he gasped. "You're good!
You are!"
The Tenderfoot looked fiattered and
continued.
Il stuck, though-but it's spoiled my
handsome, symmetrical shape. Been
walking bow-legged ever since.
you know, l always wanted to go
out west, so when ] got my two weeks
leave of absence ! counted over my
shekels and decided ! had enough to
get me out TO Casper and back. !
therefore packed my grip, wired one
of my uneles ! was coming and choo-
chooed out Of the railway station that
same evening.
''It takes two nights and two DAYS
to get TO Casper and wouldn't wall,
a mile TO view the scenery on the way
until after we passed the Wyoming
state line. From there on / found
sections worth seeing. II gets hilly
and rocky, and sandy and sagebrushy
and cactusy and snakey ] can't help
but think there must have been a vast
sea there in past ages. We went
through part Of the Wyoming bad
lands might remark that they are
positively obnoxious especially tn,
rattlesnakes. ! saw one IA feet long
two feet wide and"
FORGET it," suggested the Manag
ing Editor.
swell, ] don't want to build a resi-
dence in the Wyoming bad lands -
insisted the Tenderfoot. 1T IS hor
rible-horrible-the essence Of hope
lessness-a glaring, pitiless, poison
Gus. waterless hades for damned souls
Yet they say there are no more fer
tile lands in the world If there wa,
only water there. And farther on
/ where there is water, and wherever
the slim irrigation canals wind theil
way. there are green fields and tree,
and flowers. Teddy Roosevelt knew
what he was doing when he put thai
irrigation business through-and say
talking about Roosevelt, you ought L
hear what the wild and wooly ives
thinks about himl / didn't see a cow
boy out there who hadn't slept sid,
by side with Teddy when be was rough
ing it.
Il don't know what I expected al
Casper. Maybe thought II was mad,
up of tents, canyas-top wagons. veil
ing cowboys and dirty Indians. II
did was disappointed. When firs
. set foot in the place I thought T.,
got turned around and was back I,
Chicago. Honestl Lively2 Ii hal
three big hotels brimful an the time
three department stores doing rush
Ing business every day in the week