Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1904-11-16
A Fool Streak
at Wigglefork
By T. H. rALMADGE
Copyright. 1904, by Daily story Pub. Co.,

IL can support one. 1t appears TO me
boy with a wheelbarrow could attend
to all the drayin' business there is
here, and then have time 30 cut the
family wood.-it does, by jinks."
Ezra Rollins seated himself in the
front doorway Of the Wigglefork gen.
eral store and cast severe eye down
the street in the direction of the rail-
way station where two drays were
racing to the accompaniment of tink
ling bells. L lien he rubbed his nose
and continued:
"Of course, just now while the quar-
ryin' business is goin on so big, there's
more or less jobbin' around to do
pretty near as much as would make 1t
worth while for one man and team,
but that amt goin' to last long. l
spotted that ledge of rock down there
30 years ago, and got an expert here
20 look it over. but he said 'twasn't
any use goin' into it; the stone was
practically worthless for buildin' pur-
poses. /So"-he smiled dryly-"when
these fellers come along and wanted
20 buy couple of acres OF my bluffs at
q good figure just naturally closed the
deal before they had chance to back
out. It's been a good thing for the
town, too" he added, rehectively.
They've got IL men workin', and
every one of 'em has got good appe-
lite and enough wages to keep it salts
ned. The Widow Ruggles is boardin'
nine Of 'em. She says she's goin' to
take a trip back to York state this
fall"
Salem Tunk. who had driven into
town with a load of hoop poles that
morning and was spending an hour
with his old friend, the storekeeper,
suddenly Strengthened his shoulders.
"She is. hey?" he said. 81 reckon
maybe I'd better see if she can't pay
me for that cow l sold her last fall"
"The girl bought clothes with the
profits" said Mr.. Rollins. "'Twas just
about then that Bill Elliott begun to
shine around her, and when a girls
got a beau she thinks she's in duty
bound to wear fancier clothes than she
would otherwise. I've got notion the
Ruggles girls a kind of a fool. It's
along Of her that Bill Elliott and his
brother Jim are maxim fools of them
selves with their drays."
80, 'tis?" Mr. Tunk appeared inter
ested. Both got hankerin' for her,
hey?"
'Seem to have" The storekeeper
arose to wait on a little girl who
wanted nickel's worth of brown
sugar. then reseated himself in the
doorway. "Jim's been overheard to tell
Bill that he begun maxim advances to-
wards the girl first, and Bills been
overheard to reply that nobody, not
even the girl, seemed to know it if he
was maxim advances, and it didn't
make dunn bit Of difference, anyhow.
Twas Bills idea-the comm to town
and startin' up dray line. He had
team of his own, and dray was the
only thing that 'peared to be in the
nature of a permanent town business
In connection with team. l reckon he
thought he had Jim fixed when he done
1t. OF course, you see. Teller in town
all the time where the girl is has got
= heap better show than the teller that's
four miles away on his pas farm, all
other things bein' equal. But 'twasn't
long before Jim scraped up team, too,
"a couple of bronchos that are afraid
Of their own shadders, and he rugged
up dray and come to town. Him and
Bill don't speak; don't reckon j.
words passed between EN- for six
months"
"But how do they manage the court
ln'?" asked Mr.. Tunk. amazedly.
well, they amt dom much courtin'.
You see, they can't. Sometimes Bill
he rxfv h.
with her. and sometimes Jim meets
her and chins with her. but beyond
that there amt much doin'. They
don't let each other get out of
sight very long at time; when
you hear one of their fool drays
talnklin' along, pretty soon you'll
hear the other. And in the meantime,
iust betwixt you and me,"-the voice
OF Mr.. Rollins fell to a whisper and a
roguish expression appeared in his
fishlike eyes-"unless things go con-
trary to what I'm f1gurin', I'll be mar
eyin' the widow fore them fool boys
come to their senses. Don't say moth
In Of 1t, Salem; she's kind Of beatin'
about the bush with me yet, after the
way of all women. but she's mine. /
alnt' no fool when it comes to-"
A customer appeared at this iuncture
"a woman who wanted Calico
Mr.. Tunk sat for time impassiveiy
blinking at the quiet scene presented
by the principal thoroughfare of Wig
glefork. with its three or four bust
ness houses, its iron pump and horse
trough, and its hotel-a plain frame
structure for which, as he CHANGED to
be aware, the Widow Ruggles had ex-
changed a portion OF the small farm
left her by her husband. AS Mr.. Turk
remembered the transaction. Mr.. Rol.
Inns. who had owned the residence now
BY exigency Of circumstance become a
hotel. had made very good bargain.
K1a had taken what hA cnnsidarad tha